Book
Corner
2004
Aesop Award Winners
Ayat Jamilah: Beautiful Signs: A Treasure of Islamic Wisdom for Children and Parents. Collected and adapted by Sarah Conover & Freda Crane. Illustrated by Valerie Wahl. Spokane: Eastern Washington UP, 2004. (275 pp.)
Ayat Jamilah begins with an excellent introduction to these thirty-nine
tales from the Islamic tradition. Most of the stories are folktales, and
some are derived from the Qur’an or Hadith. All of the sources are
identified, and notes expand context and meaning for many of the tales.
The text is beautifully illustrated with Wahl’s pastels. The informative
collection is available in quality paperback. (ISBN 0-91-55-94-7)
The Magic Gourd. Written and illustrated by Baba Wagué Diakité. New York: Scholastic Press, 2003.
A tale from Mali about the rabbit Dogo Zan who, because of his good deeds, is rewarded with the means to feed and care for his family. His treasure, a magic gourd, is stolen by a greedy king, but a helpful chameleon aids Dogo Zan to regain the gourd. The text is vibrantly illustrated, and the integration of Bambara oral tradition enriches the oral style of the tale. Colorful bowls, tiles, plates, and textile borders based on traditional mud cloth designs illustrate the pages. End materials include cultural notes on Mali storytelling, variants of the tale, Mali songs, and discussion of symbolic meanings of the mud cloth patterns pictured in the text. (ISBN 0-439-43960-4)
Bottle Houses: The Creative World of Grandma Prisbrey. Written by Melissa Eskridge Slaymaker and illustrated by Julie Paschkis. New York: Henry Holt, 2004.
Bottle Village, listed in the National Register of Historic Places, was created by Tressa “Grandma” Prisbrey between 1956 and 1988. This little 32-page picture book, illustrated in jewel-like colors by Paschkis, is a delightful introduction to the folk art of bottle design. . Photographs of Grandma and some of her creations are included in the back of the book. (ISBN 0-8050-7131-8)
The Painted Wall and Other Strange Tales. Selected and adapted by Michael Bedard from the Liao-Chai of Pu Sung-ling. Toronto: Tundra Books, 2003.
Written for older children or adults, this small, trim book fits nicely in the hand and retells twenty-three tales from the Liao-Chai. Dragon motifs appear throughout the book, and readable typeface and an approachable format introduce these ancient tales to a new generation of readers. (ISBN 0-619-21196-9)
Sure as Sunrise: Stories of Bruh Rabbit & His Walkin’ Talkin’ Friends. Written by Alice McGill and Illustrated by Don Tate. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2004.
In five stories, McGill revives and retells stories from her African American childhood in North Carolina. The stories celebrate the trickery and subsequent survival of Bruh Rabbit, his friends, and his enemies. Illustrator Don Tate based his flamboyant full-page oil and acrylic illustrations on clay sculpture models created specifically for the book. (ISBN 0-619-21196-9)
Walking on Solid Ground. Written by Shu Pui Cheung, Shuyan Li, Aaron Chau, and Deborah Wei. Philadelphia, PA: Philadelphia Folklore Project, 2004.
This little text is a 32-page introduction to two artists and their young student in Philadelphia’s Chinatown. The Chinese opera singer, the Kung Fu master, and the student discuss their love and respect for these ancient arts. It is brightly illustrated, and when the book is turned over, the text is presented entirely in Chinese! See the Philadelphia Folklore Project’s website at http://www.folkloreproject.org/archive/pubs/walking.shtml for more information. (ISBN 0-964-49374-8)
