A collection of authentic stories from the years around 1492. These tales have been carefully crafted to sound as exciting and mysterious as they were when first told five hundred years ago by sailors around a lantern on a ship, shared by explorers reclining around a campfire, enjoyed by Native Americans in a grass hut, whispered inside a stone palace in the Totonac city of Zempoala, or fondly remembered by an adventurer back home in Europe.
When a story shares a universal message, it finds its way into that pantheon of tales that is shared with many diverse cultures. These classic 33 tales, collected from Brazil, China, Korea, Russia, Tibet, Africa, from America's native peoples, and other lands, are chosen for their timeless shared values.
This collection of fifty folktales and parables was selected from diverse story traditions such as Sufi, Zen, Taoist, Buddhist, Jewish, Christian, African, and Native American. Comprised of ancient plots both poignant and comical, this anthology contains simple truths, common sense, and the promise that we can benefit from past generations' experience. Wisdom tales offer useful insights into life's joys and sorrows that all of us experience.
Throughout history, Eastern Europe has been a battlefield, a crossroads, a place of conflict, and a place of resolution. The folk stories in this collection tell about challenges and obstacles as well as the strength, wit, hope, and courage necessary to overcome them.
Although the 46 tales in this collection are as varied as their origins, nearly all of these stories have been passed on by immigrants to America. As a result, this collection is a world tour between two covers, but not at the expense of the unifying element common to these stories: their uniquely Jewish flavor of doing the right thing, on surviving by cleverness and kindness and on the need for keeping a good sense of humor." Sherman's collection includes magical tales; stories about clever folks; tales of ghosts, gilguls, and other strange things; fables that deal with doing the right thing; and stories about the delightfully silly Wise Men of Chelm. Entertaining and illuminating story notes give additional information on the origins and different versions of the tales.
This collection of original folktales and stories created the foundation for the most popular films in recent memory including: Star Wars, Star Trek, Superman, and Lord of the Rings.
Maybe it's the king who spills honey, and then says it is not his problem - until it causes a war. Or maybe it's some sandpipers and whales who get into a foolish fight that almost destroys their homes. Perhaps it's the man who thinks that a gun makes him strong or the monkeys who follow their leader into water that's too deep. Peace Tales contains more than three dozen folktales and proverbs that illustrate these choices. Always fun to read these stories also prompt us to think about the seemingly minor events that lead to war and the little events that can also lead to peace. Stories from across the globe are accompanied by generous story notes, source information, and suggestions for further reading on the topic of peace.
Italian-Americans compose one of the largest ethnic groups in the United States.Unfortunately, they have often been portrayed negatively in fiction and film based on stereotypes that are not borne out among the immigrant population. These entertaining stories highlight a rich cultural heritage that has often been neglected.
Mexican-American traditions are richly nourished by the folkways of three cultures: Indian, Spanish, and Mexican. This comprehensive look at the Mexican-American world includes a range of traditional proverbs, riddles, stories and folksongs.
This collection of traditional Jewish-American stories includes lunar holidays and everyday observances; wonder tales from the Sorcerer's Apprentice; a Jewish version of Cinderella; tales of dybbuks, golems and other supernatural beings; and superstitions and traditions surrounding birth, marriage, and death.
When she was a young girl, Barbara McBride-Smith was introduced to the ancient Greek myths but she didn't quite hear right. When her teacher told her they lived in the cradle of western civilization, young Barbara thought she said Western civilization - as in central Texas, around about Waco, where they seemed to fit right in. Ol' Man Zeus, after all, was a gun-totin' Big Daddy, sort of the J.R. Ewing of Mount Olympus. You know Aphrodite, the school basketball queen or Pandora the debutante, the best guitar picker around was Orpheus - Tom T. and wasn't Medusa the one who started the fashion trend known as Big Hair? With her incurable Texas drawl, feminist sympathies, and cheerleader's do-right attitude, master storyteller Barbara McBride-Smith spins the Greek myths as you've never heard them before.
This collection of 30 stories about wise judges, clever lawyers, and deceitful tricksters, were collected from places as diverse as ancient Greece, Morocco, Germany, China, and Ireland. Some date back to pre-biblical days while others come from the American colonies.
This collection of world tales focuses on stories originating from nearly every continent. They are short, gripping stories that "kick in fast including comedy, trickster, tall tales and family themes for middle and young readers.
