5 Stars for the presentation of deep shamanic concepts in "Magic Words" by Edward Field!

This review is based on a NetGalley downloaded PDF that was only 16 pages of what I think is supposed to be 24 or even 32 pages or more art and text pages, but I adored it enough to purchase it elsewhere, to gift a mother of a young child in my friend circle.

This beautiful young child picture book I believe is a refreshed presentation with new art on an older publishing of this work. The art is fresh illustration in a bright and colorful style that would be favored by young children, it's target audience. The cover art matches the inner style, and it is beautifully done to add to the meaning of the text, to cause more wonder than the text itself, to complement perfectly the high shamanic concepts simply stated.

Most importantly this is a fantastic work to present shamanic ideas to a young mind. These are apparently very old poems discovered and translated into English by the author, and they are presented as simple words in the vein of good children's books, yet highly complex ideas to get young (and old!) minds thinking.

The style reminds me of "Mama Do You Love Me?" but with more complex ideas.

It's truly a gem of a book, especially for those presenting diverse world views, and even introducing highly complex ideas of the study of consciousness in an incredibly simple way for young minds.

HIGHLY recommended! 5 Stars, a winner!

This book is absolutely beautiful. The story is quite simple and mysteriously hopeful, and the illustrations are vivid and imaginative. Definitely a nice book to have in your home library for younger children, especially.

I really really loved the illustrations! They invoke a feeling of wonder and curiosity of the Inuit oral traditions. I loved the simplicity of the writing, but it still felt very powerful and moving. Honestly I like this book so much that I will have to get a copy. My only criticism is that the ending feels incomplete. I wish there was a page that really made an ending impacting statement to tie it all together or signal the ending.

Wow - the illustrations in Magic Words by Edward Field is simply stunning! Even without words to go along with the pictures, I would have enjoyed experiencing those images.

The story itself is a translation from the writing of Danish explorer Rasmussen, in his 1920s expeditions to the Inuit people living north of the Arctic Circle. I do wonder if it's more of Rasmussen's interpretations, or a direct actual Inuit story.

Overall, a very interesting and visually stunning storybook!

First allow me to say that the art in Magic Words is stunning. Vibrant and authentic Inuit. This translation of a poem by Rasmussen brings the heart of the Inuit peoples to print for all to enjoy. The art alone is worth the purchase.

As a retelling of an Inuit creation story that was translated from Danish explorer notes, I wonder how accurate the story was. Is it close to the Inuit story? I tried doing research to find out if there was anyone from the tribe included as part of the creative team on this book and was unable to find anything.

The story is sweet, the art is beautiful.

This book has phenomenal, mystical, tribal artwork that ties in wonderfully with the text. It’s EXACTLY the book I would have wanted as a child. The illustrations are full page and colorful and the text on each page is minimal and good sized. The story describes ancient times in which people and animals lived closely and could transform into each other and when mere words had mystical properties.

This was a short book about how words were seen anciently, and how humans and animals used to be one and the same. It was odd and ended abruptly, and I’m not really sure what to think about it. I think even my toddler would think this was weird.

With respect to other visual styles, "Magic Words" is one of the most gorgeously illustrated titles I've ever laid eyes on. Mike Blanc did a fantastic job. So great, that I did something I don't do too often - I read the postscript regarding the construction of the work which tell us that the art"began as ink drawings retraced and softened with 6B extra soft charcoal pencil. Finished drawings were scanned and colored with digital painting software." That is to say, the art pops and is vibrant. This is not to discredit the translation by Mr. Field of course, which -while direct - gets the job done. However it does not flow lyrically for lack of a better word than Blanc's art does.

7/10

Would recommend as an early years title - but is great for any age

Beautiful illustrations to go with this simple story. Great for young children. As a teacher I'm always trying to add new FNMI stories to my classroom and I definitely feel like this one will be a great addition.

I received this book in exchange for my honest review.

The artwork of this book is absolutely stunning and the fact that it has been lovingly adapted from Inuit drawings adds to the magic of the book.

This isn't your average children's book as the words are sparse and the "story" is minimal. I will admit to not really understanding it until I read what others had said about it and I think therein lies the value: this book shares something of a culture that we might not have come across before or at all.

A rich, powerful telling of the Inuit tradition. The vivid, colorful illustrations work seamlessly with the text to provide a mystical and magical reading experience.

The art is the standout part of this title, with beautiful illustrations that match the text and move the story forward. The story is simple, but I enjoyed it. An excellent choice for libraries looking for stories from diverse cultures for their collections.

Illustrations:★★★★★
I fell in love with the color and the illustrations. It gave the story the most power to captivate me.

Flow of the Story:★★★☆☆
I felt that the ending of this story was very abrupt and didn't feel like much of an ending. It was a real let down because I felt as if the story just stopped mid-sentence.

Font:★★★★★
Loved the choice of both color and font.

Overall: I would completely read this story to my elementary school children at my work. I feel like this would be an amazing book to read to open up discussions about cultures and mythology. Mike did a great job of both of showcasing the Inuit history and culture for little readers.

On the one hand, the art in this short picture book is stunning. It's also interesting to learn an Innuit myth about a time when animals and people could become each other and strange things happened.

On the other hand, the book is translated and illustrated by white men and nobody seems to have worked with Innuit people in any way in publishing it. The text was translated by the author from text written by a Danish explorer a hundred years ago. The words are sparse and the book ends so abruptly that I thought there was something wrong with my copy. There is no information for kids about the Innuit people, how the text was found and translated, the myth, anything. There are a lot of misses here, despite the lovely art and interesting story.

I love the illustrations in this children's book. It is a short read, but there are some beautiful ideas within. It is great for beginner readers because there is not much text to read.

Beautifully illustrated. While the words don't create a conclusive story, they still provoke interesting ideas, and the fact that they're translated from Inuit provides a fresh cultural experience. As a whole, the book is worth sitting with for a while.

Magic Worlds is brilliantly vibrant and colorful. The illustrations are by far the best part of the book. I wish the book was longer or that other Inuit lore had been added to it, the book seems short and doesn't seem to have an ending.

This is a beautiful story that offers a glimpse into Inuit culture and traditions. Originally a legend that was passed down from generation to generation, this book offers a view into a different way of living and thinking - a life in close connection to nature, where even the lines between being an animal and being human are blurred. As the title suggests, the book also sparks an interest towards understanding language and how it works, and how humans and language have a special relation. The illustrations are beautiful and the style is in tune with the story. The only thing that is keeping me from giving it 5 stars is that it is a bit lyrical and metaphorical and this deeper layer might be a bit hard to grasp for young children, who would most likely just be fascinated by the idea that humans could be animals and animals could be humans anytime they wanted to be. However, since there is way too little literature that explores the traditions and way of life of other cultures, I think it would be very good if more children would be encouraged to read this. I believe this is really a book that children and parents should take their time with together, to fully understand it the way it is supposed to be and to examine the illustrations more closely, as they show different animals and Inuit practices.

A special thanks to NetGalley for providing me with a digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

In the old days, the Inuits believed that words and how they were used was of great import. Both humans and animals understood each other, and how they spoke allowed them great understanding between them. If you asked to become an animal, or if an animal asked to become human, it would happen. This was possible due to their deep understanding and appreciation for each other.
This book is beautifully illustrated, allowing the viewer to imagine the type of world that was possible so long ago. It is a beautiful and simple introduction to this culture.