Kokopelli the Cicada leads the Ant People from the Dark World up to various other worlds and finally to the Green World, helping teach them along the way what they will need to know to survive and thrive there as the First People.
Folklore and Fairy Tales
A Snake Falls To Earth
Fifteen-year-olds Nina and Oli come from different words–she is a Lipan Apache living in Texas and he is a cottonmouth from the Reflecting World–but their lives intersect when Oli journeys to Earth to find a cure for his ailing friend and they end up helping each other save their families.
Old Father Story Teller
Includes retellings of six Tewa Indian legends and a brief biographical section about the author, who is a noted American Indian artist.
Quail Song
A retelling of a traditional Pueblo Indian tale in which Quail outwits a persistent Coyote.
Martina Has Too Many Tías
A retelling of the Caribbean folktale La cucaracha Martina where Martina, in an effort to escape her noisy tías, slips away to a warm familiar island where she can play in peace and quiet–but is she home at last?
Felice And The Wailing Woman (Los Monstruos)
The twelve year old daughter of La Llorona vows to free her mother and reverse the curses that have plagued the magical town of Tres Leches.
Fibbed
After telling too many far fetched tales, Nana Busumuru is sent to spend the summer with relatives in Ghana, where she must join forces with the trickster spider Ananse to prevent an evil corporation from stealing the magic in the village forest.
Feathered Serpent And The Five Suns: A Mesoamerican Creation Myth
This pre-Columbian creation myth tells the story of Quetzalcoatl, one of the most important deities in ancient Mesoamerica, and his quest to create humankind. The gods tried to make humans during each sun, or age, but each time failed. So when they grew tired, only one did not give up: Quetzalcoatl, also called the Feathered Serpent. Determined, the Feathered Serpent embarks on a dangerous journey full of fearsome foes and harsh elements, facing each trial with wisdom, bravery, and resourcefulness before confronting his final challenge at Mictlan, the underworld. With his instantly recognizable, acclaimed art style and grand storytelling, Tonatiuh recounts a dazzling creation tale of epic proportions.
The Musician
In ancient China, a young musician named Yu Boya gained fame for his talents. On the night of the Moon Festival, he encounters a mysterious woodcutter who is also a musician and admires Boya’s most famous song: Lofty Mountains and Flowing Water. Their friendship deepens and Boya vows to play the song for his new friend every year on the festival night. But the next year, upon hearing of his friend’s death, Boya smashes his instrument and never plays again. To this day, the word for “close friendship” means “understanding the music.”
Telling Stories Wrong
Grandpa playfully recounts a familiar fairytale or his version, at least to his granddaughter, and try as she might to get him back on track, he keeps on adding things to the mix, resulting in an unpredictable tale that comes alive as it is being told.
Featured in WOW Review Volume XV, Issue 2.