This was incredibly cute!

I loved the art and I loved the story. It was so kind and worm somehow, and it reminded me of [book:Smilla's Sense of Snow|124509] (even if they have nothing to do with each other).

The illustrations are beyond fantastic and I'd love to see more from the artist.

I'm not familiar with Inuit folklores. Reading the brief introduction in the back is very useful and important to me.
The illustrations are beautiful. The texts same a little too long and the font is bit small and merged with the coloring background. I had to enlarge the screen to finish reading it.

This was my first time reading an Inuit folk tale and I thought it was quite interesting. The lovely illustrations and story tells the tale Kitmesuk and his adopted son, Fish-Boy. It's a story about how sea-parrots (puffins) came to be, but at its core, it's a story of kindness. I also appreciated that the author included a glossary at the end

While I thought the story was fascinating and really enjoyed the illustrations, I felt like there were gaps in the narration and story-telling. The story didn't really flow seamlessly from one event to another.

As a consciousness of the diversity of human family grows, there is both a need and a desire for books for children that reflect this diversity beyond the surface level and share the folk tales, culture and traditions of that region. This book's story manages just to do this task. Vocabulary from the native language is sprinkled seamlessly throughout and the story is intriguing, although I would say for kids older than 6 years old. I wish the illustrations were done in a different style. Some characters have been drawn with strange eyes.

Fish-Boy is a lovely little story about kindness, hospitality and embracing those who are different.

I've always held a certain fascination toward Inuit tales so I was immediately drawn to it. However, what really captivated me were the illustrations, they were so flawless that I was sucked in entirely.

Any child will love this magic-sprinkled book.

A thoroughly-enjoyable beautifully-illustrated book for children. It's not very often that one can learn about the mythology and folklore of indigenous cultures or that there are two islands whose geographical placement is really interesting. Yet the story left me wanting a little bit more. I wanted to learn more about the titular Fish Boy. What else did he do before he first met the man?

According to my search Vanita Oelschlager is not inuit but has written a number of books for children. I'm not sure if someone with that heritage was consulted while writing the book. I hope they were. Ideally I would have loved to have seen a book authored by someone with that heritage. For adults I would recommend Split Tooth by Tanya Tagaq which is truly polarizing.

A wonderful tale for young kids, with beautiful illustrations and eye-opening lessons. It focuses on those who though not being entirely physically capable are still so amazing at heart.

A brilliant book that bridges the gap between longer narratives and picture books, My six year old really enjoyed the story and we used the suggested topic prompts at the back of the book to talk about different bodies.. We discussed how an individuals strength may not always mean that they have to be able bodied with two arms and two legs. This book is a celebration of storytelling, folk tales and overcoming adversity,

**I received an e-ARC from NetGalley for an honest review**

Based of an Inuit tale, I was looking forward to reading this book. Cute illustrations, very colorful, but at times the white font on lighter color background made it more difficult to read.

Overall, a nicely done book. Might need to stop and start to explain a few things to younger readers/listeners, but a great story!

Let's start by discussing these illustrations. They are DARLING. The cover alone is worth picking this one up. The language is a bit more advanced for a picture book because this is telling a story from long ago with many words and names that will be unfamiliar to English speaking ears. The moral of the story is a very interesting one though based on kindness, generosity, and treating differently-abled people equally.

Inuit Story Within a Story

This book shares a traditional Inuit tale in a story-within-a-story format. We learn of a young boy who is going to cross the water with his grandfather so they can trade. On the way there, when they emerge from fog, they see a lot of what they call sea-parrots, but we would call Atlantic puffins. Once they reach the shore and settle in, the grandfather relates the story of how these sea-parrots got there. It's a tale of magic and inhospitable peoples. There is an old lame fisherman who discovers Fish-boy one day when his catch is not going so well. Fish-boy is part fish and part boy (as his name suggests), and he asks the fisherman if he can be his son. The old fisherman states that an armless boy would be of little use to him, but Fish-boy is determined to prove his worth. And he does. He is able to find some of the biggest fish, which then the fisherman can catch. They become well known within their village for the large number of fish they catch, and this becomes more widely known. When the chief on another island wants Fish-boy to visit, they ultimately decide to, and it does not go well. He enchants the villagers, but crowds cause people to get injured. Fish-boy and the old fisherman are blamed for this, even though it was the people's own ill-advised actions that caused the trouble. They move on to another place where they are treated even less well, with a lot of suspicion; these people even break up their boats. Fish-boy leads those that came with him and the old fisherman to the sea, where they turn into puffins and return to their village; they turn back into what they are. While the magic is in the air, some people from the last inhospitable place they also turn into puffins. These puffins never turn back into men and become the basis for the puffins seen in the other part of the story.

