From the Amazon to the Arctic, the world is teeming with diverse cultures. There's no better way for students to learn about the world's cultural diversity than through its folktales. Some of these tales have been told for centuries, while others have emerged only in recent times.
These tales are the foundations of the world's traditions, literature, and popular culture and are fundamental to daily life. The most comprehensive work of its kind, this set gives students and general readers a guided tour of the world's folktales.
Each volume of the set is devoted to a particular broad geographic region:
Volume 1: Africa, The Middle East, Australia and Oceania Volume 2: Asia Volume 3: Europe Volume 4: North and South America Each volume includes an introductory essay, and the tales within each book are gathered in sections devoted to particular cultural groups or regions. The tales are accompanied by explanatory headnotes, and the set provides regional bibliographies as well as a selected, general bibliography. Among the tales covered are:
Baboon Disguises Himself and Becomes a Farmer Cinderella The Crocodile and the Dog The Disobedient Daughter Who Married a Skull The Fisherman and the Jinn The Green Lady Hansel and Gretel How the Twins Visited the Sun Jack and the Fire Dragaman Jack the Giant-Killer Lata and Sinota Pele's Long Sleep Rabbit Steals Fire The Red Calf Tale of a Lantern Thor in Peril The Tortoise with a Beautiful Daughter The Wallaroo and the Willy-Wagtail The Witch and the New Born Infant And many more. Accessible, informative, and entertaining, this book will help literature students learn how to analyze texts and understand the traditions at the heart of many of the world's literary masterpieces. It will also help social studies students learn about the world's cultures and respect ethnic diversity.
FEATURES AND BENEFITS: Volumes are devoted to particular geographic regions. Tales are clustered in sections devoted to particular cultural groups within broad regions. Introductory essays discuss the tales and traditions of different areas. Tales are accompanied by explanatory headnotes. The set includes regional bibliographies and a selected, general bibliography of resources suitable for student research. Supports the literature curriculum by helping students analyze texts and understand the tales fundamental to many literary works. Supports the social studies curriculum by helping students learn about different cultures. Promotes respect for cultural and ethnic diversity.