Materials from United States of America
On a farm in the Texas Hill Country, a young boy confronts a strange critter that tries to steal his family’s last meal. A variation on the folktale about a monster that leaves its tail behind in the cabin of an African American boy.
Sam Bombel shoots a goose and brings it home for his wife to cook for dinner, but when it is set on the table, the other geese come to reclaim it.
Retells the life of the legendary African American hero who raced against a steam drill to cut through a mountain.
Rip Van Winkle is an idler who would rather starve for a penny than work for a pound, and his wife is constantly nagging him. In search of peace, Rip heads off to the woods one day with his faithful dog, Wolf. High up in the Catskill Mountains, Rip meets an unusual group of little men. He drinks their strong beverage and falls into a deep sleep. When he awakens, he finds that twenty years have passed – the world has changed and so has he. With vibrant paintings by Leonard Everett Fisher, Eric A. Kimmel’s adaptation of Washington Irving’s classic “Rip Van Winkle” introduces a Rip who reforms as a result of his experience.
Based on African-American folktales told in the South during the plantation era, a collection of stories originally gathered by journalist Martha Young pays tribute to the human spirit in the face of terrible hardship.
Retells the final adventures and misadventures of Brer Rabbit and his friends and enemies.
In this Appalachian variant of the Cinderella tale, old Granny helps Ashpet attend the church picnic where she charms Doc Ellison’s son but loses one of her fancy red shoes.
A small, but clever young girl outwits a rich giant and wins all his gold.
Retells the story of the legendary American folk hero Paul Bunyan, the lumberjack hero who found no job too big or too small to handle, and his Big Blue Ox, Babe.
Retells in verse the tale of the extraordinary cowboy who was raised by coyotes, married Sluefoot Sue, and rode the wild rapscallion mustang stallion named Widowmaker.