The Enduring Ark

Gr 1 Up—Although dubbed an "Indian version of the Biblical tale," Wolf's narrative differs little from many available picture books about Noah. Disappointed by greedy, violent people, God vows to wipe out creation and start again. Noah and his wife build an ark, gather animals, and survive the flood that destroys every other living thing. Forty days later, they land on a mountain. After a dove returns with an olive branch, everyone disembarks. God thanks the weary humans by creating a rainbow as a sign of hope. The Indian elements of this version are the format and illustrations. Chitrakar employs a Bengal Patua school painting style. The accordion pages can be read as a traditional book or extended to a panorama more than seven feet long. Some illustrations are striking, particularly the initial image of God as a huge eye with fiery tendrils shooting upward while rivers of tears stream down to converge in waters that flow across all the pages. Noah and Na'mah not only look alike but also resemble the smiling corpses floating in the waves. The two-dimensional paintings have a static quality. Animals board and disembark in orderly lines and journey in tidy compartments. Young readers may be intrigued by the fold-out panorama, but most libraries are probably well supplied with other versions of this story. Older students in art or design might enjoy studying Chitrakar's style. For a version of a Hindu flood tale for young readers consider Roberta Arenson's Manu and the Talking Fish (Barefoot, 2000).—Kathy Piehl, Minnesota State University, Mankato