A willy fox outwits Jaguar in three trickster tales set in the jungles of South America.
Rosa Raposa
Early Years (ages 2-6)
Here Comes the Cat!
A mouse rides a bicycle, boat, plane, and fish in order to elude the cat. Text is in both English and Russian.
Limpopo Lullaby
In 2000, as Mozambique was ravaged by floods, many people found that their only choice was to take shelter in trees. In one tiny village a woman, stuck with her family in a tree, was about to give birth. The remarkable story of this woman and her miraculous child is the inspiration for Limpopo Lullaby.Jane Jolly’s lyrical prose captures the rhythms of village life while Dee Huxley’s vibrant pastels portray nature in all her moods, ranging from brooding skies to swirling floodwaters to a glimpse of sun.
Dancing Turtle: A Folktale from Brazil
After being caught by a hunter, a clever turtle uses her wits and her talent playing the flute to trick the hunter’s children into helping her escape.
Babushka’s Mother Goose
Presents a collection of traditional rhymes, rewritten to feature Russian characters and scenes.
Because . . .
A young boy who lives with his grandmother is terribly embarrassed by her behavior at first, but comes to realize that she is not just having fun, she has a reason for each strange action.
The Story Of A Blue Bird
A baby bird discovers the joy of flying despite his initial fears.
Even Higher
Young Reuven has a problem. Every year, on the day before Rosh Hashanah, the beloved rabbi of the village of Nemirov disappears until nightfall and no one knows where he goes. The villagers suspect that he ascends to heaven to beg forgiveness for their sins, but Reuven’s friends want the truth. They appoint him to solve the mystery — after all, he is the smallest and fastest of the group — but how? That evening, when Reuven watches the rabbi through the synagogue window, he gets an idea. Determined to follow him at daybreak, Reuven is baffled as the rabbi, disguised as a simple woodcutter, passes the synagogue, the cheder, and Beryl the Baker’s house — his usual stops — only to enter the great forest. Where could the rabbi of Nemirov possibly be going? Adapted from a beloved story by I.L. Peretz, Richard Ungar once again captures the joyous spirit of the Jewish folktale with lighthearted humor and a rich palette of colors as vibrant as the story he tells.
Kibitzers and Fools
Thirteen brief, illustrated, traditional Jewish tales, each accompanied by an appropriate saying.
It Could Always Be Worse: A Yiddish Folk Tale
Once upon a time a poor unfortunate man lived with his mother, his wife, and his six children in a one-room hut. Because they were so crowded, the children often fought and the man and his wife argued. When the poor man was unable to stand it any longer, he ran to the Rabbi for help. As he follows the Rabbi’s unlikely advice, the poor man’s life goes from bad to worse, with increasingly uproarious results. In his little hut, silly calamity follows foolish catastrophe, all memorably depicted in full-color illustrations that are both funnier and lovelier than any this distinguished artist has done in the past.