Folklore, Myths, and Legends : A World Perspective

by Donna Rosenberg

Folklore, Myths, and A World Perspective contains world masterpieces including Prometheus, Faust, the Shahnemeh and the Mahabharata in a retold format that gives your students all the flavor of the original work in an easy-to-understand presentation. Contained within this text are historical and cultural background information for each selection and detailed source notes.

536 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

Reviews

[Karolanne Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the story, The Crocodile and His Son I feel as if the great crocodile chief was very selfish, he only ever cared about himself. The way he makes all the Fan people obey him and sacrifice people, is just not right. I guess all big rulers or kings are kind of the same way, they might not go to the extent of wanting human sacrifices, but they do make people give up things and sacrifice items to them. Just like Ombrue, the great crocodile chief, and all other rulers, they all make the people follow rules or they would be punished. I thought it was a great strategy of all the chiefs to try to outsmart Ombrue, but in the end the crocodile ended up punishing the people because they disobeyed and did not do what was asked of them. Now, for the Son-of-the-Crocodile, he was by far the smartest. He figured out a way to conquer the big bad crocodile without hurting anyone in the Fan village, which is what a great chief should be able to do. I feel like he is a legend to all of the people from the Fan village. To me he is a fantastic chief, just by the way he plans and plots the scheme that ends up saving the village. All thanks go to the Son-of-the-Crocodile for being the savior to all of the Fan people.
In the story, Ombrue, the great crocodile chief who is the master to everyone and everything decides that human flesh would be tastier than fish. He then demands that the Fan village people must sacrifice one human a night and at every new moon they must give him a young maiden. The great chief agrees, he plans to use slaves from other villages to protect his own, once he runs out of people he comes up with a master plan that ends up backfiring. A new chief is appointed, but now since this village disobeyed he wants two humans a day and two young maidens every new moon. This new chief agrees, but once again the chief could no longer please the great crocodile chief, so he too comes up with a great plan. Being the fact that Ombrue is the master of everything, he is the boss, and the new chief’s plans didn’t work out. Once again Ombrue changes his mind and now he wants two young maidens a night, which they did. After the new chief had grown too old, there was a new chief appointed named Son-of-the-Crocodile, who was the grandson of the great chief, the first chief, who was way smarter than the rest. He ended up figuring out a way to conquer the great crocodile chief and also taught the Fan village how to live a lot different, but better than they were before.
The main characters in this story are Ombrue, the great chief, the new chief, and the Son-of-the-Crocodile. The minor characters in this story are the Fan village people and the slaves that were sacrificed. Ombrue is the great crocodile chief, who is the master or the chief of everything, like the forest or the water. He is the one that all of the spirits listen to, like the spirit of wind, spirit of thunder or the spirit of the forest. He is in control of everything. In the beginning, he was very nice and kept to himself. One day he realized he was the master and decided to use his power for himself. I personally would call him selfish, the way he makes the village people sacrifice other people just for his own well being. For the great chief, he was as they said a great chief, but the decision he made didn’t end well. The thing was though is he was doing it all for the people of Fan village, he was being their leader and trying everything to help them. He was a great leader, he just disobeyed Ombrue and thats why he ended up the way he did. The new chief who was the brother of the great chief, just took the roles of being chief and did everything the same as the great chief. He was just a very good leader to the Fan village people. The Son-of-the-Crocodile is the grandson to the great chief, he was the greatest leader and problem solver. He kept all the village people calm and got the job of the chief done by killing the crocodile, so that the Fan village could be all perfect again.
This story takes place a very very long time ago, they were living like Native American, like they had the grow their own food since there was no stores yet. The good thing was, was they were by a river so they had all of the water they needed. They just had to find or grow the food they needed and make sure they could build shelters or huts to live in. It was not easy living but they manage to get by even with the obstacle of Ombrue.
I think that anybody fourteen years old and up would like this story, it is a myth but it is very easy to follow. Any high school student since it is very informational, based on the structure and type of writing that it is. It would help you to expand the types of reading, its not like a novel, since it is a myth it is as if you were telling the story as you read it.
I rate this story a three out of five stars, because it was kind of confusing and I just didn’t enjoy it. It was not a normal thing that I would have read.

[Tawshawohlrabe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book Review #1
By: Tawsha Wohlrabe
Genre: Myth
The Little Frog

I would have felt terrible if I was the frog with the beautiful voice because everyone that I would see would run away from me screaming. That would just make me want to cry because a lot of people judge you without actually knowing the real you. The two princes: Prince Pedro and prince Diego are two very good examples of this. I am very happy that Juan had vowed to marry the frog and he still kept his vow after he had seen the frog. Now this is a true man who will keep his vows and who did not judge a person from the outside and judged them from the inside. I was very happy that Juan had a happy marriage and that he loved his wife so much that he could trust her with anything. I am also ecstatic that the frog was brave enough to accomplish the tasks that her husband`s family had given her. I was relieved that Juan`s parents had excepted Juan`s wife and had liked her enough to go and live with them.

