One Small Blue Bead

by Byrd Baylor, Ronald Himler (Illustrator)

A band of men sat huddled in a cave
Where coals of fire glowed warm and red.
Boy lay curled on a bed of leaves
But he sat up when an old man "This thought keeps spinning in my head.
There must be caves just like our own
Somewhere
And other axes made of stone
Somewhere
And other men like me."
Though only Boy shares his dream, the old man leaves the tribe to search for what the world may hold. Boy does the old man's work in his absence and watches hopefully for his return...
For any good thing
Can happen when
The world is full of
Tribes of men
Who know that they have brothers.
First published in 1965 and long out of print, Byrd Baylor's powerful story is newly illustrated with Ronald Himler's vigorous yet tender pictures.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Picture Books, Ancient History, Childrens, Native American, Prehistory

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1965

About the author

Byrd Baylor has always lived in the Southwest, mainly in Southern Arizona near the Mexican border. She is at home with the southwestern desert cliffs and mesas, rocks and open skies. She is comforted by desert storms. The Tohono O’odham people, previously known as the Papagos, are her neighbors and close friends. She has focused many of her writings on the region’s landscape, peoples, and values. Through her books of rhythmic prose poetry, written primarily for children, she celebrates the beauty of nature and her own feelings of rapport with it.
Byrd has written many books for children.

Her books have been honored with many prestigious children’s book awards, including the Caldecott Award and the Texas Bluebonnet Award. All of her books are full of the places and the peoples that she knows. She thinks of these books as her own kind of private love songs to the place she calls home.

Reviews

[Kris · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one is a bit odd. The idea is interesting - historical fiction about prehistoric people. The time frame is a bit ephemeral - they live in caves; there are allusions to it being over 10,000 years ago. It is written in verse, and something about the meter was off - the rhythm was disjointed. But I like that it shows the eternal human trait of curiosity. The art is better in landscape than in portrait. Overall, there just isn't a lot of historical fiction for the picture book set about this time period, so it is worth a look. There is a intriguing message about how past, present, and future are connected, and how we are all connected. In this case, it is through one small blue bead, handed from one boy to another in this ancient time, and now being found by another boy today. There is a recognition that there is something precious in that concept. 

[Haelee Jenft · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the book that I chose to read under the genre Historical Fiction. I really enjoy this book for many reasons. First was that it was into the history of cave men basically and it told a short but very good and detailed story. This was hands down a very historical fiction book. The characters that were included in this book really tied together with the "Arizona" and "Cave men" theme. This book had some of the best illustrations and it really tied the entire book together. I recommend this book to anyone who is looking for an easy Historical Fiction reader. Hands down one of the best historical fictions I have read.

[Altagracia Leticia]

Story about earlier humans and their way of life. This book highlights human desire to explore in search of something bigger and beyond ordinary existence. It takes reader back in time and and back to present time. It reminds us of our ancestors and those who occupied our lands before us. This planet has been the home to a multiple of peoples before us and hopefully will continue to be for many more after us.

[Liliana Battibulli · Rating 4 out of 5]

The genre of this book is historical fiction and poetry. I liked this book mainly because of the story it tells about the shared dreams of men that are cave dwellers living in the Southwest United States. The illustrations are also amazing. I think that this book is very long and would be hard to use for a read aloud, unless extended out into multiple days. I know that the author has many books like this one so it could be used for the writing format of an author study or comparing and contrasting books from the same author or for poetry as well.

[Ellie Abbott · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked the story and illustrations here. I thought it did a good job of showing Native Americans in early times. Showing the need for exploration and movement was done well. I think it does well in teaching a little about this time. However, I contemplated giving the book overall 3 stars due to the fact that the poetry style of the book seemed a little disjointed. In some parts, I felt that the verse didn't flow right. Overall however, I liked the story.

[Skylar · Rating 2 out of 5]

Don't recommend for homeschool/academic use. Extremely male-centric. One mention and showing of a female. Boy who joins community is blond and blue eyed but described as having "brown skin" though that would not be how Americans today would describe his appearance. Original people in the story have dark hair, light skin, light brown eyes. There are better books for the idea of cultural diffusion during the prehistoric ages.

[Noah Sayers · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun read. I think that there were probably many Natives like Boy, who wondered if there were other people in the wilderness.
This book is good if you wish to introduce young readers to the concept of prehistoric Natives. It is also fun to watch the story unfold with the poetic wordplay :)

[Heidi Jarvis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is another good historically accurate book. It displays native American life while still being a fun fictional story. This book had really impressive drawings that evoked lots of emotion through its detail. The word choices used reflected Native American life and taught information while still being accurate and relevant.

[Faith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book also has a lot of words but it is written kind of like a poem, so the lines rhyme and I really enjoy that. It teaches about Native American culture and has very good illustrations to go along with it.

[LaDow Picture · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great! Too long for read-aloud at the library.

[Caitlyn Booth · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book would be a great choice when introducing young readers to prehistoric times. They will surely enjoy it.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

my 7yo son was entranced

[Jeff Stephenson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I do a dramatic presentation of this book several times a year at sixth grade camps and other places. "One Small Blue Bead" is a wonderful story with deep meanings IF you look for and try to figure out those meanings. There are a number of themes in the story: respect for the earth and all who live here, growing up and maturing, taking on more responsibility, trying new things yet always being positive, and most important of all, learning to connect with others from the past, present, and future. We use the story at camp to teach students about maturity and to help them move from elementary school thinking to taking on more responsibility as middle school students, but I have also used the story at wedding receptions (more than once!) to help bring together and connect two families. When doing the dramatic presentation of the story, I use a blue bead as a prop. At the end of the story, when the line reads "and if you should find it, please take care, not to leave it just anywhere. For the boy named boy would be happy to know, that his bead--my bead--goes with YOU, wherever YOU go." Then I hand the bead to some deserving student--a youngster who has shown responsibility and gained maturity during the week--and step away putting the spotlight on the deserving youth. Without a doubt, this is a VERY special book and I highly encourage and recommend it to all readers! :-)

[Jody Kyburz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Almost gave it a two...so this isn't very readable to me. It was published in 1965 and is out of print. It is written in verse and the meter just doesn't feel right to me...something is off. I like the idea of connecting a modern-day Caucasian boy who finds a blue bead to the centuries ago Native American boy who had it first. However, today you would be told to leave artifacts in place...do not disturb or collect! Still, I LOVE Byrd Baylor!

[Teri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really loved this prehistoric picture book! Some people may not enjoy it because it's all written in rhyme--but it didn't bother me. I love the character of both the young both and the old man. Truly a story of adventure!

[Nashiea Edmiston · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written completely in rhyme, this is an excellent story about the nomads told through two characters; a young man and an older man. A very touching, VERY SAD, story. Truly a story of adventure! A great book about prehistoric times.

[Suzanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

The boys and I loved this one- about how we are connected over time.

[Chelsea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very helpful for our history unit on archeology and nomads.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read this short little book (32pgs.) three times now to my daughters and have yet to make it through without tears. Truly touching!

[Dawn Roberts · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice visual for young kids when studying ancient cultures.

[Lauren Bassford · Rating 4 out of 5]

Introduced some useful ideas, the verse and rhyme wasn't awful. Lots of naked in the illustrations.