In the Native American tradition, a strong connection exists between the spirit world and the natural world. It is believed that what happens in one has a definite impact on the other. In this collection, Choctaw storyteller Tim Tingle draws from the rich heritage of the Five Civilized Tribes - the Creek, Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, and Seminole nations.
For the past three decades, Pleasant DeSpain has explored Latin America its people, customs, cultures, and especially the myths and legends. The tales in this collection are full of compassionate souls, tricks and humor, explanations of nature and geography and as always, memorable characters and places. Mario Lamo-Jimnez's Spanish translation that accompanies the English version reverberates with the rich, vibrant quality that has become the bench mark for the best stories from Latin America.
This collection of traditional tales and proverbs from over twenty ethnic groups touches upon both human and ecological themes such as environmental protection, the care of other creatures, and the connection of all things in nature.
This unique collection of American stories from the frozen tundra of Alaska to the lush green hills of Virginia; from the sweltering bayous of Louisiana to the windswept prairies of South Dakota is told in DeSpain's signature gentle style. Every reader will find something of interest - the stories range from practical tales of wisdom such as Pulling the Rope to silly and scary ones such as The Haint that Roared and The Big, Smelly, Hairy Toe. The stories represent not only the geographic diversity of the United States but also offer a portrait of our nation's character, values, beliefs, and customs that differ from region to region yet retain a fundamental sense of shared community.
Maybe it's because his mother was a teacher. Or maybe it's because he has spent most of his life in classrooms - as a wide-eyed first grader, a naive college student, a seminarian, and now as a visiting writer in residencies across the country. There's something about school that infuses the work of Donald Davis and he has collected his all-time favorite school stories in the book. Whether we're traveling around the world with Miss Daisy, the fourth grade teacher who was integrating arithmetic, geography and English before the term whole language ever surfaced; or watching in awe as a classmate conjugates malaprops in Miss Vergilius Darwin's Latin class; or driving a school bus and learning about segregation - we experience flashes of recognition in moments that transcend Donald Davis's childhood stories.
Bubbling with beautiful princesses, dragon-slaying underdogs, and crafty tricksters, these Franco-American stories explore a heritage that has become known as "a quiet presence". Co-authors, Parent and Olivier recount the lutin's tricks on farmers, the Jack-like adventures of Ti-Jean, Pierre and his modern-day chainsaw, a beautiful princess conquering an evil witch, and family stories passed down from generation to generation. Meet Michael's grandfather, Honor Fournier, who spoiled his grandchildren with kindly generosity, and Alexis Lacasse, Julien's grandfather, who didn't let a prank stop him from arriving to dinner on time. Life in Franco-American families revolved around two entities: family and church. The authors address these two important aspects and how they have influenced their stories. Olivier and Parent inherited their families' love of stories and continue that legacy by sharing their ancestry and heritage in this charming book.
The fourteen personal stories in this delightful coming of age book apply universal elements with characters and situations that everyone will recognize so that only the names, places and times change from our own childhood stories.
Jim May writes the stories of his youth, growing up in the rural Midwest between the Truman and the JFK eras, where trading stories was as common as trading horses, and frequently required the same skills. Neighboring, as his mother called it, was part of the social fabric. These 18 poignant and humorous stories of life's joys and trials told with the freshness of youth, yet tempered with the wisdom of age evoke a simpler time in our nation's history without romanticizing the inherent hardships.
Highly acclaimed, award winning author Donald Davis wants us all to remember and share our family stories. Among other tall tales, he writes about how his uncle hung onto the multitudinous Democratic votes of the Ratherton clan while at the very same time keeping them from shooting Davis' squirrels in a lean year; how he got Phyleete, wife Jolly, their eleven sub-natural sons and one forgettably natural daughter to move their log house from the unlikely place they'd built it; and how he tried to solve the problem of the chatty Misses Lena and Lucy Leatherwood, who clogged up the eight-party telephone line so badly that Uncle Frank paid for his new phone four months before he ever got the chance to talk on it. Davis offers seventeen vintage family stories, including Rainy Weather, The Southern Bells, and Old Man Hawkins' Lucky Day.
In this abundant and kaleidoscopic collection, Spagnoli includes stories from Japan, India, Korea, Vietnam, Cambodia, the Philippines, Bangladesh, Laos, Tibet, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, China, Indonesia, Taiwan, Burma, and Nepal. After profiling modern Asian storytellers practicing traditional storytelling styles, she arranges the stories around dominant Asian themes such as Harmony and Friendship
