Tengautuli Atkuk / the Flying Parka

Ann Fienup-Riordan is author of numerous books on the Native peoples of Alaska, including Ellavut/Our Yup'ik World and Weather: Continuity and Change on the Bering Sea Coast, coauthored with Alice Rearden, who is primary translator for Calista Education and Culture. Yup'ik language expert Marie Meade has worked with the CEC team for many years and teaches classes in Yup'ik language and culture at the University of Alaska Anchorage.

"Few can hope to replicate the standard set by anthropologist Ann Fienup-Riordan and her longtime collaborators, Yup'ik language experts Alice Rearden and Marie Meade . . . This book guides the reader in study of parka traditions of the past as well as a clear view of the parkas yet to come." (Alaska History Journal) "[R]ichly detailed and lavishly illustrated . . . [A] gift to Alaska that offers us previously little-known cultural understanding of the place we live." (Anchorage Daily News) "An intimate knowledge of this region permeates the rich collection of images from international, local, and private collections, many including individual names. Construction procedures are explained with photographs and clearly drawn stitching details, and enriched with individual stories, providing an exceptional holistic understanding of the meaning and significance of these parkas. . . . [A] most valuable reference. Yupiit interested in reviving traditional parka sewing, people interested in learning Yup'ik traditional knowledge, cultural and northern scholars, and circumpolar Inuit scholars are just a few of the people who will look forward to having this book in their collection." (Alaska Journal of Anthropology) "This book highlights everything parka related from women's labor of love to social interactions, folklore, songs, practical steps showing diagrams of sewing stiches, to Yup'ik language words relevant to parka-making in the glossary. . . . From cover to cover, Tengautuli Atkuk/The Flying Parka has chapters that build, allowing readers to better understand parka-making, museums, and Yup'ik language through storytelling. Conversely, due to the abundant visually stunning archival photographs, color photographs, maps, and diagrams, the book can be picked up and flipped through to find engaging photos and text on a piecemeal basis." (Western Historical Quarterly)