"They say that the eldest of the chief's daughters..." So begins a tale from the Basotho, unfolded by the meager light of a dung fire that burns smokily behind the reed screen sheltering the entrance of the hut. The old ones of the tribe wait until dark before telling their stories, for everyone knows horns will grow from the head of one who tells a story during daylight hours. Tales from the Basotho abounds with elements familiar to folk narrative. The heroes and heroines are the chiefs and their wives, their sons and their daughters. Fantastic creatures frequent the narratives. exhibiting their awful powers. Rustic peace and beauty pervade the stories, as Minnie Postma amply demonstrates in her versions of the tales. Something fearful may be occurring—the dreaded Koeoko pulling the only son of the chief under water—but, at the same time, girls with babies tied to their backs are searching for edible bulbs in the veld, and an old woman dreams in the gentle sunlight in front of the huts. These tales from the Basotho are for entertainment only. There is a tabu against telling tales while the sun shines, because daylight hours must be saved for work. The telling itself is the· reason the story exists, for the audience is already aware of the outcome of each tale. As Wm. Hugh Jansen emphasizes in his foreword, "text" and "context" are often easily interpreted and made accessible in a translation, but Tales from the Basotho is ultimately successful for its rendering of "texture." And texture is doubly hard to convey when the telling itself is of primary importance. Minnie Postma and Susie McDermid have transferred the art of the Basotho raconteur onto the printed page. All the simple, understandable formulas, exclamations, and repetitions used so skillfully by the native storyteller are present. Rhythm is an important element in the tales, and a word, a phrase, even a whole paragraph will be repeated until the rhythm satisfies the storyteller, in tum increasing the appreciation of the listeners.

One hundred great folk tales and fairy tales from all over the world about strong, smart, brave heroines. Dismayed by the predominance of male protagonists in her daughters' books, Kathleen Ragan set out to collect the stories of our forgotten heroines. Gathered from around the world, from regions as diverse as sub-Saharan Africa and Western Europe, from North and South American Indian cultures and New World settlers, from Asia and the Middle East, these 100 folktales celebrate strong female heroines. Fearless Girls, Wise Women, and Beloved Sisters is for all women who are searching to define who they are, to redefine the world and shape their collective sensibility. It is for men who want to know more about what it means to be a woman. It is for our daughters and our sons, so that they can learn to value all kinds of courage, courage in battle and the courage of love. It is for all of us to help build a more just vision of woman.

Mandela, the Nobel Laureate for Peace, has selected 32 African stories for this extraordinary new book, an anthology that presents Africa's oldest folk tales to the children of the world. Full color.

Folk tales are stories full of adventure, courage, daring, fighting dragons, trolls, and giants, and overcoming challenges. How many of them have girls as the main heroic characters though? These twelve folk tales from all over the world have been specially selected as they feature strong, adventurous heroines. Some are funny, some make you think, and some – like the story of Fearless Mary – keep you on the edge of your seat with scares and surprises. Meet Louisa Freya, the brave dragon slayer, funny and clever Sigrun, and honest and humble Scarface as well as other heroines from Serbia, Norway, China, Japan, South Africa, and Indonesia. Amy Scott Robinson's distinctive voice, expertise and experience as a performance storyteller makes this a unique and fascinating collection, aimed at readers aged 7-9 years. At the end of each story, Amy shares a bit about where the story comes from, how she has retold it, and what the tale makes her think about when she is hearing or telling it, including Bible verses. These folk tales deserve to be told as often as the more famous and well-known ones. After all, why should boys defeat all the dragons? Enjoy the adventure!