Plot: The first and oldest prince: Prince Pedro went off on his journey to where he heard a beautiful voice. Pedro followed the voice until he had found out that the woman singing was a frog so he ran away. The same thing had happened to the next Prince: Prince Diego who was even more frightened than Prince Pedro. The frog was hurt and sad by the rejections so she had refused to see anyone else until the third prince, Prince Juan had went on his journey. Prince Juan had heard the beautiful voice as well and vowed that he would marry this lovely lady who has such an amazing voice. Prince Juan was shocked to see that the woman was a frog but Juan was worthy enough to keep his vow to her so he had married her.
This had made Juan very happy until the day Juan has to go to his parents and present them a gift which he did not have. Juan was very scared and unhappy due to his lack of his fulfillment of his duty.His wife gave him a gift to give to his parents, which he could not open until he gave it to them. The gift was silver and gold with this Juan`s parents were very happy. They did not receive any other gifts from their other sons. Due to this gift Juan`s parents had decided to give the prince`s wives’ multiple tasks in which they shall accomplish. Juan who was afraid that his wife could not complete the tasks. Juan started to grieve but Juan`s wife would not allow it. She told her husband to sleep. When Juan had awakened he had found out that his wife had completed all of the tasks so he was grateful. When he returned to the castle his parents were pleased as well and they decided to live with Juan and his wife, who then turned into the most beautiful princess that anyone has ever seen before.


Characterization: The main characters in this myth are: the frog, the three princes, the main prince is Juan, the king and queen, the frog`s father.

Setting: I think that The Little Frog is a good myth because it takes place at a castle that looks like a cabin during the sixteenth, seventeenth, and eighteenth centuries. In this cabin lived an old man and his daughter who was a frog. A few miles away from the cabin lived a King, Queen, and her three sons: Prince Pedro, Prince Diego, and Prince Juan. The three princes wished for their father`s blessing and he agreed to give them his blessing, if within a year they each would return to give him a silver bar or the best gift that they could find. I think that the old man was chosen to have a daughter as a frog to see if he had loved his daughter enough to stay with her and protect her from others who would try to harm her. I also think that the king and queen are very nice people because they had given their children an experience that most young adults would not have been lucky enough to receive.

I would recommend this book to fifth grader and up. It is a very good and easy book to read. I would recommend this book to teenagers and adults because this book is a very good book. It has a lot of words that younger children are able to understand. The book does not switch from one character to another so you do not have to pay a lot of attention to what you are reading. It also does not switch from the present to the past. I think this book is an extremely good book. It is filled with so much mystery about the frog and Juan that it will make you feel very happy while you read it. Once you start reading you will not want to put it down. I think that the book is written very well due to it being so descriptive that it is like I am the frog, who is one of the main characters in the story. I like the characters because they are described so well. The book is not too slow or too fast it is just right. It is not hard to understand the book because the words are the perfect size for its readers.

[Emily Yonke · Rating 4 out of 5]

The myth that I read about was When Grizzlies Walked Upright. I enjoyed reading about this Myth because it shows the world being made in a different perspective. I also liked learning about how the grizzly bear came to be. Who knew they were created by a large end of the Sky Spirits stick. I was mostly intrigued on how the daughter grew up and married the eldest son of a grizzly bear. That is quite unusual in fact it is not normal, but it is a myth and anything can happen in myths.

The events that happened in this myth’s storyline are: the Sky Spirit creating the earth around Mount Shasta which is located in California and the grizzly bears. The next major event that happened was when the Daughter climbed up the chimney and her hair got caught by the wind sending her down to the mountains base and the mother grizzly finding her and bringing her home. I would say another important event that happened was when the daughter of the Sky Spirit married the eldest son of the grizzly bear because that was when the daughter became the wife of a bear and its the first time that she upset her father without knowing. The most important event that happened was when the Mother Grizzly became ill and she knew she was going to die so she sent her grandson to tell the Sky Spirit that his youngest daughter was still alive and doing well. Of course, the Sky Spirit was so happy to hear this news so he raced down the mountain to see for his own eyes his beautiful, now grown, daughter. He was not to thrilled to have learned that his daughter married a grizzly bear, so in return for her “sin” he had all her children turned into bears that could no longer talk to walk on two legs and carried his daughter back up to the clouds and that is where the story ended.

