Mirra Ginsburg (1909–2000)
Author of The Chick and the Duckling
About the Author
Mirra Ginsburg was born in Bobruisk, Byelorussia in 1909. As a child, she learned to love books. Folk tales were her favorite type of story, especially those from her native country. She wanted to share the richness, wit, and beauty of the tales with American children and did with her translation show more work. She died on December 26, 2000. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Works by Mirra Ginsburg
The Ultimate Threshold: A Collection of the Finest in Soviet Science Fiction (1970) — Editor — 93 copies
Last Door to Aiya: A Selection of the Best New Science Fiction from the Soviet Union (1968) — Editor — 18 copies
The Lazies: Tales of the Peoples of Russia (English and Multilingual Edition) (1973) 13 copies, 1 review
Alice : Some Incidents in the Life of a Little Girl of the Twenty-First Century, Recorded by Her Father on the Eve of Her First Day in School (1977) 13 copies
The Night It Rained Pancakes: Adapted from a Russian Folktale (Greenwillow Read-Alone Books) (1980) 9 copies, 2 reviews
Striding Slippers / Adapted from an Udmurt Tale by Mirra Ginsburg ; Pictures by Sal Murdocca (1978) 6 copies
The fox and the hare 2 copies
The Kaha Bird 2 copies
Which place is the best? 1 copy
Associated Works
A Soviet Heretic: Essays by Yevgeny Zamyatin (1970) — Editor, some editions; Translator, some editions — 91 copies
Lieutenant Kijé; Young Vitushishnikov: Two Novellas (1991) — Translator, some editions — 58 copies, 1 review
Once Upon a Time: Beginning To Read (Houghton Mifflin Literary Readers ∙ Volume B) (1989) — Contributor — 27 copies
Cricket Magazine, Vol. 8, No. 2, October 1980 — Contributor — 2 copies
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Canonical name
- Ginsburg, Mirra
- Other names
- Гинзбург, Мирра
- Birthdate
- 1909-06-10
- Date of death
- 2000-12-26
- Gender
- female
- Occupations
- translator
editor
children's book author - Short biography
- Mirra Ginsburg was a Jewish Russian-American translator of Russian literature, a collector of folk tales and a children's writer. Born in Bobruisk (then part of the Russian Empire, now part of modern-day Belarus) in 1909, she moved with her family to Latvia, then to Canada, before they settled in the United States. Although she won praise for her translations of adult literature, including the Master and Margarita (1967) by Mikhail Bulgakov and We (1972) by Yevgeny Ivanovich Zamyatin, she is perhaps most celebrated for her contributions to children's literature. She collected and translated a vast array of folktales from the Russian tradition, as well as Siberian and Central Asian traditions. Ginsburg died in 2000.
- Nationality
- Russia (birth)
USA (naturalized) - Birthplace
- Bobruisk, Minsk Governorate, Russian Empire (now Belarus)
- Places of residence
- Latvia
Canada
New York, USA - Place of death
- Long Island, New York, USA
- Map Location
- USA
Members
Reviews
A fisherman's son is rewarded for his acts of kindness in this beautiful Georgian folktale, as the many animals he has saved help him to win the hand of a beautiful maiden. Sworn never to marry, unless to a man clever enough to hide from her magic mirror, the maiden at first seems unattainable. The fisherman's son is hidden in many extraordinary places by his animal friends, but all to no avail. Finally, the clever fox takes a hand...
The Fisherman's Son is a delightful book, both as a folk show more narrative and as a beautifully-illustrated picture book. Mirra Ginsburg is perhaps best known as a translator of Russian literature, and I have read and enjoyed her version of Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita. Here she demonstrates that she is also an accomplished storyteller. Tony Chen's gorgeous illustrations are the perfect complement to the story, with just the right blend of fantasy and restraint. The alternation between black & white line drawings and full-color panels, allows Chen to demonstrate his delicacy while also playing with a lush palette. Highly recommended, with only one caveat: I wish that Ginsburg had included some note as to her source material. show less
The Fisherman's Son is a delightful book, both as a folk show more narrative and as a beautifully-illustrated picture book. Mirra Ginsburg is perhaps best known as a translator of Russian literature, and I have read and enjoyed her version of Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita. Here she demonstrates that she is also an accomplished storyteller. Tony Chen's gorgeous illustrations are the perfect complement to the story, with just the right blend of fantasy and restraint. The alternation between black & white line drawings and full-color panels, allows Chen to demonstrate his delicacy while also playing with a lush palette. Highly recommended, with only one caveat: I wish that Ginsburg had included some note as to her source material. show less
If nothing else, at least it was a quick read. I personally loved it, with its confusing mix of morals (and sometimes lack of) and its impossible stories, but I could easily understand why someone might not like it. It is a book of short stories, and I think there is only one that has a moral at the end that makes sense. The Lazies is about lazy people, and while half the morals do say to not be lazy, the other half say to be lazy. There are some very mixed messages. I almost wish there were show more more stories in the book, but then I might explode from wtf-itis. It was fun, it was quick, and its a great book to read to your friends. show less
A brood of fluffy young chicks sets out to find the sun and bring it back to the sky in this folktale from Slovenia, published in 1975, and translated by the prolific Mirra Ginsburg, who has made so many Eastern European works available to American readers. Outfitted by the mother hen with a grain of rye and a poppy-seed each (sounds like slim rations for a long quest to me...), they wander about, asking each animal they meet whether they know where the sun lives, and picking up quite an show more entourage in the meantime. It falls to the local hedgehog to guide them all up to the local mountain peak, where they hop on a cloud that takes them to the moon, who in turn guides them to the sun's dwelling. Here the animal companions must convince the sun to emerge once more, all pitching in to get him ready.
