The story opens with Crane standing beside a marsh. Crane flies over the land and sees a mole, a red squirrel, a chipmunk, a robin, a crow, a painted turtle, and a dragonfly. They are digging, collecting and harvesting things.
One day, Crane flies to the nearby creek, but there are no salmon in it because a factory polluted the water. All the creatures work together to say Noogishkadaa chi-anokiiwigamig! (Stop the factory!). Soon, the factory closes and the creek begins to heal.
If you do environmental units in your classroom or library Ajijaak is a book you'll want to add to your classroom library! The story, the art, and the language work together--much like the creatures did--to get important messages across about the need for everybody to speak up about pollution and its effect on life.
I especially like that you can listen to the story, in Ojibwe, at Ojibwe.net. Head over and give a listen! And order a copy of the book from the publisher.
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