A fun story that describes community life for the the Longhouse Indians. Little Runner tries to find a way to get maple sugar from his mother. Each time he thinks he finds a way, mother finds a reason not to give it to her. A great book for a beginning discussion on Native American Indians. ( )

This is a delightful little story about life in a Iroquois longhouse. ( )

The time of the New Year was an exciting one. The longhouses of the Iroquois were filled with busy people as everyone helped prepare for the celebration.

Little Runner envied the big boys who put on masks and threatened to steal prized possessions until they were dissuaded with large servings of maple sugar. It was an Iroquois ceremony, but it was the candy, not the custom, that appealed to Little Runner.

Little Runner did his best to convince his mother that he was one of the big boys, but she could not be fooled. How he finally achieved his goal makes a warmly happy story. The stunning pictures and skillfully chosen words realistically re-create the Iroquois way of life.

Arnold Lobel is one of my favorite children's book illustrators. This is a cute story about a young boy from a northeast Native American tribe. ( )