Eagle Drums
By: Nasuġraq Rainey Hopson, Irene Bedard (narrator)
Genre: Middle Grade, Fantasy
Number of Pages: 256
Published: September 12, 2023
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Dates Read: October 6, 2023 - October 9, 2023
Format: ARC / eBook / Audiobook

Trigger Warnings: Death of siblings, grief, animal death, depictions of depression and anxiety

As his family prepares for winter, young hunter, Piŋa must travel up the same mountain where his brothers died in order to collect obsidian for knapping. When he reaches the mountaintop, he’s immediately confronted by an eagle god named Savik who gives him a choice: come with me, or die like your brothers.

What follows is the origin story of the Iñupiaq Messenger Feast, a Native Alaskan tradition.

99% of this I listened to as an audiobook on my way to and from my hometown (2.5 hours each way, perfect amount for the 5 hour audiobook). I’m glad I listened to it because I would have been pronouncing everything incorrectly and I already do enough of that in English (and that’s my first language).

This is a beautifully written, fast paced middle grade novel that gives the important origin story of the Native Alaskan tradition of the Iñupiaq Messenger Feast – a story that has been heavily relied on the Elders’ accounts of it from when they were children after encroachment of the missionaries into Indigenous territories and communities. Nasuġraq Rainey Hopson’s writing mixed with Irene Bedard’s narration made me feel like I was sitting around a campfire listening to the stories of long ago.

This is a story of grief, courage, honor, and community mixed in with lessons about leading, sharing, and communicating.

I know this is aimed at the Middle Grade reading level, but I can see many age groups reading and enjoying it, especially since it is about a part of a culture that was on the verge of being snuffed out because it wasn’t Christian.

*Thank you Roaring Brook Press and NetGalley for an advanced digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review