Second-grader Talittuq, an Inuit boy living with his mother in Iqaluit, the capital city of the Canadian territory of Nunavut, wonders why his father doesn’t live with him and his mother and why his family is different. Over the course of a day, though, he observes many different families, including one with two moms and an involved birth mom, and a male teacher with a husband.
Later, Talittuq learns that his new teacher, Taiviti, lives with his husband and their son. He also discusses his summer with his friend Joanasie, who lives in Iqaluit with his father, but spent the summer in Ottawa where his mother lives with her new husband, Taiviti’s stepdad. He’s also reminded that his teacher from the previous year lives with her granddaughter, taking care of her ever since the girl’s mother got sick. At the end of the book, Talittuq is back at home with his anaana, and realizes that she is right—all families are different. “That’s right, Talittuq,” she assures him, “and we all have love and happiness in our homes.”
While the plot in some ways sticks to well-worn paths trod by many other LGBTQ-inclusive books celebrating families, this book stands out for its focus on an indigenous family and its use of Inuktitut terms and names throughout. (There’s a glossary at the end, although much is also understandable from the context.) Co-author Jesse Unaaapik Mike herself was raised in Iqaluit by a single mother, giving the book grounding and authenticity. She now lives there with her partner Moriah and her daughter Niviaq, and has been advocating for Inuit youth since she was a teenager, says her bio at the end of the book. In a 2014 interview at Finding True North, a blog about Iqaluit, she spoke about living in both a traditional and modern world, and observed, “There’s no way that I’m ever going to be a totally traditional person, but there are still [traditions] that I live by. My beliefs and our customs of children and naming. My language was a huge part. My mom forced me to speak [Inuktitut] by ignoring me when I spoke English, which I’m very thankful for.”
Co-author Kerry McCluskey has lived in Iqaluit for nearly 20 years, after five years in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, and a start in Ontario. Her son, River Talittuq Gordon McCluskey, “featured prominently in many of the stories she tells,” says her bio—and clearly lent his name to the main character here.
The book’s publisher, Inhabit Media, is an Inuit-owned publishing company with its head office in Iqaluit.
