Editors and contributors to the  bilingual books Akulmiut Neqait / Fish and Food of the Akulmiut (University of Alaska  Press) and  Yuuyaraq/The Yup’ik Way of Being (Alaska Native Language Center)-- Ann Fienup-Riordan,  Alice Rearden, Marie Meade and Mark John--discuss the Yupik way of life. Akulmiut Negait, details the lives of the Akulmiut living in the lake country west of Bethel, Alaska, in the villages of Kasigluk, Nunapitchuk, and Atmautluak. Akulmiut Neqait is based in conversations recorded with the people of these villages as they talk about their uniquely Yup'ik view of the world and how it has weathered periods of immense change in southwest Alaska. “For centuries, the Akulmiut people, a Yup’ik group, have been sustained by the annual movements of whitefish. To this day, many Akulmiut view not only their actions in the world, but their interactions with each other, as having a direct and profound effect on these fish. Not only are fish viewed as responding to human action and intention in many contexts, but the lakes and rivers fish inhabit are likewise viewed as sentient beings, with the ability to respond both positively and negatively to those who travel there.” Yuuyaraq / The Yup'ik Way of Being presents bilingual stories, traditional tales, and qanruyutet (oral instructions) shared by elders from throughout southwest Alaska as part of the Yuuyaraq curriculum project. Yuuyaraq embodies a way of life in which sharing is central -- sharing of food, of stories, of knowledge. In what they say, elders provide a window into a uniquely Yup’ik view of how the world works and what it means to be a real person. And they have done so with their young people firmly in mind. Ann Fienup-Riordan is an anthropologist who has lived and worked in Alaska for more than forty years. She has written and edited more than twenty books on Yup’ik history and oral traditions. Alice Rearden is an Alaska-based translator and oral historian. Alice Rearden is from Napakiak, Alaska and is a fluent Yup’ik speaker and expert translator ans oral historian. Marie Meade was raised in Nunapitchuk, Alaska  teaches at UAA Alaska Native Studies Dept. where she teaches Yup’ik language and culture.  She also works and travels with the International Council of Thirteen Indigenous Grandmothers. Mark John, originally from Toksook Bay, is well known and well respected throughout the region as a commercial fisherman, active subsistence hunter and fisherman, and fluent speaker of the Yup'ik language. Receiving his BSW and MSW from the University of Alaska, he is also a gifted leader and administrator, and has worked slowly and carefully to realize Calista Elders Council’s potential.