Kids Club: Barbara Landry Pays Beautiful Tribute to the North in Her New Book

Author Barbara Landry has long been fascinated with the Arctic as well as Inuk culture. After her academic studies of the Inuktitut language took her to Nunavut in 2011, she published ᓄᓇᒥnunami: Poems from the Arctic (Quattro Books) the following year. Her newest, ᓇᑦᑎᖅ nattiq and the Land of Statues (Groundwood), is her first children's book and a continued love letter to the North.

Featuring lush, evocative illustration by Inuk artist Martha Kyak, ᓇᑦᑎᖅ nattiq and the Land of Statues follows ringed seal ᓇᑦᑎᖅ nattiq as he arrives back home from a long trip south. As all his friends (Polar Bear, Caribou, Raven, Walrus, and Narwhal) listen with interest, he regales them with stories of the things he has seen. Because his new friends from the south can never visit, he vows to return every year to tell them tales from his home.

Featuring a glossary of Inuktitut words, ᓇᑦᑎᖅ nattiq and the Land of Statues will teach children and grown-ups about the Inuktitut language as well as the wonders of travel and friendship.

We're very excited to have Barbara at Open Book today, where she discusses her all-time favourite children's book, how her trip to Nunavut inspired the main character of her new book, and why patience and focus are two of the greatest tools a writer can have.

Open Book:

Tell us about your new book and how it came to be.

Barbara Landry:

Nattiq is an animal adventure that takes place in the Arctic with illustrations beautifully rendered by Inuk artist, Martha Kyak. The story follows nattiq’s discovery of a land he has never seen before. Each page introduces the reader to a new word in Inuktitut. I began studying Inuktitut at the University of Toronto in 2009. I was fascinated with the look and sound of Inuktitut syllabics. In 2011 I went to live and study in Nunavut through the University of Manitoba, and I fell in love with the North. In 2012 I published ᓄᓇᒥ nunami: Poems From The Arctic. Nunami was going to include a poem about a little seal, but it didn’t fit in with the theme of nunami which is more of a young adult book. I returned to Nunavut in 2015 to work on nattiq andshortly after that I was introduced to Martha Kyak. Since that time Martha and I have travelled the journey of this book together.

OB:

Is there a message you hope kids might take away from reading your book?

BL:

The story is about seeing the world from a different point of view and children are experts at this. I think nattiq’s adventures and his discovery of new worlds and new friendships will resonate with children. I also hope including Inuktitut syllabics will introduce readers to the beauty of Inuktitut, and spark curiosity in children about the different ways of writing language.  And who knows, it might even lead to future linguists!

OB:

How do you cope with setbacks or tough points during the writing process? Do you have any strategies that are your go-to responses to difficult points in the process?

BL:

I love that a book takes on a life of its own: its own timelines, setbacks, standout moments. The process of writing a book is a journey itself. Looking back, this book began 11 years ago when I started to study Inuktitut . For me an idea starts as an almost inaudible voice that eventually becomes audible, and then from that point on every step forward emanates from that initial germ of an idea. Of course there are many twists and turns along the way as the project develops and as a writer you learn to adapt to these, at times, unexpected changes of direction. I guess the one strategy that I have developed over the years is to have patience, and to never lose sight of what I want to accomplish with a specific project. The desire to see your idea come to life is a great motivator, and when I care deeply about a project I strive to see it through to the end despite obstacles along the way.

OB:

What defines a great book for young readers, in your opinion? Tell us about one or two books you consider to be truly great kids books, whether you read them as a child or an adult.

BL:

Children’s books written with a vivid imagination and truthfulness of emotion stand out for me. Children know fear, disappointment, anger, wonder, joy. Books for children exploring difficult emotions in an honest way help children process these feelings. My all time favourite is Maurice Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are.

Itis wonderfully imaginative and explores the feelings of anger and fear in a very creative way. I didn’t read Where the Wild Things Are as a child, but I read it to my daughter when she was a child and have regularly given it as a gift.

OB:

What are you working on now?

BL:

I am working on a sequel to nattiq’s first adventure. It will also take place in the Arctic and will introduce readers to more words in Inuktitut!

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Barbara Landry is a musician and writer who has published several books of poetry, including ᓄᓇᒥnunami: Poems from the Arctic. She spent ten years in Mexico teaching music and English to young children, and she has taught English as a Second Language in Toronto. Barbara has also spent time with the Inuit community in Nunavut, where she was captivated by the landscape and studied Inuktitut. Her travels in the North inspired her to write this story, her first children's book. She lives in Toronto.