Arrow to the Sun

"The boy became the arrow."  With these words, Gerald McDermott brings Arrow to the Sun; A Pueblo Indian Tale to a climax, bu the stunning illustration have yet to burst into the color used to heighten the drama of the four tests through which the boy must pass before he proves himself the son of the mighty Lord, the Sun.  To this point, the tale has been of the search of the boy for his father and the illustrations have reflected the tone of the words in sombre earthly colors.  When the wise Arrow Maker sees the Boy for what he is and shoots him to the Sun he must then be tempered by trials before being finally accepted.  Each of the chambers of  ceremony, each Kiva, is shown in a different combination of vivid color until the Boy emerges from the last Kiva of Lightning filled with power of the Sun and transformed into a rainbow of brilliance.  The story ends as the Boy returns to earth to bring life to the people and the final double-page illustration shows the celebration of the Dance of Life in strong, vibrant color and bold geometrically shaped figures, which seem to move in a stylized, joyous fashion.