The Stone Cutter and the Navajo Maiden
In the deep, deep Dinetah lives a young Navajo maiden named Cinnibah. She looks after her widowed father, and every day she grinds corn into flour to make their bread. To do so, she uses a metate—an ancient grinding stone that has been passed down in her family for generations. When Cinnibah accidentally shatters the metate, she sets out on a journey to find someone who can help her mend the stone. Her quest brings her to a Moccasin Maker, a Potter, and, finally, the mysterious Stone Cutter....
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In the deep, deep Dinetah lives a young Navajo maiden named Cinnibah. She looks after her widowed father, and every day she grinds corn into flour to make their bread. To do so, she uses a metate - an ancient grinding stone that has been passed down in her family for generations. When Cinnibah accidentally shatters the metate, she sets out on a journey to find someone who can help her mend the stone. Her quest brings her to a Moccasin Maker, a Potter, and, finally, the mysterious Stone Cutter. Will he be willing to help her? School Library Journal K-Gr 3 This bilingual story introduces readers to an important artifact in Navajo culture, the metate, or grinding stone. Cinnibah, a motherless girl, accidentally breaks her heirloom metate while her father is away and sets off alone in search of someone who can fix it. On her daylong journey, she encounters a moccasin maker, a pottery maker, and finally a stonecutter, all of whom help her by using their skills. In addition to making new friends, Cinnibah learns about the sacredness of the stone and retires her old one according to custom. Navajo words are carefully woven into the English text. Though the dialogue is somewhat stilted, the descriptive text is often richly poetic: "Ravens played their flutes and wrens blew kisses and whistled among the trees." The rural setting through which she travels seems almost timeless. Warm, impressionistic pastel and oil illustrations skillfully capture the desert landscape. Overall, this is a satisfying story depicting an important event in the life of a Navajo girl.-Madeline J. Bryant, Los Angeles Public Library
\ School Library JournalK-Gr 3\ This bilingual story introduces readers to an important artifact in Navajo culture, the metate, or grinding stone. Cinnibah, a motherless girl, accidentally breaks her heirloom metate while her father is away and sets off alone in search of someone who can fix it. On her daylong journey, she encounters a moccasin maker, a pottery maker, and finally a stonecutter, all of whom help her by using their skills. In addition to making new friends, Cinnibah learns about the sacredness of the stone and retires her old one according to custom. Navajo words are carefully woven into the English text. Though the dialogue is somewhat stilted, the descriptive text is often richly poetic: "Ravens played their flutes and wrens blew kisses and whistled among the trees." The rural setting through which she travels seems almost timeless. Warm, impressionistic pastel and oil illustrations skillfully capture the desert landscape. Overall, this is a satisfying story depicting an important event in the life of a Navajo girl.-Madeline J. Bryant, Los Angeles Public Library\ \ \ \ \ \ Kirkus ReviewsWhen Cinnibah, who lives alone with her widowed father, breaks her mother's metate (grinding stone), she undertakes a quest through Navajoland to find someone to mend it. First she meets the Moccasin Maker, who directs her to the Pottery Maker, who in turn guides her to the Stone Cutter. This elder tells Cinnibah that he cannot mend her stone-but he will give her a new set. It's a quiet tale; Cinnibah's adventure clearly takes her into a realm of Navajo archetypes, and her eventual success is never in doubt. Wound through the tale are lessons for both Cinnibah and reader: A broken metate must be restored to the mountain; elders should be treated with respect and have much to offer younger generations. Set against Yazzie's monumental paintings of Dinetah, Cinnibah's red skirt and blue top provide vivid counterpoint to the ochres and browns of the desert landscape. The tale unfolds in both English and Navajo, the bilingual layout making it clear to non-Navajo readers that both language and culture remain vigorous. (author's note) (Picture book. 5-8)\ \
