Friday, March 29, 2013

Meet Kaya , an American Girl / Janet Shaw / 74 pages / First Book in a Series

Kaya, An American Girl, Book 1
Kaya, Nez Perce for "one who arranges rocks", wants to be a great horsewoman. She brags that she and her horse are the fastest and can beat any horse and rider.  For this she earns the nickname Magpie.  When she rescues a friend from drowning and others recognize this selfless act, they cease to use this nickname.  In the Nez Perce tribe when one child misbehaves, they are all punished, or switched.  This taught the children what one person does affects the safety and well-being of all.  In the "Looking Back" section, we learn that Lewis and Clark were the first white men to be seen by the Nez Perce.  In 1805, they save the lives of the starving explorers.  The Nez perce were excellent horsemen.  The horses brought to North America by the Spanish explorers in 1500 changed their way of life.

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