Mitiarjuk Nappaaluk (Book order)

Mitiarjuk Nappaaluk Book order

Dedicated to preserving Inuit culture, Mitiarjuk Nappaaluk authored over twenty books, including Sanaaq, the first novel written in syllabics. Her work aimed to revive and preserve traditional Inuit knowledge through her extensive writings. She strived to ensure the continuation of Inuit language and cultural heritage for future generations. Nappaaluk's literary contributions are significant for their focus on cultural preservation and the elevation of Inuit literary expression.

Sanaaq

248 pages
9 hours of reading

3.8(439)Add rating

Sanaaq is an intimate story of an Inuit family negotiating the changes brought into their community by the coming of the qallunaat, the white people, in the mid-nineteenth century. Composed in 48 episodes, it recounts the daily life of Sanaaq, a strong and outspoken young widow, her daughter Qumac, and their small semi-nomadic community in northern Quebec. Here they live their lives hunting seal, repairing their kayak, and gathering mussels under blue sea ice before the tide comes in. These are ordinary extraordinary lives: marriages are made and unmade, children are born and named, violence appears in the form of a fearful husband or a hungry polar bear. Here the spirit world is alive and relations with non-humans are never taken lightly. And under it all, the growing intrusion of the qallunaat and the battle for souls between the Catholic and Anglican missionaries threatens to forever change the way of life of Sanaaq and her young family.