Audrey Guiboche, illustrated by Jim Kirby,
Kawlija’s Blueberry Promise
Pemmican Publications, 2009.

Ages 5-8

Set in a Metis community in Canada in the 1950s, Kawlija’s Blueberry Promise will evoke great sympathy in young readers.  Seven-year-old Kawlija is very excited about her family’s imminent departure for “the blueberry patch” near the Kettle Hills of Manitoba, where her parents will be joining others for the annual blueberry harvest.  All Kawlija can think about are the big, juicy blueberries that will be waiting for her at the end of the journey.

When they arrive at the camp, however, her dad takes her aside and explains that although in the past she has always played and eaten her fill of blueberries, the reason they are there is to pick blueberries to sell - and this year Kawlija is old enough to work alongside them.  Kawlija is shocked at this new perspective on the family’s summer – picking blueberries to make a living had not even crossed her horizon.  After some pondering, she agrees to help – but that means promising to put the blueberries into the pail, not into her mouth. Of course, it proves very difficult to keep her promise until, in the end, a satisfactory balance is struck.

This lovely story about one young girl’s battle with temptation and the honesty and pragmatism with which she confronts it will appeal greatly to young readers, whose innate sense of fairness will cause them to question the severity of Kawlija’s promise.  Isn’t it just asking a little too much? Kawlija, at seven years old, is around the same age as the majority of the book’s readership.  Isn’t she still too young to be put to work?  They will be relieved at the compromise reached at the end and, as they inevitably make comparisons between expectations now and in the 1950s, will appreciate how times have changed in the last sixty years. As well as details in the story itself, an introduction gives some historical context, placing the story at the heart of this Metis community’s past. Jim Kirkby’s illustrations carry the reader along Kawlija’s emotional journey too, and with so many juicy-looking blueberries scattered throughout the book, will have mouths watering before the end.

Kawlija’s Blueberry Promise is strongly rooted in Metis culture and is, at the same time, a story of universal values and challenges.

Marjorie Coughlan
April 2010