This book has lots of little lessons in it: the wisdom of grandparents, the perils of a lack of hospitality, and unusual abilities of the differently abled as well as exploring how fear can impact people, especially a mob. The illustrations in this remind me of Inuit art, appropriately. The inside of the front and back covers show a map of the area discussed, which always helps a reader visualize something that takes place in a particular area. In the back of the book, the author provides longer descriptions of some Inuit words and descriptions of some of the areas. All in all, I thought this was a beautifully illustrated book that taught several lessons. This is certainly longer than the average picture book, and I imagine it would be best if it is read to a younger child, though an early reader who has an interest in this story could probably sustain her or his interest long enough to get to the end. Recommended.

I love this book, from the heartwarming story, the educational value, but what really sells it for me are the gorgeous colourful illustrations that really bring the tale to life.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for letting me read an advance digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Folklores are wonderful gateways into the world of different cultures. They carry the morals, beliefs and ethos of an entire community.

Fish Boy is a folklore of the Inuits, which is being retold in this gorgeous picture book. The way this makes an Inuit folklore accessible to English readers worldwide is laudable.

The illustrations , especially of those underwater scenes, are breathtakingly beautiful. The bright use of colours makes this book attractive to young readers.

This book tells the story of Tukmeuk and how his relationship with a "fish boy" changes his life forever. It teaches love, acceptance and respect for all creatures and the natural world.

A charming inuit legend, this tale about a fish-boy and his father will warm your heart and the artwork is simply stunning. I really enjoyed this one. There was even a glossary in the back for difficult words and a list of possible topics for discussion as well as a map. Very well done.

Fish-Boy is inuit folklore, retelled by Vanita Oelschlager. I find the designs very captivating but story is a bit complicated and dry, specially the beginning. It is not a comforting faery tale, therefore requires older audience. But the pictures are amazing and this book can be bought just to look at.

Since it introduces different cultures, it might make a curious child happy.

The Fish Boy is a story about a boy who faces the odds of being different. It’s a great conversation started for how everyone is different but special, too. Also, the illustrations are beautiful!

This is about a tale happening in the arctic with a nice journey and story about Inuits, arctic animal, folklore and a fishboy. Really well done and educative too. Enjoyed the pictures and even if it’s serious which mean for older kids than toddlers. Your kids will love it because they will be transport somewhere else.

Fish Boy is a fascinating folk tale that I enjoyed reading but the prose was incredibly dry and it was incredibly wordy for a book aimed at young readers.
The illustrations were nice to look at and complimented the story which highlights that everyone has different strengths and weaknesses and the importance of kindness.

There's nothing in the story that would have stopped me reading it to my son when he was much younger (three-seven ish) but it would have required a lot of explaining at times and I'm not sure it would have held his attention sufficiently in order to read it in one sitting. However, his nine-year-old self enjoyed it.

A beautifully illustrated children's story, "Fish-Boy" as told by Vanita Oelschlager is an Inuit tale. It is the story of Fish-Boy, half fish half boy, who upon being fished by a man, seeks to be the man's son and helps him find the best fish in the water. Word of Fish-Boy and his father spreads, and other villages want Fish Boy to come and help them with their fishing. On his journey, Fish-Boy encounters people who treat him wrongfully because he is different and seek to get rid of what they do not understand.

I really enjoyed the story and the beautiful illustrations. I have taught lower-elementary school and as I was reading the story to myself I could definitely see it in my classroom. It is a great conversation starter with children about hospitality, how to treat people that are different from us, and the relationship humans have with nature. "Fish-Boy" would make a great addition to a classroom library and, to my own child's library when she reaches the appropriate age.

„Fish Boy“ is the retelling of an Inuit tale for children. It is particularly nice that the book uses a style that one can imagine being used to transmit a story orally. The art is very fitting as well. Plus the book contains puffins, which is everything a book really needs.