The narrative is not communicated within a cultural-historical frame of reference. As far as the story is concerned, the difficulty lies in another direction. For this reason, Arrow to the Sun, at least in its visual aspect, may prove to be less accessible to children than to adults. The author-illustrator has integrated the illustrative and decorative elements of his art-work, eliminating everything circumstantial and concrete that is, strictly speaking, everything that is inessential. I say this because the fine drawings-in themselves a tour de force -are highly sophisticated. This allegory of Pueblo initiation rites seems to be intended as much for adults as for children. His return to the pueblo is celebrated by the people in a Dance of Life. Having survived lions, serpents, bees, and lightning, the youth is acknowledged by his solar father and, 'filled with the power of the sun,' returns to earth. Standing at last in the presence of his divine father, the boy has to prove himself by undergoing a series of trials, which are essentially rites of initiation, though they are not so designated.

The boy, ostracized because he has no father, goes in search of his progenitor.

The story is about a boy conceived by an earthly maiden from a spark of life from the Lord of the Sun. The narrative, based on a Pueblo Indian myth, is terse and straightforward, employing a vocabulary that, for the most part, is within the range of most schoolchildren, though not preschoolers. The geometrical design-motifs are unmistakably derived from Southwest Indian patterns and are highly stylized, but their abstract qualities have been personalized and come across as vital and dramatic.

McDermott's Arrow to the Sun is a graphic production of exceptional power and beauty.

Gerald mcdermott arrow to the sun