The main characters were the Sky Spirit, the Mother Grizzly, the daughter, and the Wind Spirit. The Sky Spirit is like God in some ways he created Mount Shasta, the birds, the otters,the beavers, and of course the grizzly bears. The Sky Spirit only saw the good in what he had done, so he brought his family down to live on his new creation. The Wind Spirit was just wind that blew away the Sky Spirits daughter when she was so young. The Daughter of the Sky Spirit was blown away by the Wind Spirit when she was a little girl after that a Mother Grizzly took her home and raised her into a fine young woman who later married the eldest son of the Mother Grizzly. Now the Mother Grizzly was a grizzly bear who had many cubs and also an adopted human child who she raised as her own. She was kind to shelter the young girl.


The place that this all occurred was in California at Mount Shasta in the Cascade Mountain Range. Mount Shasta is said to be a dormant volcanic mountain cone rising 7,000 feet above the tree line. The time was long ago.

I would recommend this story to probably middle schoolers just because it is a creation myth and middle school is when we mostly talk about how the world came to be. I might recommend it to some elementary students that are advanced in their reading but keep it mostly for middle school students.

[Noah Buhrow · Rating 4 out of 5]

I only read one called The Earth on Turtle’s Back from this book. I found it to be intriguing and fun. I was actually part of a group to create a presentation and present it to the rest of the class. It was a relatively easy one to plan and put together.

In this origin myth, the earth started as only water, the home to all kinds of bird and animal life. Above the water, there was Skyland. In the middle of Skyland, there was a great tree that grew from four white roots that stretched to the four sacred directions. Living in Skyland, there was the Ancient Chief and his wife lived. One night, she had a dream about the great tree being uprooted. Since this is a Native American legend, they believed that powerful dreams were made to come true, so the Ancient Chief pulls the tree out of the ground. As his wife looks down one of the root holes, she falls in with some seeds from the root she was holding. The birds and animals in the water below look up and see the woman falling towards them. A pair of swans fly up to catch her. Then the animals need to figure out what they are going to do to give the woman a place to stand. So, having heard tale that there is earth far below the surface of the water, they attempt to dive down to retrieve it. The duck, beaver, and loon all try and fail. Then a muskrat comes along and dives farther than any of them and gets a tiny bit of earth. She brings it back to the surface, where the animals place it on the back of the Great Turtle. The earth starts growing to the size of the whole world. The swans bring the woman down from the sky and she plants the earth using the seeds she had held onto.

This story is made to resemble many of the things that the Native Americans believed in. They believed in spirits they called manitos. The Ancient Chief resembles the Chief Manito and his wife is the one that gave life to earth. The birds and animals in the water are miscellaneous spirits that were trying to help the one that gave life.

This story takes place in the pre-earth of the Native Americans. The fact that all the animals are there says that there was always life somewhere in the universe, because the animal spirits had to come from somewhere. But there is no real time setting for this story.

Of the part I read (The Earth on Turtle's Back) I would recommend this story to anyone who is interested in origin myths or Native American legends regardless of age.

*EDIT* I may have lied at the beginning, because the story may not be in this book.

[Emily Durrant · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I was reading this myth I was confused at first. As I continued to read I found my self enjoying it. I thought that it was very funny and interesting. I loved finding out about this belief and about all the characters.

This novel is about the time when grizzly bears could walk on two feet and talk like humans. This myth mostly takes place on Mount Shasta in the spring. A main idea in this novel is when the Sky Spirit took all the ice and snow from the clouds and pounded it down to Earth, making Mount Shasta. Another main event is when he broke parts of sticks to make various of animals, such as otters and the grizzly bear. The grizzly bears were able to talk and walk on two feet, just like humans. Sky Spirit sent them away and brought his family down to Earth. The next main event is when the Sky Spirit told his daughter to climb up a tree and tell the Wind Spirit to stop blowing the wind. The daughter got distracted and fell off the tree. A grizzly bear found the daughter and took her to his home. The daughter then grew up with the bears and married one of the sons. She later had half human, half bear babies. The Sky Spirit later finds his daughter and her babies. He sends the bears to walk on all fours and forbids them to speak. He then sends them up Mount Shasta and takes his daughter back to the clouds. These bear humans later become the first Indians to roam Earth.

The main characters were the Sky Spirit, the daughter, and the grizzly bears. The Sky Spirit made everything on Earth. He created life and nature. The daughter created a new species and represented rebellion to her father. The grizzly bears were the ones to rescue the daughter and raise her. Some of the minor characters were the Wind Spirit and the cub babies. The Wind Spirit causes the Sky Spirit to make Earth and the cub babies turned into the Indians that first lived on Earth.

This book takes place on mostly Mount Shasta. Mount Shasta is a mountain the Sky Spirit created. Another place this book takes place is in the sky. The sky is where the Sky Spirit and his family first lived. This book takes place in the spring.

I would recommend this book to people who are interested in myths and the history behind it. Also, to people who would like to know about different cultural beliefs. This book is filled with what this cultural believes what actually happened. For example, there are indents on Mount Shasta that they believe are from when the Sky Spirit ran down it.

