As Aggataa spends time at her grandmother's hut, she is dismayed by the ravens that hang around, finding them ugly and their caws discordant. Her grandmother explains that the smaller raven follows her (the grandmother) because she took him in the previous winter, when he was injured. As winter turns to spring, and spring to summer, Aggataa enjoys the wealth of avian life that migrates to her area for the duration of these seasons. But when winter comes again, and the birds have flown, she finds the world rather silent and dreary. Until, that is, a familiar figure returns...

Published this past year (2020), The Most Amazing Bird is the second picture-book I have read from Inuit author Michael Arvaarluk Kusugak, following upon his Northern Lights: The Soccer Trails. Kusugak's story is accompanied by the illustrations of Andrew Qappik, an Inuit artist who is perhaps best-known for his work on the Nunavut coat of arms. I found the story here engaging, and appreciated the way in which the seasons were contrasted - winter with its few ravens, spring and summer with its wealth of different birds - and how Aggataa learned to appreciate both. The artwork has a simple quality to it that is appealing. I particularly liked that Qappik wasn't afraid of the white space on his page, given that he was depicting an Arctic landscape. Recommended to picture-book readers looking for stories set in the Arctic, or with an Inuit cultural background. ( )