14th March Folktales and Fables Week

The third week of March is always Folktales and Fables Week, a time to enjoy a new story or an old favourite from the folktale genre, stories which have universal appeal due to their simple storylines, talking animals and magical scenarios. The tales may differ from culture to culture but they have common characters, themes and morals. They are usually short, but do all the things that good stories do so they are ideal ways to teach story grammar, problem/solution, theme, conflict resolution, good versus evil, stereotype, tension and other literary devices such as symbolism, juxtaposition, satire and foreshadowing.

Of course, I have favourites among the plethora that are available. This week at school I have given each class a wrapped surprise parcel to read sometime during the week. I gave each class a fable, and yes they may know the story, but there are so many wonderful versions where the author or illustrator has added so much texture to the story and my aim first and foremost was to ensure that the message was 'reading is fun'. There are 13 classes to provide books for in the Prep School, but I had so many books to choose from that the difficult part was narrowing the books down to that number. I chose picture books which only had one story, no anthologies or themed collections.

Among them were these favourites:

• the three by Jerry Pinkney: The Lion and the Mouse; The Grasshopper and the Ants and The Tortoise and the Hare.  These for the superb illustrations that tell the story often without words.

• two by Brian Wildsmith: The Lion and the Rat and The Hare and the Tortoise. Who can resist Wildsmith art?

• two by Ed and Rebecca Emberley:  The Ant and the Grasshopper and The Crocodile and the Scorpion. As well as the quirky collaged illustrations these have vocabulary that heightens the experience for any reader.

•  Hare and the Tortoise  by Alison Murray. This takes this story to new heights. See the character's names, labelled illustration of each of the two competitors, the maps, instructions...

• The Hare and the Tortoise by Helen Ward. This is a long retelling of this story, but the additions mean there is even more to spot in the illustrations and talk about.

• The Tortoise and the Hare by Angela McAllister. The retelling is delightful but the woodcuts by Jonathan Heale are exquisite.

• Mouse and Lion  by Randy Burkert and Nancy Ekholm Burkert. This mother and son collaboration is outstanding.

• Lion and the Mouse by Jenny Broom. The paper engineering and die-cuts add a new dimension to this version.

• The Lion and the Mouse  by A.J.Wood and Ian Andrew. This is my all time favourite and unfortunately out of print. The illustrations are rendered in lead pencil on white paper. The size of each frame differs depending upon the character's role in the story at that particular time and there is just so much here 'to soak up'.

• The Cardinal and the Crow by Michael Moniz. This thoughtful picture book, inspired by Aesop's fables, reminds us all that 'pride and foolishness often go hand in hand.' 

For a more comprehensive list of fables in the library see
here.