James Bruchac

4.5 stars rounded up because it works in so many ways and could be appreciated by many audiences.

Excellent creators' notes explain the Native connection. It can be compared to Tortoise and Hare, but more directly to the tales in which a small bird flies higher than an eagle by riding on the eagle's head or back: https://littlebrownwren.com/2015/11/24/how-the-wren-became-the-king-of-the-birds.... And I love the illustrations... those artists have illustrated many classic books over the show more years. I like the ending - that is indeed what beaver would most likely do next.

And it's just plain fun. show less

The second in Sterling's new Folktales of the World series (following upon Peninnah Schram's The Hungry Clothes and Other Jewish Folktales), this collection of Native American legends presents twenty-four tales from the different regions of the United States. Retold by Joseph Bruchac, a prolific children's author of Abenaki descent, together with his son James, The Girl Who Helped Thunder is an engaging book, sure to please young folklore enthusiasts.

The first section, devoted to the show more northeast, includes three tales, taken from the Seneca, Lenape and Wampanoag traditions. How Stories Came To Be (Seneca) offers an explanation of the first storyteller and how he learned his craft, emphasizing both the importance of storytelling as a communal activity, and the need to listen carefully.

The Girl Who Helped Thunder (Lenape), tells the story of Pretty Face, who ignores her parents' advice in choosing her mate, finding herself married to the terrible snake-monster Amankamek as a result.

Maushop, the Good Giant (Wampanoag) tells of a time when the People lived with a benevolent giant, who did much of their work for them, until he realized that his kindness was making them lazy. As Bruchac notes in his introductory comment, this tale emphasizes the importance that the Wampanoag attach to the virtue of self-reliance.

The second section is devoted to the southeast, and includes stories from the Cherokee, Seminole, Creek, and Choctaw traditions. The Ball Game Between the Birds and Animals (Cherokee) relates the story of an epic contest between the creatures of the land and of the sky. Like many folktales, it has a dual function, explaining how bat and flying squirrel came to have wings, and also teaching the important lesson that even the small have an important contribution to make.

Turtle's Race With Wolf (Seminole) is the tale of Box Turtle and his cousins, who outwit boastful Wolf. Although similar in content to Tortoise and the Hare type tales, this story emphasizes cunning, rather than steady persistence, as the means of achieving victory.

How Rabbit Got Wisdom (Creek) tells the story of clever Rabbit, who, when he goes to the Master of Life to ask for wisdom, is taught that he already has it. Bruchac notes that this wide-spread tale has many variants, both in Native North America and Africa, and speculates that it may have been influenced by the folklore of slaves brought from Africa. For my part, I was reminded of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, in which many characters (the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, etc.) discover that they already possess the thing they seek.

Finally, The Coming of Corn (Choctaw) explains how the people were first taught to cultivate corn by Crow, and serves as a reminder that they must share the fruit of the field with the birds.

The third section, devoted to the great plains, includes tales from Cheyenne, Lakota, Blackfeet, and Pawnee lore. The Sister and Her Seven Brothers (Cheyenne) tells the story of Red Leaf and her seven adoptive brothers, who must rescue her from Great Buffalo Bull. This tale, also retold by Paul Goble in his Her Seven Brothers, makes an appearance in the TV miniseries The Dreamkeeper, and explains the existence of the Big Dipper.

How the Buffalo Came to Be (Lakota) explains the emergence of the people into the upper world, and the sacrifice of the medicine man Tatanka, who turned himself into the first buffalo, in order to provide them with food.

Old Man and the Rolling Rock (Blackfeet) tells the story of a deceitful man who retracts gifts he has given and goes back on his word, paying the price in the end. As Bruchac notes, this is a cautionary tale, meant to provide an example of how not to behave.

The Bear Man (Pawnee) relates the tale of a hunter who spares a young bear cub, and is rewarded when his own son is saved by the bears, and given many blessings. This story emphasizes the close relationship between the human and animal worlds.

The fourth section is devoted to the southwest, and includes tales from the Hopi, Navajo and Isleta Pueblo nations. How the People Came to the Upper World (Hopi) is the story of how the people emerged into a new world of light and hope, with the help of many of the birds and animals.

The Hero Twins (Navajo) tells the tale of Monster Slayer and Child Born of Water, two brothers who appeal to their father, the Sun, for aid in their quest to rid the world of monsters. I had not encountered them before, but Bruchac's commentary indicates that the twin-heroes are important figures in many of the folk traditions of Native North America.

Why Moon Has One Eye (Isleta Pueblo) explains the existence of night and day, and the waning and waxing of the moon, emphasizing the need for balance in all things.

The fifth section is devoted to California, one of the most densely populated regions of Native North America before contact with Europeans, and includes stories from the Maidu, Miwok, Pomo, and Wiyot traditions. Moon and Frog Old Woman (Maidu) relates the tale of Frog Old Woman, who rescues her abducted grandchild from the Moon. This tale offers an explanation of why the moon is in the sky, and why he waxes and wanes. Atypically, the moon is characterized as masculine here, something I had only seen before in Lithuanian folklore.

The Story of Tu-tak-a-nu-la (Miwok) is the tale of how little Measuring Worm manages to rescue a trapped mother bear and her cubs, giving his name to the famous stone in Yosemite (El Capitan).

How Earth Elder Made the Oak Tree (Pomo) relates the story of the creation of the all-important acorn, which provided the central food source for the indigenous peoples of California.

Finally, Why Owl Lives Away from the People (Wiyot) provides an explanation for owl's solitary existence, and offers an important moral on the evils of selfishness.

