The Treasury of Read-Alouds

FOLK & FAIRY TALES page 1 of 1

Mightier Than the Sword: World Folktales for Strong Boys

Collected and told by Jane Yolen     Gr. 3-6       100 pages        Harcourt, 2003

Folktale expert Jane Yolen offers fourteen tales from around the world, each demonstrating that male heroes can overcome adversity by using their wits instead of their swords.

The People Could Fly: American Black Folktales

by Virginia Hamilton; Leo and Diane Dillon, illus.        Gr. 3–6        174 pages         Knopf, 1985

Rich with rhythm, energy, and humor, these twenty-four stories were kept alive by slave tellers and include Bruh Rabbit, Gullah, and freedom-trail adventures. Related books: Tales of Uncle Remus, retold by Julius Lester.

Rapunzel

Adapted by Paul O. Zelinsky        Gr. 1-4        32 pages         Dutton, 1997

Of all the fairy tale picture books in the marketplace, this is perhaps the most lushly illustrated and thus deserving its Caldecott Medal. Borrowing from both the Grimms and previous versions from France and Italy, Zelinsky’s retelling might make it the best of all, especially when coupled with his Italian Renaissance oil illustrations of the fair damsel locked in the tower by the evil sorceress. No other illustrator has captured as many Caldecott honors as Zelinksy, including runner-up awards for: Hansel and Gretel: Rumpelstiltskin; and Swamp Angel.

Red Ridin’ in the Hood and Other Cuentos

by Patricia Santos Marcantonio; Renato Alacao, illus.         Gr. 4 and up        181 pages        Farrar, 2005

When the author was growing up as a Mexican American in Colorado, she loved the traditional fairy tales but mourned the absence of Latino culture in the tales. She solved that problem by writing these 11 versions as though they were set in the barrio itself. The title story, “Red Ridin’ in the Hood,” has a contemporary urban-Latino setting; Roja’s mother has dispatched her with food for her ill grandmother, along with instructions to wear the new red dress her abuelita (grandmother) made for her, take the bus, and avoid Forest Avenue. Instead, the daughter saves the bus fare and travels down Forest Avenue where a brown low-rider Chevy begins to follow her. While very well written, these tales are closer to Grimms’ versions than Disney, and the illustrations are not for the meek. My personal favorite was “Juan and the Pinto Bean Stalk,” in which the irresponsible Juan (Jack) is wearing baggy pants and a bandanna and wants to do nothing but watch TV.

Treasured Classics

Illustrated by Michael Hague     Gr. K-2     132 pages    Chronicle, 2011

Here are fourteen classic fairy tales, with the retelling kept to less than six pages and coupled with lavish illustrations. These is more intended to familiarize children with the likes of Cinderella, The Gingerbread Man, Jack and the Beanstalk, etc. and are not scholarly tellings.