Transformation

The central and most insistent theme of The Ancient Child is that of transformation. The bear myth is the first and clearest bearer of this theme. In it, a young boy becomes a bear who chases his sisters until they are born into the heavens and become the stars of the Big Dipper. Set’s own transformation forms the core of the narrative. A successful artist, Set struggles to come to terms with the dictates of financial success. Adrift in a world that has no inherent order or narrative, Set can take hold of his identity only through a transformation. Though he has had no experience with the Kiowa since he was a boy of 7, Set’s story is tied to the Kiowa through the person of Grey. Grey has her own transformations throughout the book. She journeys to the Kiowa reservation from Lukuchukai, land of the Navajos...