Fables and Fairy Tales Books

The first part of the book is a heart-warming legend with vibrant illustrations; the second half could stand alone as a short history of the Cherokee tribe, important people & events, etc complete with photos, a map, etc. We bought it for the legend & the tribal info was a fantastic surprise; it even includes a Cherokee syllabary chart. What a great way to present literature, art, history, & anthropology!

(from the jacket liner) "Presented here are sixteen Gypsy folktales, as well as proverbs and sayings, that are written for young people. These stories take place in palaces and humble cottages, but also in the open road, where the Gypsy traditionally felt most at home. The characters are often surrounded by enchantment and sometimes deal in magic."
Stories include:
Piccolo (about doing what's best for YOU, not what people tell you to do)
The Starry Loom
The Lion, The Fox, and the Bird (the little Bird takes advantage of the Lion and the Fox.
Noodle (a boy is duped by a cunning man, and loses his possesions)
The Evil Eye (a girl's selfless acts are rewarded)
Clever Marco
The Fish Bride
The Black Dog
The Kettle Which Filled Itself
Jack and the Green Man
Biddy Oak
The Haunted Inn (a man is bewitched after cheating a Gypsy)
King of the Moon
The Gypsy Harper
Lallah Pombo (the youngest daughter of a Gypsy caravan is the unlikely heroine)

Althoough rather involved, this book is detailed and easy to follow. The range of stories suggested is very good, coming from several cultural backgrounds. It has instructions that even the most untalented can follow. A very good idea for any teacher or storyteller to use.

Florizella has got to be one of the most likeable fairy story heriones around. She is smart, sweet, and not at all intimidated by her lack of beauty. Florizella's adventures begin when she finds a pack of wolf cubs in the forest, and decides to bring them home to the castle as pets. Despite the fact she is a princess, she is like most youngsters in that her parents deeply disapprove of having wild animals in the house. Florizella, being clever, finds a way to disguise the wolves... and that is where the story gets interesting. For those about 7-11 in age, as a parent, I could hardly reccommend more appealing fare!

I purchased this book in the badlands of Alberta, where Phil Currie works, and was immediately inspired by his arguments for the connections between several lineages of dinosaurs and the evolution of birds. Following the introductory text, in one spectacular portrait after another, is a wonderful exhibition of the great variety of mesozoic bird fossils, reconstructed by illustrator Jan Sovak. The book is a bargain for the color reproductions alone, with the cogent writing of Dr. Currie adding the flesh and bone commentary on the fossil record.

The first half of the book develops a picture of the characteristics of flying animals, and, in particular, flying reptiles (pterosaurs), taking their story into full profusion of types and habitats. Over a dozen species are put into the spotlight, accompanied by Sovak's dramatic and vivid full-page illustrations for each species. After a brief review of the branching of dinosaur families, using the up-to-date cladistic approach, the full panoply of fossil birds is set forth in the last half of the book. The familiar one is here, Archaeopteryx, but then so many more, toothed and toothless, winged and flightless. The examples of early diving birds, from 80 million years ago in Kansas, with teeth in their beaks, are a startling reminder of how old the cormorant really is. The story ends with examples of more recent fossil birds, moa or less, and their life styles, including a "living fossil", the hoatzin, whose young have claws on the leading edge of their wings, like the feathered Archaeopteryx of 100 million years before.

The connection between birds and specific dinosaur families is well-presented, but the level of controversy is played down. More recent debate, for example in Audubon magazine, March 1997, is better balanced but also shows even more solid bird/dino evidence. Currie's Flying Dinosaurs now looks like it was 10 years ahead of its time.

I have two heroes in paleontology: Jack Horner in Montana and Phil Currie, just north of the border, in Alberta. Both are active in the here and now, and both dwell in the Cretaceous. For the lives of dinosaurs and their geologic setting, read Horner's Digging Dinosaurs, and for a complete and concise setting for the origin of birds, read this book, The Flying Dinosaurs. And don't forget to admire the imaginative illustrations.

This is a great book with Native American stories from all over America. It has many stories and about four sections with about five stories in each section. I have some Native American blood and this book has stories from my ancestors. You should really read this book.

this story was a tear jerker. my mother read this story to me when i was very young, before i even knew about the slave trade. it is a touching story that every child should experience. keens- douglas is a very effective writer. enjoy.

I've taught 3rd to 5th grade classes, and the students always love this book. The story is well told, and the pictures are wonderfully done. I've had to buy it three times now, because students who like it too much keep stealing it! I don't know why this isn't in print anymore; it drives me crazy, trying to find copies of it. Next time I'm going to put it in a safe...

Tim Meyers retells THE FURRY-LEGGED TEAPOT, telling of a Japanese raccoon-dog who learns how to magically change himself to anything - even a teapot. But what happens when he can't change back? His search for his true form will lead him away from home and on an unforgettable journey in this funny, different story which features Robert McGuire's whimsical illustrations.

This book shows the other side of the story. It's absolutely hilarious, enough to cheer anyone up! Read on to find out what really happened that fatefull morning!