▶▶▶ Great Price for $1.98

Call It Courage Review

Mafatu, the ten-year-old son of a Polynesian chieftan, has always feared the sea because in his toddlerhood he and his mother were swept away by a storm in which his mother lost her life. As he approaches the edge of manhood, his fear prevents him from winning a place in his community. Realizing their indifference to him, he sets out to sea alone in his canoe, taking only his dog and a few tools. That night he is caught in a storm, in which he loses his paddle and all his tools, and he washes up on an island where cannibals are known to live. He builds a shelter and canoe and chooses to survive; while living there he kills an octopus, a boar, and a shark, and faces the human terror of ritualistic cannibals, barely escaping with his life. At the end of his journey he returns to his village having proved himself a man.

The story is set in a mythical Polynesia, but is written in a European voice: at one point the author describes a canoe caught in a current "like a millrace," a term which is decidedly foreign to this island culture. The great weakness of this book is that the tribal societies which provide a backdrop for the story are caricatured: The tribal fishermen represent noble savages, living so close to nature that they become "ill at ease, charged... with an almost animal awareness of impending storm" (3). Conversely, the cannibal tribe represent a class of wordless, brutal primitives -- dancing with oiled bodies, beating drums around fires and stone idols, wailing, and shouting with guttural voices. Mafatu appeals throughout the story to Maui, "god of the Fishermen," and repeatedly challenges his nemesis Moana, the Sea God. Sperry's Maui, however, hardly resembles the Polynesian trickster named Maui, and the Moana of the story is only a personification of the sea (In some of the languages "moana" does mean sea or ocean.)

No one having read this book should believe they have learned anything about the real Polynesia -- it is no more a story about Polynesia than Little Red Riding Hood is about the European forest. Notwithstanding this, if a reader can accept that Call it Courage is a lesson not in history but in moral courage, they may benefit from the moral example this hero represents. Although Mafatu is limited by his youth and inexperience, he faces great dangers and survives, facing down one fear after another. By making critical choices under pressure, and by refusing to succumb to the elemental, animal, spiritual and human forces arrayed against him, he finally wins his victory. This coming of age is an accomplishment any young boy can aspire to.

Call It Courage Feature

ISBN13: 9781416953685
Condition: New
Notes: BUY WITH CONFIDENCE, Over one million books sold! 98% Positive feedback. Compare our books, prices and service to the competition. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed

Call It Courage Overview

Mafatu has been afraid of the sea for as long as he can remember. Though his father is the Great Chief of Hikueru - an island whose seafaring people worship courage - Mafatu feels like an outsider. All his life he has been teased, taunted, and even blamed for storms on the sea.

Then at age fifteen, no longer willing to put up with the ridicule and jibes, Mafatu decides to take his fate into his own hands. With his dog, Uri, as his companion, Mafatu paddles out to sea, ready to face his fears. What he learns on his lonesome adventure will change him forever and make him a hero in the eyes of his people.

Available at Amazon Check Price Now!

Customer Reviews

life lessons - Jose G. Hernandez Jr. - Eagle Pass, Texas
This is an excellent book for all ages. It is geared for 4th graders but our entire family learned from it and appreciated the moral(s) of the story.

Good! - Kim Scharf - Monrovia, CA USA
This is a good story book. It's just like Robinson Crusoe and Swiss Family Robinson. Those were both good books. Now I read this and I thought Robinson Crusoe and Swiss Family Robinson is better. So read those first then this.

In this book, all the Indian groups around tell a story about a kid that is in a canoe and the canoe crashes and he lands on a different island. He is stuck there. He can't contact anyone. So he is stuck on the island and he has nobody to talk to and nothing to eat.

One day, he meets a guy named Uri. He helps him find food and shelter. They worked together and so they found a bunch of birds one day because one of the birds the kid remembered from his tribe place. Then, one day, people found him because he started to yell and scream and they took him back to the tribe's place. They were happy that they found him. The Tribe Leader was happy to see him the most. The Tribe Leader was happy he was home because the Tribe Leader was his dad.

I didn't really like this book so much but I thought other adventure books! So go get this book at the library or buy it. I do recommend this book and I give this book a solid 4!

A good read - Java Junkie - Southwestern USA
This story is about a boy whom people believed didn't have any courage. My favorite part was when he was on the deserted island and he had to fend for himself. I liked it when he set a trap for fish, made a knife and found a spear, killed a big shark and a boar and an octopus. This took place in the middle of the story. The setting is on an island near Australia. This story is encouraging because Mafatu, the main character, developed all kinds of courage. Read the book and find out how.

One of My Childhood Favorites - Eric Wilson - Nashville, TN United States
As a boy, I dreamed of adventure. I ran through the woods fighting imaginary enemies, carving bows and arrows, erecting lean-tos and tents. I loved the outdoors, with all its beauty and danger. "Call it Courage" was one of my favorite books as a preteen, capturing these dreams in exotic and hair-raising fashion.

Mafatu is a 15 year old boy, whose name means "Stout Heart," and yet he is anything but courageous. After a harrowing experience in his early years, he fears the sea and endures the ridicule of his father and his island people. Determined to grow up, Mafatu sets out with his dog, Uri, and an albatross, named Tivi, to face the wild sea and all that it contains. In a canoe, he rides the waves, survives a hurricane, and finds himself on another island where the eaters-of-man seem to come for their dark dances and rituals.

As Mafatu becomes a man himself, he knows his time is dwindling before the eaters-of-man return and threaten his survival. If he is to be victorious, he must conquer his old fears and despair, fighting creatures of the deep, as well as those who walk the earth. In so doing, he has the chance of being accepted by his people back home--or going down in story as the fearful one.

The writing is descriptive, timeless, and beautiful. The characters are few, but rich in portrayal. The settings are unlike most we ever read of in books, and in rereading this, my heart once again raced as Mafatu faced the hammerhead shark, the wild pig, the giant octopus, and the angry ocean. This book is a classic, and for good reason.

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Aug 24, 2010 14:33:05

Children's Books

Tuesday, August 24, 2010