Although I wouldn't describe How the Sun Was Brought Back to the Sky as a particularly scintillating read, I did find it a sweet, gentle little story, perfect for younger children who enjoy a good quest story, sans blood, guts and mayhem. The scene in which the animals clean up the sun was particularly charming! As someone with an interest in folklore, moreover, I appreciated the fact that this tale was from Slovenia, as I have not had a chance to read much from the folk tradition of that country. The colorful artwork is a little cartoon-like, but is cheerful and appealing all the same. I liked the scene in which the chicks are confronted by the magpie - it was quite charming! All in all, a solid folkloric retelling, although I do wish that Ginsburg had listed her sources, or given some information about the story. show less
Although I wouldn't describe How the Sun Was Brought Back to the Sky as a particularly scintillating read, I did find it a sweet, gentle little story, perfect for younger children who enjoy a good quest story, sans blood, guts and mayhem. The scene in which the animals clean up the sun was particularly charming! As someone with an interest in folklore, moreover, I appreciated the fact that this tale was from Slovenia, as I have not had a chance to read much from the folk tradition of that country. The colorful artwork is a little cartoon-like, but is cheerful and appealing all the same. I liked the scene in which the chicks are confronted by the magpie - it was quite charming! All in all, a solid folkloric retelling, although I do wish that Ginsburg had listed her sources, or given some information about the story. show less
From the Japanese kitsune to the medieval European Reynard, the fox often appears as a clever, mischievous character in the folk traditions of the world. Russia is no exception, as Mirra Ginsburg demonstrates in One Trick Too Many, a collection of nine brief fables and folktales devoted to this fascinating trickster figure. Here the reader will encounter:
The Red Fox and the Walking Stick, in which a wily fox manages to fool a series of peasants into giving him what he wants, until he meets show more up with a shepherd more clever than he...
The Fox and the Lion, in which a cunning fox convinces a lion that he, the fox, is the stronger one...
The Old Man, the Wolf and the Vixen, in which a vixen - coming upon an old man about to be eaten by a hungry wolf - intercedes, tricking the wolf and saving the man...
The Fox and the Badger, in which a fox and a badger try to decide how to split the honeycomb they have both found. Not surprisingly, the fox's suggestion that they have a dream contest, works to his advantage...
One Trick Too Many, in which a mischievous fox plays the same trick twice, and pays the price for it...
The Sly Fox, in which a fox outwits the creatures of the sea, thereby saving his own skin, only to lose an eye. Needless to say, the sly creature finds a way to turn that to his advantage...
Animal Friendship, in which a bear, a wolf and a vixen form a very brief coalition...
The Fox and the Quail, in which the quail - under threat - finds food, drink, and entertainment for the fox, until she's finally had enough...
And finally, The Vixen and her Cub, in which a mother fox glories in the realization that her child is even more cunning than she...
I enjoyed these tales, ably retold by translator Mirra Ginsburg, and found Helen Siegl's delightful woodcuts, with their red and yellow tones, a visual treat. Folklore lovers of all ages will enjoy One Trick Too Many, but fox-lovers will be especially pleased. show less
The Red Fox and the Walking Stick, in which a wily fox manages to fool a series of peasants into giving him what he wants, until he meets show more up with a shepherd more clever than he...
The Fox and the Lion, in which a cunning fox convinces a lion that he, the fox, is the stronger one...
The Old Man, the Wolf and the Vixen, in which a vixen - coming upon an old man about to be eaten by a hungry wolf - intercedes, tricking the wolf and saving the man...
The Fox and the Badger, in which a fox and a badger try to decide how to split the honeycomb they have both found. Not surprisingly, the fox's suggestion that they have a dream contest, works to his advantage...
One Trick Too Many, in which a mischievous fox plays the same trick twice, and pays the price for it...
The Sly Fox, in which a fox outwits the creatures of the sea, thereby saving his own skin, only to lose an eye. Needless to say, the sly creature finds a way to turn that to his advantage...
Animal Friendship, in which a bear, a wolf and a vixen form a very brief coalition...
The Fox and the Quail, in which the quail - under threat - finds food, drink, and entertainment for the fox, until she's finally had enough...
And finally, The Vixen and her Cub, in which a mother fox glories in the realization that her child is even more cunning than she...
I enjoyed these tales, ably retold by translator Mirra Ginsburg, and found Helen Siegl's delightful woodcuts, with their red and yellow tones, a visual treat. Folklore lovers of all ages will enjoy One Trick Too Many, but fox-lovers will be especially pleased. show less
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