[Destiny · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this book I read the short story called "The Little Frog". I actually enjoyed reading this story and I liked the lesson that came out of it. The theme is very important for people to know. I think sometimes people do look at something and judge it based on the look. It made me happy that Juan, the youngest brother, looked passed the outside and looked on the inside more.

There are three princes that venture off on their own to learn the ways of others that are less fortunate of them. When, one by one, they stumble upon a beautiful voice and all think that they must marry the girl singing. Sadly, when the princes find out that the girl singing is actually a frog, they run away in disgust. I was glad to see that the last and youngest prince came upon the girl frog and saw her true inner beauty.

The two brothers, Pedro and Diego, were arrogant and focused on how the girl looked than on what she was like on the inside. The youngest brother, Juan, had more of a sweet side and looked passed the fact that she looked like a frog. He saw that she also had a great personality. The frog was a character that had some special powers. She was able to change junk into gold and silver. The frog definitely changed throughout the story, because by the end she had turned into a girl and a true princess. Her mental mind did not change much, but she changed physically.

The setting of this story took place sometime between the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries. Back in that time, people needed more permission from parents to marry a girl. The father of the daughter was very hesitant to show his daughter to the princes until Juan proved himself to him. The place this story took place went between a kingdom and a cottage. Those two places are obviously different from each other and impacted if it was okay for a prince to marry a poor girl. The level of richness was a factor, though, the marriage was still able to take place.

I would recommend this story to girls who feel like looks are all guys care about. This really showed and taught a lesson that looks do not need to mean everything. It is the personality that people care about and that really matters. Age wise, I would recommend any age in high school and even in middle school. The lesson is very good for anyone of any age to read about.

[Ike · Rating 3 out of 5]

I actually enjoyed reading this folktale of Chilean descent. It’s about three princes who want to go out and explore what the world is like outside of their fathers’ kingdom. One at a time they go out and here a beautiful voice at an old cabin. They all are so struck by the amazing voice that they go to the cottage. After they meet an old man, the princes learn that it is the old man’s daughter who was singing. They then find a frog, an awful and disgusting frog. Two of the princes kick the frog out of their way, but the third prince accepts the frog and its awful appearance for its inner beauty. Each Prince is given the same opportunity but only Juan, the wise one, finds true happiness in a little frog.

This folktale started in the sixteenth century by Spanish soldiers, and has been passed from generation to generation. The two princes Pedro and Diego represent most people during that era that only look for beauty on the outside. Prince Juan on the other hand represents the small population who sees inner beauty more important than outer beauty. I thought the part where Pedro and Diego regret their decision and wish they would have married the frog was awesome.

This story takes place in a small Spanish Kingdom during the seventeenth century. The setting I feel is pretty important because it says that money and riches do not affect true love. Which I believe is important to realize, if you love someone but they're not rich it does not mean you should forget them. In other words don't be a gold digger. The same goes for the story, just because they're not beautiful doesn't mean you should give up on them. Which disgusts me because I know I’m not the best looking guy, but I’d still appreciate a chance. The theme is pretty much don't judge a book by its cover. Also, that inner beauty should be respected as much as or even more than outer beauty.

This story tells a lot about the people who told it, that it gave them happiness and probably hope that one day this would happen to them. It was probably a life lesson story, to always be nice. Otherwise it might come back to bite you. I would recommend this book to younger children to install this moral into them so that they don't turn out to be a Pedro or Diego. I would recommend this myth to young adults also. Overall, it has a great moral to a good folklore.

[Kaitlyn Hickey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this myth. It taught me that you don't have to be beautiful to fall in love. The story is beautiful and a wonderful aspect on how people in the world really act. In this book there are many myths that are intriguing. I read the Little Frog. This myth is a Chilean Folktale. In the story "The Little Frog" contains many characteristics of the European point of view such as, three brothers, a helpful frog, and an enchanted person. As the intensity of the story increases one man finds out what true beauty is. Prince Juan (main character) is different from his brothers. Prince Juan has three brothers and they all want to leave their kingdom. With leaving comes a commitment that they will have to pay back to their father, the king. Each brother takes their time in leaving one by one. Pedro leaves first, Diego second, and Juan last. Once the brothers leave all three of them follow the same trail and hear a beautiful voice most likely from a beautiful maiden. But they are surprised to find out what is really making that sound. As the story progresses the three brothers meet up with their father again and have to present gifts and Juan's is the most breath taking of the brothers.

Prince Juan and the Frog are the main characters in the story. Some minor characters are Juan's brothers Pedro and Diego. Also the king, Queen, and the Frogs father. Throughout the story each of these characters are a major connection from one event to the next.

