Hunter with Harpoon

By (author) Markoosie Patsauq
Translated by Valerie Henitiuk & Marc-Antoine Mahieu
Categories: Fiction
Publisher: McGill-Queen's University Press
Paperback : 9780228004028, 104 pages, November 2020

A new English translation of an acclaimed 1970 novel reveals a stark, powerful story, an Inuit worldview, and the unique voice of Markoosie Patsauq.

Description

A new, more accurate translation (from the original Ikuktitut text) of the acclaimed 1970 novel. Published 50 years ago as Harpoon of the Hunter, Patsauq’s novel helped establish Indigenous fiction in Canada. This new translation unfolds the story of Kamik, a young hero who comes to manhood while on a hunt for a wounded polar bear. In this tale of a people struggling to survive in a brutal environment, Patsauq describes life in the Arctic as one reliant on cooperation and vigilance.

Reviews

"Both a pivotal work of Indigenous fiction and an effort to acknowledge and correct injustices, Hunter with Harpoon is a testament to the resilience of the Inuit people. " Foreword Reviews

«Uumajursiutik unaatuinnamut priorise l’écrit en inuktitut pour sa valeur en soi et dans ses propres termes. Enfin, la collaboration entre Henitiuk, Mahieu et Patsauq contribue à donner une visibilité à un auteur à la langue riche et vivante et à une culture littéraire proprement inuit.» Anthropologie et Sociétés

“This remarkable scholarly edition, … is renamed as Hunter with Harpoon, and reinstates the Inuktitut version by drawing heavily on the original handwritten story. The editors were also able to work in consultation with the elderly author, allowing them to discuss the production of this book in the context of his long career.” The Northern Review