Genre 2: Two Bear Cubs

Two Bear Cubs


San Souci, Robert D. 1997. Two Bear Cubs: A Miwok Legend from California's Yosemite Valley. Ill. by Daniel San Souci. Yosemite National Park, CA: Yosemite Association. ISBN 0939666871.



Plot Summary

Robert San Souci's Two Bear Cubs is a retelling of a Southern Sierra Miwok legend. The legend tells of the formation of the mountain El Capitan. While Mother Grizzly Bear catches rainbow trout and searches for berries, her two overly-rambuctious cubs are told to hunt for berries. As the two bear cubs wrestle and play, they travel further and further downriver. Sleepy, they lay down on a rock in the warm sunshine. They sleep for days. As they sleep, the rock grows taller and taller. All the while, Mother Grizzly is frantically searching for her two lost cubs. She searches far and wide asking for help from everyone she meets along the way. At long last, Red-tailed Hawk sees the cubs high on the mountain. After many tries, it seems no one can climb up the tall mountain to reach the cubs, not Mother Grizzly, Mouse, Badger, Grey Fox, Mother Deer, or even Mountain Lion. When all hope seems lost, along comes tiny Measuring Worm. Curling and stretching for days and days, Measuring Worm slowly makes his way to the top of the mountain and Mother Grizzly's two lost bear cubs. Following the trail left by Measuring Worm, the cubs make their way to the safety of their mother's arms.



Critical Analysis

Two Bear Cubs is teeming with characters based on real Sierra animals and founded upon the Miwok belief that Yosemite Valley was once home to "animal people" - part animal and part human. It is a story of triumph, one that teaches readers that anyone, even the most unlikely among us, can be heroic. Of all the powerful and majestic animals gathered, only lowly Measuring Worm had what it took to climb the mountain and save the cubs.

As California natives, the San Souci brothers are able to lend authoritative voices to both the text and illustrations. Robert San Souci incorporates words from the Miwok language seemlessly, teaching readers the traditional tale of how Yosemite's famous landmark, El Capitan, came to be. His brother, Daniel, gives readers a glimpse into the Miwok culture with his illustrations of the animal folk in traditional Miwok clothing and jewelry.

To create the illustrations for Two Bear Cubs, Daniel San Souci employed the use of watercolor paints. His artwork depicts traditional Miwok clothing, including buckskin skirts and loincloths, abalone shell and glass bead necklaces, and fur headbands.

At the end of the book, Robert San Souci includes notes about the Miwok, related readings for anyone interested in learning more about the Miwok, North American Indians, or Yosemite, and Internet resources for teachers.

Review Excerpts

Booklist:
"...the excellent background notes on the Miwok and the story of the small, triumphant worm make this a fine purchase for most libraries."

School Library Journal:
"It may be difficult, at first, to accept the adorable pictures that feature the gray fox and badger wearing breech cloths and Mother Bear wearing faux pearls with the serious Native American theme of the courage and triumph of a lowly worm. However, the opening paragraph explains that the story was set during a time when creatures were part animal and part human, and once into the tale, the illustrations enhance the perspectives of climbing "El Capitan"."

Connections

Teachers would find this book beneficial when teaching the theme of bravery.

Using this book as a guide, students could take a local landmark and write their own version of how it came into being.

Students could compare this tale with other children's books with Native American themes.

Related Books

Legends of the Yosemite Miwok by Frank LaPena

Native Ways: California Indian Stories and Memories by Malcolm Margolin

Book cover art by http://www.librarything.com/.