The story was written in the 16-18th century. During this period of time was the renaissance era. There were kings and queens and all the fairy tale ideas. At this time Spain was conquering Chile. There are eight different publications of this story and they are found in; Ireland, Scandinavia, Central Europe, Portugal, North Africa, Turkey, Russia, and the Philippians.

I would recommend this myth to eighth grade and above. The myth gives a concept on life and how things might really be. In eighth grade they will have experienced more to know what the moral of the story is. The older you are the more you will be able to connect to the story. It does not matter how old you are in some way shape or form there will be a part that you will be able to relate to.

[Carley Brunner · Rating 5 out of 5]

This myth is about how grizzly bears used to walk on two feet, and it is a very funny myth. A lot of the events are weird and unusual. The myth takes place in the clouds and on Mt. Shasta. It is spring time when this myth takes place. A main event that happens is when the Sky Spirit makes Mt. Shasta by pushing snow and ice down to Earth from the clouds. Another very important event is when the Sky Spirit breaks part of his walking stick and creates otters, beavers, fish, and all the other animals, but the grizzly bear is the most important one. These bears walk on two feet and talk just like humans. The Sky Spirit doesn’t like the bears and sends them away. The Sky Spirit’s daughter gets lost and is found by one of the grizzly bears. The girl later marries one of the bear cubs and have half human half bear babies. The Sky Spirit later finds his daughter and takes away their voices and banished them. Those half human and half bear babies later grow into the first Indians and they live by Mt. Shasta today.

The major characters in this myth are the Sky Spirit and the daughter. The minor characters are the grizzly bears, Wind Spirit and half human half bear kids. The Sky Spirit didn’t change much throughout this story, she only appears when she is making nature and animals, and when she comes to Earth to take her daughter back to the clouds with her. The daughter changers a little, she is very curious and later gets herself in trouble, but she later becomes more mature after getting married and having children.

This myth takes place in the spring time in the clouds and down on Mt. Shasta. It’s when winter is ending and all the snow is melting. This doesn’t tell us when this was taking place, but it happened way before people lived on earth, and before anything lived on Earth.

I would recommend this myth to anyone. It just gives you an idea of how people thought Earth and animals were created back then. It was funny how some things were made like throwing sticks into the water to make some animals. It would be better to read this for a class in school, not just for fun. Any gender would be okay for this myth. It was a very interesting myth.

[Brady Bonnell · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story will help me keep on trying when things get hard for me in school and at home. If the animals didn't stop trying then I will also try not to give up.

The Earth on Turtles Back is a short Native American story that tells how land on earth was formed. Earth started out as only water and had floating islands in the clouds. The names of the sky islands was Skyland. An ancient chief and his wife ruled Skylands. One night his wife had a dream that the sacred tree was uprooted and the sky people’s way was to make dreams come true so the chief uprooted the tree and left a big hole in its place. The wife leans too far in and falls with a handful of seeds form the tree. The animals below help the sky woman to dive down and collect “earth” (dirt) and form an island in a giant turtles back. Thus creating earth.

The sky women symbolized “Mother Earth��� as she created life on land with the seeds from the uprooted tree. The turtle was used and symbolized as the “land” of the new earth. The muskrat was showing determination and the effort to get the soil from the bottom of the water. The other animals showed bravery and kindness towards the sky women.

The story is set before the earth was formed, so it is during the beginning of time when things were being created. It is a myth to explain the formation of the land on earth. The book is told in a native 3rd person point of view. In the beginning of the book all of the animals were clueless about the sky women and did not know how to help her. As the animals ban together and with lots of determination to get the earth. The animals showed great compassion and perseverance to help the lady. They nearly drowned to get the earth because it was the right thing to do for the sky women and they wanted nothing in return.

I would recommend this book to kids of all ages. I say this because it is a great story to tell younger children and have them show the compassion and determination in their life. Having the animals ban together will help them to ban together with others to overcome obstacles. This story will help me keep on trying when things get hard for me in school and at home. If the animals didn't stop trying then I will also try not to give up.

[Issac · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought that this book needed more detail. It was kind of repetitive. The same type of event kept happening. The ending was the best part I think because the great crocodile had been taken over by the newest, smartest chief. I don’t recommend this book because it wasn’t very exciting. It basically about this God-Like crocodile who liked human flesh more than fish. He then kept demanding more and more humans every day and night.

Ombure, the great crocodile, who was the master of everything, started to realize that human flesh was tastier than fish. So he demanded that he wanted a human sacrifice every day and a young maiden every new moon. The chief agreed, and started to use other village people. He tried to come up with a plan that didn’t work. A new chief is appointed. Ombure was not happy with what was happening. So he decided to make it 2 humans every day and 2 young maidens per night. The chief agreed. Later on the new chief could not make Ombure happy. The new chief tries to come up with a plan to stop Ombure as well but does not succeed. The new chief ended up growing old and there needed to be another new chief appointed. Son-of-Crocodile is now the newest chief. Who was the grandson of the first chief. He comes up with a master plan to conquer Ombure and it works. He taught the village people how to live their lives better.

