Pictures by Irma Wilde
Copyright 1968
This is not the same Ookpik book I remember from my
childhood. I bought this when my own
children were young because I had remembered the cute little furry yellow owl
from another picture book. The book had
belonged to my sister and if I remember correctly, the cover of the book had an
Ookpik with big plastic googly eyes.
Even better, my sister also had her very own stuffed yellow furry Ookpik,
also with big googly eyes. I think I was
a little jealous of her for that!
In this book, Ookpik longs to see more of the world that his
land of Arctic snow. He said goodbye to
all his Artic friends and boarded a plane with Princilla, a dog from the big
city. “Tak-vow-woo-shee”, he said. That’s Eskimo for “goodbye, everyone”. He gets to experience skyscrapers with neon
lights, cement, crowds of people, and ice cream. Unfortunately, when boarding a subway, Ookpik
and Princilla are separated and Ookpik is lost and alone. While he does find his friend again, Ookpik
has realized that he is homesick for his Arctic home and happily returns back
to his old friends.
Like me, Ookpik longs for adventure, but also realizes how
comforting it is to return home again.
As much as I enjoy vacation, seeing new sights, and hiking new trails, I
always look forward to coming home to sit on my own couch while enjoying a cup
of tea.
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