The sixth section is devoted to the northwest, and includes tales from the Salish, Yakama and Wasco peoples. In How the Drum Came to the People (Salish), the Sun dispatches clever Coyote to find a way for humans to "call forth the sound in their hearts," resulting in the creation of the first drum. This tales emphasizes the importance of music and dance, both as a means for individual emotional expression, and for communal happiness.

The Two Sisters Who Married Stars (Yakama) relates the tale of two sisters who wish to marry stars, and are transported to the sky land. But a longing for home soon consumes them, and they eventually find their way back to earth, one of them bringing her son along with her. This story explains the origin of the Yakama people, who believe that they are descended from the son of Bright Star.

In The Boy Who Went With the Seals (Wasco), a young boy disappears while his father is absorbed in his work, only to reappear years later with the seals. Temporarily taken back into his human family, the boy still longs for the seals... This tale of a child raised by seals reminded me of recent discussions I have had about the theme of feral children, and also recalled the Scots tradition of selkies, or seal-people.

The seventh and final section is devoted to the "far north," and contains stories from the Aluutiq, Inuit and Koyukon Alhabascan traditions. The Beluga-Skin Bedaarka follows the story of a solitary young hunter who sets out to find a wife, and must compete in many contests of strength and skill when he finally does encounter the maiden he wants. The generosity of the hunter, in his many victories, is clearly meant to impart a moral lesson to the listener/reader.

In The Blind Boy and the Loon (Inuit), a skilled young hunter is blinded by his spiteful stepmother, who is too lazy to cure the meat and tan the hides of the animals he brings home.

And finally, How Raven Brought Back the Sun (Koyukon Alhabascan), in which the trickster raven must steal back the sun and moon from the village which is holding them hostage.

I enjoyed The Girl Who Helped Thunder, which I read Thanksgiving Day, immensely. Some of the tales were already familiar to me, and others were completely unknown, but all were engaging stories, offering a fascinating glimpse of the diverse folk traditions of Native North America. Stefano Vitale's colorful, folk-motif illustrations added to the sense of enchantment. I do sometimes wonder, why it is that series of folklore collections will devote entire books to one culture group, if it is European, but expect to encompass all of North America's diverse native cultures in one volume. It's a trend I have noticed before, and Sterling seems to be reproducing it with their first three volumes, devoted to Jewish, Native American, and Irish folklore. But whatever qualms I may have about this publishing trend, I still enjoyed the collection. show less

Father-and-son team Joseph and James Bruchac - who also collaborated on Raccoon's Last Race: A Traditional Abenaki Story and How Chipmunk Got His Stripes - present a widespread Native American folktale in Turtle's Race With Beaver, one which (according to the brief foreword) probably originated with the Iroquois. The story of a race between a smaller, slower animal (Turtle), and a larger, swifter one (Beaver), it also bears a striking resemblance to the classic Aesopic fable of The Tortoise show more and the Hare, with a similar victory for the underdog.

An enjoyable story, joined to the colorful, cartoon-like artwork of José Aruego and Ariane Dewey - who also illustrated the two other Bruchac-and-Bruchac picture-books - makes for an excellent story-time selection for young folklore lovers. I was sorry to see Bruchac claiming definitively, in his foreword, that Aesop was of African descent, as that is by no means the most widely accepted theory (earliest sources place his birth in Thrace, and, of course, what we know as "Aesop's Fables" were actually first written down by Greco-Roman authors such as Babrius and Phaedrus, long after the time of Aesop, making their origin somewhat problematic), but leaving aside that glaring simplification, I recommend Turtle's Race With Beaver. Just be prepared, if you intend to share the foreword with young readers, to explain how much more complicated the historical and literary record is, as regards Aesop, than indicated in Bruchac's brief remarks. show less

In this Abenaki story, Raccoon plays an arrogant trickster who races all the other animals and always wins thanks to his long legs and long body. When the other animals refuse to race Raccoon anymore, he challenges a large rock to a race down a mountain. The rock squashes Raccoon. Raccoon asks some ants to help stretch his body out again by promising them that he will be their friend. However, when Raccoon is almost stretched out, he brushes the ants off and taunts them. When he walks off, show more he realizes the ants weren't done! Raccoon is left with the squashy, short body that raccoons have today.

Trickster stories from any culture tend to be a favorite among children and adults, who love to see either the clever trickster outwitting an opponent or the arrogant trickster getting his comeuppance. This traditional folktale from the Abenaki (a Northwestern Native American tribe and First Nation) is a prime example of the latter type of trickster story. Raccoon is portrayed as mean and taunting to build up the story, and readers will delight when the rude Raccoon meets the consequences of his actions.

The prose is told in a traditional style, with some added sound effects that make it clear Raccoon's Last Race is meant to be told aloud, in the oral storytelling tradition. As the Raccoon races the other animals, the fox goes zip-zip! When Raccoon falls down the mountain and is squashed by the rock, readers are treated to the Ka-boom! Ka-boom! SPLAT! Ka-boom! as the rock travels down the mountain. When the rabbit ignores Raccoon's pleas at the end to help him, he goes ka-bunk, ka-bunk!

The illustrations are decent, though not exceptional in any way. The backgrounds are an impressionist blur of watercolor suggesting a field, or a sky, or a mountain on each page. The main characters and foreground objects are rendered in a sharp, crude style that is jarring when put against the softer backgrounds, and somehow robs the story of its dignity. When placed against the traditional storytelling style, the modern illustrations are jarring and discordant.

Additionally, some of the illustrations are unpleasant to look at: Raccoon's original body looks stretched and grotesque, and his expression is mean and scary. The rock is portrayed with sharp edges, and, inexplicably, sharp teeth in its mouth.

Though the story is fun and well-told, the illustrations detract from the story itself, leaving this a middling read. show less