The main characters in this book are Ombure, the great god-like being that was the master of everything. The chiefs who tried to conquer Ombure but did not succeed except for The-Son-of-The-Crocodile. There were some of non-major characters such as the village people, and spirits.

This story took place very long ago. Where village people lived by a river for water and to grow their own food. They built small huts for shelter. Kind of like Native Americans.

I think this book would be great for younger kids such as 12-14. It’s not hard to follow and just seems like a kid book. It didn’t interest me. I recommend it for younger kids. It is a type of story that they would enjoy because most kids like Myths like this.

[Marlen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading the Chilean folktale, “The Little Frog”, because it’s about three princes who go off into the world searching for the best thing that they can find. However, each prince is granted the same opportunity to receive the best gift in the world but only the wise prince finds true happiness through a little frog. This story was very interesting because, for me, I was able to focus in the history of this folktale, for example: where this story originated from, how the people during this time period lived and how much this made up story caused great happiness in their lives.

This Chilean folk tale has been passed down from generation to generation, originating during the sixteenth centuries by Spanish soldiers. The characters of Prince Pedro and Prince Diego represent the majority of people in this day and age who only look for beauty on the outside, and the character of Prince Juan represents the small majority of people who look for inner beauty. I love the bittersweet moment when both of the Princes who rejected the little frog end up wanting her in the end, but it is too late.

“The Little Frog” takes place in a small kingdom during the seventeenth century. The setting is important to the storyline because since the three Princes are royalty, it is easier to separate the rich and poor more easily. What I got out of the importance of the setting was that true love does not depend on money and riches. The time period is significant because although this is a folktale it is kind of a free ticket to finding real facts about world history in that time.

The theme in “The Little Frog” is that you cannot judge a book by it’s cover and that inner beauty does matter.

I would recommend “The Little Frog” to Mr. Fee because I know that he could relate to this folktale in world history. I would also recommend this story to children, although they would not fully comprehend it, it is a child’s story with a very important moral that they could eventually relate to when they get older.

[JACOB YOUNG · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the myth "The Little Frog." It is a Spanish myth, with the theme or morale of the myth as don't judge a book by it's cover. I enjoyed reading the myth. I also thought it had a great lesson to be learned. You should always try something before saying that it is boring or stupid. It was also very interesting. I'm not really big on reading mostly because the book takes to long to get good. This is a short book and very informative on what the Indians were like.

The story starts with the three boys leaving: Juan, Pedro, and Diego. The king tells them to bring him riches when they leave. Pedro and Diego leave first. They her a women singing and investigate. When they find the women it turns out to be a very ugly frog. They are repulsed. Juan finds this same women. He is disgusted by her looks but he finds her to be beautiful. The time comes for the three to return to the king. The king expects riches and Juan having married the frog didn't have riches. The frog turned out to be magical and provided riches for Juan. When they return the brothers are expecting Juan to fail but it turns out the frog was the right wife.

The characters in the story: Pedro, Diego, Juan, The King, The queen, the Frog, and the Old Man. Pedro and Diego represent arrogance and the inability to give a person a chance. Juan represents kindness and not judging people. The King and Queen really don't have much character. They're just kind of in the story. The old man is another character that's just in the story not much background there.

The setting takes place in Medieval times. It's apparent in the story because there is horses and castles and cottages.

I would recommend this story to anybody interested in Indians and their culture. This book is easy enough that younger children could understand it.

[Cory Dorn · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is a short story, which teaches on how the earth was created. There was an Ancient Chief and his wife who lived in Skyland. One day his wife has a dream that they should pull the great tree out by its roots. The Wife then goes to her husband and tells him about her dream. The husband thinks that they have to do what was in her dream. They pull the tree out and the ancient chiefs wife wanted to get a closer look, so she leaned over it and she started to fall. She tried to stop herself by grabbing on a root. The root snaps making her fall she grabs onto a branch but she still falls, but she has some seeds in her hand. The animals from the water see her falling. They think that she is not like them so they come up with an idea to get some earth for her. So they dive under the water bring back some dirt to make earth. They put the dirt on the turtles back which created the land on earth.

The main characters of this story are the animals of the sea. They all work together and don't give up until they have made some earth for the sky woman to stay on. The sky woman and her husband the chief of Skyland are also important because they believe in the power of dreams which sets the story in motion.

It takes place in sky land before the earth was created. The earth was just sea and sky. The animals were just like humans, they had spirits and could figure out how to solve the Skyland woman's problem.

