The Three Snow Bears written and illustrated by Jan Brett

Brett, Jan. The Three Snow Bears. New York: The Penguin Group, 2007.

This story is the tale of Goldilocks and the Three Bears integrated with Inuit culture and language. The main character is an Eskimo girl named Aloo-ki. Aloo-ki who accidentally loses her huskies and dogsled on an ice floe. Meanwhile, a family of polar bears goes out to take a walk to let their soup cool off before they eat. Aloo-ki comes upon the bears igloo while they are out and enters trying the three bears soup, boots, and beds just like the folk tale we know. The bears return having saved Aloo-ki's dog team and find her in their house. She runs away waving thank-you to the bears. The illustrations portray many different arctic animals on the borders of each page all dressed in Eskimo clothing. The bears are dressed in Eskimo clothing as well. The illustrations look realistic except that the bears act and dress like humans. 

Jan Brett is not an insider author, but she is an informed author. She and her husband traveled to Iqaluit, capital of the Nunavut Territory in northern Canada, to meet the Inuit. people. They lived with an Inuit family, rode a dogsled, and visited a school in the village. Much of the art Jan saw there depicted images of Arctic animals in Inuit clothes. This became her inspiration for this book. Despite the fact that this story is based off of a popular folk tale, I think this is a quality piece of diverse literature. It includes the popular Inuit theme of animals which also happens to be a popular theme with children of all backgrounds. Because of this students would be able to connect easily to the book. Visually I believe readers can learn a lot about old Eskimo traditions and culture. 

On the other hand, there is opportunity for the development or perpetuation of stereotypes in this book as the characters live in an igloo and live as "old Eskimos" may have lived. No Inuit language is incorporated into the text but some elements of culture are such as dogsled, fur lined boots and parkas, oil lamps, carved bowls, and ice fishing. Still these elements of culture do not really teach students about current Inuit people. It is not clear from reading the story when it is meant to take place and this has the potential to confuse young readers. In any case I feel as though this book would be a good introduction to Inuit culture beginning with older, more common traditions. The emphasis on animals is easy to connect to and helps, especially younger children, develop an understanding and acceptance that perhaps they may struggle to find if the main characters were humans instead of polar bears. The illustrations are very realistic and believable which also assists readers in connecting to the text. Additionally, with the story being predictable as well as recognizable the author automatically connects cultures through a folk tale story line. All students know this story and are able to identify experiences with this story. Also, the predictability of the story allows readers to focus more on the illustrations and the cultural additions that are placed in the text by the author. This focus on differences has the potential to lead to understanding and appreciation of the differences of cultures as well as the way they connect through folklore, literature, and other experiences.