The Horn Book Guide

PICTURE BOOKS

Spalding, Andrea , Scow, Alfred

Secret of the Dance

32 pp. | Orca | September, 2006 | Trade ISBN 1-55143-396-6 $17.95

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Darlene Gait. From 1885 to 1951 Canada forbade Aboriginal people from holding Potlatches (ceremonies that honored cultural milestones) so some took the practice underground. In this innocent perspective on an act of defiance, a young boy sneaks out of his bedroom and witnesses such an illegal ritual. Gait's large-scale paintings infuse magical realism into the landscape and story. An endnote states that the story is based on Scow's childhood. Glos.

Reviewer: Betty Carter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2006