I suggest this book to Teens and children, ages 8-16. I say this because it give a big life lesson that this generation has mostly forgotten, which is too work hard. I really like the myth because it taught me a really good life lesson of being kind, and to help others in need.

[VANCE!!!!!!! Porter · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think the myth the "Crocodile and His Son" was okay because of the message behind it. But I think the story was boring like the setting the character and the events in the story. I don't think I would of read the whole things or even looked at it if it wasn't for this class.

The plot of the story is about a tribe and a crocodile. In the story the crocodile wants human sacrifices so he won't starve. So the tribe says they will give him the sacrifices and he is happy. But after a while they got sick of having to give him a sacrifice so they moved all the way to the other body of water the lake. But the Crocodile came back and demanded more sacrifices and a wife in return for the inconvenience. So they did it and after a while longer they got mad again and so they decided to get him drunk and kill him. So then the tribe went on living happily and there fields and tribe thrived.

One of the characters was the Crocodile and he was a mean selfish character who wanted to rule the whole world and have everyone under him. Another character was the Chief he tries being right with the tribe and following their ways and not straying from the traditional paths. More characters are the spirits and they are scared of the Crocodile so they listen to whatever he says.

The setting takes place in a ancient village so that is why they call it a myth because we don't know who actually said it or even if it is actually true. They are also next to the water so they can survive.

I would recommend this story to any age group. This book is good because it has a very good meaning behind it. Also I think if you are able to understand the content of the story and the meaning behind it then you should read it.

[ALEX HULBERT · Rating 3 out of 5]

This myth is a very interesting myth. It seems kind of odd at first, but after you figure out the author's purpose it is a lot better. I enjoyed reading this myth. This myth definitely made me think about my choices in life.

In the story, "Taro Urashima, the Young Fisherman", the moral is to treat nature with respect and good things will come. Taro accidentally caught a turtle, he then released it. In return the turtle invited Taro to The Land that Stands Still. The Dragon-King lives there. Taro saw the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. The woman’s name was Otohime, and she asked Taro if he would marry her. Taro of course said yes. She gave him a box that she said he could never open. He then left The Land that Stands Still. He noticed that 300 years had passed. He looked for his family and realized they had died.

Characters are: Otohime (Dragon-kings daughter) very kind to others. She asked Taro to marry her. Taro Urashima, a very determined young man, is the main character. Dragon-King is the king of the sea. The Turtle is also Otohime.

This story takes place in a small fishing village of Midzunoye, in the province of Tango, Japan. The village is full of huge fish markets. About 80% of the villagers diet is mainly fish.


Anyone male or female with an average reading ability should read this myth. From the ages of 10-50. It makes the reader think about how you act and what can happen in return.

[Raelyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought that this myth was alright. It gave me an idea of how Earth might have been created. It is not the real truth of how it was created obviously, because it is a myth. I do not believe that a grizzly bear and a human could have strange creatures together, but that is what happened.

The Chief of the Sky Spirits carved a hole in the sky and pushed snow down until he made a huge mountain that reached from the ground to the sky. When he took the giant stick, and broke it into pieces animals were created, the biggest one being the Grizzly bears. The Sky Spirit then came down to Earth with his family to live. Then Sky Spirit's daughter was captured and kept to live with the Grizzlies for a long time. The strange creatures were the first Indians, and those that lives around Mount Shasta never killed a grizzly.

Some of the main characters in the story is the Chief of the Sky Spirit and his daughter. Some minor characters are Wind Spirit and the Grizzly Bears. The Sky Spirit is very important in this myth because he was the one who made Earth and created animals and such. Sky Spirit symbolized God in our life today. Sky Spirit was a great and kind creature. The grizzly bears were loving and caring.

If it wasn't for Sky Spirit to make the mountains there would not be water or shelter for the animals to live with or have to eat. The mountain impacts the animals, because if the mountains wasn't there, there would be no animals. If the mountain wasn't made, the grizzlies wouldn't have been around there for the daughter and bear to have kids, and make the population go up. The setting is in a mountain in the Spring. Winter is ending and the snow is melting. Today that mountain is known as Mount Shasta.

I would recommend for people 13 and up to read it. If a younger child would read it, they would not comprehend what the moral of the story is. I would definitely read this myth out loud in a class, so you can go over it. Everyone should read about this myth, because it describes how Earth could have been created.

[Jesse Wyant · Rating 4 out of 5]

So far I have only read the origin myth about the Tsimshian tribes origin myth about how fire came to be to humans. The myth takes place around the Queen Charlotte Islands, and is dated around the beginning of the earth. Everything was still growing and thriving. I liked the origin myth myself.

If I had to recommend this to anyone, I would recommend it to people who are open minded about how everything came to be. The whole book itself is very enlightening. The ages that I would recommend it to would be between 13 and 18 because it is always good to teach people while they're young.

