Hunter with Harpoon

Markoosie Patsauq's novel "Harpoon of the Hunter" was published fifty years ago and established the genre of Indigenous fiction in Canada. This new English translation by Valerie Henitiuk and Marc-Antoine Mahieu offers a more accurate translation of the original Inuktitut text, providing a fresh and contextualized interpretation of a cultural milestone. The novel depicts a life in the Canadian Arctic reliant on cooperation and vigilance, and is a sophisticated coming-of-age tale illustrating a way of life that has survived in the memory of the Inuit themselves.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 104 pages
Publication date: 18 November 2020
Publisher: McGill-Queen's University Press

Published fifty years ago under the title "Harpoon of the Hunter," Markoosie Patsauq's novel played a pivotal role in establishing the genre of Indigenous fiction in Canada. This captivating new English translation unveils the captivating story of Kamik, a young hero embarking on a perilous quest to hunt down a wounded polar bear. Within this astonishing tale of a people resiliently striving for survival in a harsh Arctic environment, Patsauq paints a vivid portrayal of life in the Canadian Arctic as one that hinges upon cooperation and unwavering vigilance.

In a remarkable collaboration with the author, Valerie Henitiuk, and Marc-Antoine Mahieu, the original Inuktitut text has been carefully revisited to offer English readers a more faithful translation. This edition features a preface by Patsauq and an insightful afterword by the translators, providing a fresh and contextualized interpretation of a cultural milestone. Whether readers are revisiting this classic or encountering it for the first time, "Hunter with Harpoon" emerges as a sophisticated coming-of-age tale that vividly showcases a way of life that has endured in the memories of the Inuit themselves, rather than how it was perceived by southerners.

Weight: 150g
Dimension: 152 x 202 x 12 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780228004028