Soon, a bitter nun is named Raven, a kind nun named Swan, and the children Wrens, so we can picture them small and vulnerable in the nest. They plucked us from our homes on the scattered islands of the Arctic Ocean and carried us back to the nests they called schools, in Aklavik.” This writing is concise yet rich, a consummate example of a strong artist’s voice. “When I was a young girl, outsiders came flitting about the North. But her resilience also allows her to hold on to her culture, to flourish as an adult, and to write this book.įatty Legs reads like an oral tale, composed in the moment with keen attention paid to images that help listeners keep everything straight. Olemaun (OO-lee-mawn) is named by her grandfather, for “the hard stone that is used to sharpen an ulu.” Her inner strength hurts her at residential school, a place where the nuns’ goal is to “take the Indian out of the child”, so self-confidence is punished. The subject matter is serious but not macabre, so this is not just a book for adults.
The vocabulary is basic but the writing is artful, evoking both a place and a culture, so this is not just a book for kids. Complemented by archival photos from Margaret Pokiak-Fenton's collection and striking artworks from Liz Amini-Holmes, this inspiring first-person account of a plucky girl's determination to confront her tormentor will linger with young readers.Fatty Legs is a short chapter book for elementary school children, telling the true story of eight-year-old Olemaun (Margaret) Pokiak-Fenton’s two years in residential school in the 1940’s. Although a sympathetic nun stands up for Margaret, in the end it is this brave young girl who gives the Raven a lesson in the power of human dignity. In the face of such cruelty, Margaret refuses to be intimidated and bravely gets rid of the stockings. In an instant Margaret is the laughingstock of the entire school. Intending to humiliate her, the heartless Raven gives gray stockings to all the girls - all except Margaret, who gets red ones.
She immediately dislikes the strong-willed young Margaret. At school Margaret soon encounters the Raven, a black-cloaked nun with a hooked nose and bony fingers that resemble claws. Faced with unceasing pressure, her father finally agrees to let her make the five-day journey to attend school, but he warns Margaret of the terrors of residential schools. Eight-year-old Margaret Pokiak has set her sights on learning to read, even though it means leaving her village in the high Arctic.
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