In the Story, Giant has a great appetite and eats everything in the village and his father who is the chief is getting worried. To stop his own worrying, the chief sends giant away to the mainland to spread everything that his dad had to offer. He was sent with a blanket that helped him fly and a rock that grew in water. He was also sent with fish eggs and berries and planted and dispersed them all. It wasn't until he saw the people that he noticed that they didn't have fire to keep warm. He killed and skinned a deer to get the fire and returned to the mainland and started to dress up to fool the rest of the animals.

The story takes place around the Queen Charlotte Islands, and is dated around creation of all things that we know of today. The Story itself is about a man who was cast out of his village and found people that needed his help. He than returns to the village to get what the people need, to be helped. The man is than once again ran out of the village for asking for what he needed, so he decides to take it in disguise. He dresses in the skin of a deer and tricks the village people into letting him take the fire.

[Jacob Young · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the Indian Myth The Little Frog. Its a Spanish myth, with the theme or morale being don't judge a book by its cover.
The story starts with 3 Princes Pedro Diego and Juan. They wanted to leave the kingdom to start there own lives somewhere else. So they told their father(the king) that they were leaving. The king said, "Fine but in 1 year I want to your to come back with a bar of silver." They all agreed this was a reasonable request.
Each set off on there adventure. Pedro leaving first, then Diego, and lastly Juan. All three came upon a women's voice singing. It lead them to a cottage in the woods. Pedro being the first to leave came upon it first. He knocked at the door. An old man answered asking him want he wanted. Pedro said to see his daughter the man said that wasn't possible. Pedro insisted so the man gave in. When the man showed Pedro his daughter Pedro was appalled, because his daughter was a frog. So Pedro fled. They same thing happened when Diego came to the cottage. The frog asked her father to make sure no one saw her again.
When Juan finally showed up at the cottage the old man didn't let him in. Juan however didn't give up and finally the old man gave in. He showed him his daughter, but unlike his brothers Juan didn't care that she was a frog. He married her.
A year was up and it was time to return to the king. But Juan didn't have a bar of silver. So he was upset. His wife told him to take a sack of coal and a chunk of wood to the king. Juan did and when he arrived the coal had turned into silver and the wood gold.
The queen then asked the sons of their wives. Diego and Pedro knew Juan married the frog. So they said yes Brother show your mother your wife. So when Juan showed up with his wife she turned into a princess.

[Nic · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed my read of The Little Frog. It was a classic class of a story about the perfect prince and the perfect princes. I found it to be a nice quick read not anything to stand away from any other of the stories in the book but none the less good.


The plot is like another plot of this caliber. The story tell of a princes in not so well condition. As time goes on she is discovered by theses princes. This story is very Disney like, although this story is older than Disney. The princess is first thought to be ugly do to her condition of being a frog. After one of the three Princes has faith in her, her curse is lifted and turned in a beautiful girl. The story resembles much of any other prince charming story.The setting of the book is off in a distant kingdom. It also takes place in a bog like forest, in an old tethered shack. Deep with a distant land forgotten by time itself.


As for the characters in the book it is what you would expect. You had the king who challenged his sons to find wealth. The brother princes who were there to show the judgmental side of people, and play the antagonists. Than there was the Frog Princess who symbolized innocents and inner beauty. Last but not least the Prince who was noble and recognized the inner beauty of things.

I feel that in all, the book is more aimed and at younger audience, and with due right. By no means is the story meant for adults of teens. Maybe and adult reading to a kid.I would say this book would fit a kid in his or her early teen ages maybe even younger.I think this would be perfect to a 5th grader. It was a good book none the less.

[Lindsay Edwardson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was great in that it could be used in any English class. It is filled with stories from all over the world. The book is broken up into sections based on their place of origin. There are stories from the Middle East, Africa, Europe, among many other regions. There is also background information provided to give the reader more of a context. The stories range in length from just a couple of pages to longer stories that continue for 30 or so pages.

This would be great to use at the beginning of the year when most English classes do things like myths and fairy tales. You can try to find several stories from different regions that have the same theme running through them or touch upon ideas that strongly contrast, and discuss the importance of these and the importance of where a story comes from.

[David Gallagher · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 Stars (1st Edition, Copyright 1997)

This was a marvelous read! I loved the collection, from the whimsical to the downright powerful. I found the organization and layout of the tales really approachable.

I wasn't a fan of the repetitive model Rosenberg took from oral traditions, although I'm really grateful she was totally upfront about it. I was also distracted by several of the punctuation conventions (specifically excessive exclamation marks) and typos.

Overall, recommended!

[when_the_rest_of_heaven_was_blue · Rating 3 out of 5]

There is not much to say about this book. It is a collection of stories. I would recommend this to someone who was into folklore.

[K.D. Merchant · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great reference guide for lore!

[Samet]

i want to read.