Karana Summary

Karana is a young girl who was left on an island alone with her brother. Her brother was soon killed by wild dogs. She later becomes friends with the pack leader, after trying to kill him. She named him Rontu. Rontu left the pack and lived with Karana in a house she built out of whale ribs. Karana grew up very independent, brave and strong. In the beginning her tribe thought of her as the young daughter of the tribe leader. While still with her tribe she was shy but brave. She was an amazing big sister. When her brother was left on the island while the tribe was trying to flee, she jumped of the moving boat to save him. Sadly, the boat leaves without the both of them. In that situation she was very selfless. She sacrificed her safety to be with her brother. Because she is alone on the island for 18 years, Karana has little interaction with others. Her reputation is based off of her actions with the animals the living conditions. For example, she

She is great friend; she treats Rontu as a human, and a part of her family. When Rontu is dying, she cares for him like a family member and gives him a proper burial. Instead of killing the otters for food, she befriends them and gives them names. She interacts as if they are her friends. They became so comfortable with her; they would eat directly out of her hands. Karana learns to handle any situation that she is confronted with. Her ability to use the resources nature provides for her, gives her strength and confidence to stay alive and survive. She was on this island for 18 years. She was so tuff through all the horrible winters and the earthquake. She was able to survive weeks in a cave while the Aleuts were at the island. She had minimal water and food. She would only be able to go out at night in hopes of finding something to last till the next night. If her people could see her then, they would not believe it was the same person they left 18 years