Folklore and Fairy Tales

Sense Pass King: A Story From Cameroon

Despite a jealous king’s repeated attempts to get rid of her, Ma’antah continually manages to outwit him and proves herself worthy of the name Sense Pass King.

A Collection Of Rudyard Kipling’s Just So Stories

In this gorgeous collection featuring eight of Kipling’s JUST SO STORIES, each tale is illustrated by a different leading contemporary artist.How did the rude Rhinoceros get his baggy skin? How did a ‘satiably curious Elephant change the lives of his kin evermore? First told aloud to his young daughter (“O my Best Beloved”), Rudyard Kipling’s inspired answers to these and other burning questions draw from the fables he heard as a child in India and the folktales he gathered from around the world.

Just So Stories (Books Of Wonder)

How did the camel get his hump? How did the leopard get his spots? How did the elephant get his trunk? These are questions that children around the world have asked for centuries, but it took Nobel Prize winner Rudyard Kipling’s lively, hilarious stories to give them answers. For one hundred years, these classic tales, drawn from the oral storytelling traditions of India and Africa and filled with mischievously clever animals and people, have entertained young and old alike.Intertwined within these delightful tales are little pearls of wisdom about the pitfalls of arrogance and pride and the importance of curiosity, imagination, and inventiveness.

Why Mosquitoes Buzz In People’s Ears: A West African Tale

In this astonishingly beautiful and imaginatively illustrated picture book, Mosquito tells Iguana a tall tale that sets off a chain reaction that ends in jungle disaster. Iguana is so upset at being told such nonsense that he plugs his ears. So, of course, when Python says good morning, Iguana doesn’t hear and ignores him altogether. Python suspects Iguana is plotting mischief against him, so he hides in a rabbit hole – which terrifies Rabbit. And so this amusing African legend goes, until finally the chain of mishaps reaches Mother Owl, who reacts by refusing to hoot and wake in the sun.

The Hero Twins

The Hero Twins tells the story of two brothers born to Changing Woman and trained by the Holy People to save their people from the naayéé’, a race of monsters. But the naayéé’ can’t be beaten alone. Family and friends and wise mentors must lead any warrior down the good path toward victory.

The Big Bad Wolf and Me

When the Big Bad Wolf is mistaken for a dog, he comes to live in a boy’s closet and eat chocolate chip cookies.

See the review at WOW Review, Volume VII, Issue 2

The Cat, the Dog, Little Red, the Exploding Eggs, the Wolf, and Grandma

Cat tries to read the story of Little Red Riding Hood aloud, but Dog keeps interrupting with silly questions.

See the review at WOW Review, Volume VII, Issue 2

Winterfrost

An ordinary Danish Christmas turns extraordinary when a family overlooks an important folkloric tradition. Christmas has come, and with it a sparkling white winterfrost over the countryside. But twelve-year-old Bettina’s parents have been called away unexpectedly, leaving her in charge of the house, the farm, and baby Pia. In all the confusion, Bettina’s family neglects to set out the traditional bowl of Christmas rice pudding for the tiny nisse who are rumored to look after the family and their livestock. No one besides her grandfather ever believed the nisse were real, so what harm could there be in forgetting this silly custom? But when baby Pia disappears during a nap, the magic of the nisse makes itself known. To find her sister and set things right, Bettina must venture into the miniature world of these usually helpful, but sometimes mischievous folk. A delightful winter adventure for lovers of the legendary and miraculous.