This book is about Little Blaze, a little Native American boy who wants to lead the buffalo jump a prehistoric hunting method of driving the buffalo herd over a cliff. Little Blaze’s brother Curly Bear was chosen by his father to lead this buffalo jump, and Little Blaze was upset because he thought he should be leading it. His job was only to stay behind the stacked stones and help frighten the buffalo. The day of the buffalo jump finally came and Curly Bear was running in with the buffalos right behind him. Little Blaze realized that he was not too ahead and the buffalos were gonna run over him. He decided to run and help his brother. He was able to carry him before he fell over and they jumped over the edge of the cliff. They landed on a small ledge and all the buffalo crashed down below. That night after eating boiled buffalo ribs, Little Blaze’s father told him he was proud of the courageous deed he did today and changed his name to Charging Bull. I enjoyed this book and had never actually heard of buffalo jumping before. ( )

Grade Level: Primary
Genre: Historical Fiction
Summary: Little Blaze’s older brother, Curly Bear is chosen to lead the buffalo in a hunt that lures them to run off a cliff to their death. Little Blaze is angry that he was not chosen to the lead the buffalo because he is much faster than his brother. Little Blaze must overcome this anger and be very courageous when the hunt goes wrong and his brother’s life is in danger.
Evaluation: This book will keep readers on the edge of their seats. It helps readers understand Native American culture and the importance of the buffalo. Through the actions in this story it is very clear that the buffalo were very important to their survival, and this story helps explain one of the ways Indians hunted food to stay alive. The illustrations in this book are beautiful and capture a great amount of detail.

needs background information, read author notes, do lesson on illustrations ( )

This is a great book to use during a Native American unit. It teaches students about buffalo jumping, a tradition in Native American cultures where they send buffalos over a cliff to catch them. ( )

Little Blaze longs to lead the herd in the buffalo jump, his tribe's main source for food and clothing. A jump was also a chance for the ahwa waki, the buffalo runner, to earn a new name. But his father has chosen his brother, Curly Bear, instead, and Little Blaze is angry. When Curly Bear stumbles while leading the herd, will Little Blaze be able to forget his hurt feelings and save his brother? Full color. ( )