Legends and myths are part of every culture and the various Native American cultures are no different. They started as part of the oral tradition of the tribes, being passed down from generation to generation by storytellers. In recent years, authors have begun writing these stories down for more people to learn from and enjoy. One way for non-natives to learn about Native American cultures is to read these stories which in many cases teach about the religion or culture of the tribe. In this column and the next I will look at 30 books which re-tell the myths and legends of Native Americans.
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Cuevas, Lou. Anasazi Legends: Songs of the Wind Dancer. Illustrated by Joel T. Ramirez. Naturegraph Publishers, 2000. 0-87961-256-8 Paperback 206 p. Gr. 9-Adult
Author Lou Cuevas is Apache; he learned these stories from his Apache medicine man grandfather. Whether these are Anasazi legends or ancient Apache legends is hard to determine. The cover claims the stories are more than 500 years old, yet the stories repeatedly refer to the Ndee (Apache) people. In either case the stories are legends and are enjoyable to read. There are ten legends included in the book. Each chapter (legend) begins with a black-line drawing.
Taylor, C. J. Bones in the Basket. Tundra Books, 1994. 0-88776-327-8 Hardcover 0-88776-450-9 Paperback 32 p. Gr. 2-7
J. Taylor, a Mohawk artist, retold Native American origin stories in Bones in the Basket. Tribes included are: Zuni, Mandan, Cree, Chuckchee, Osage, Mohawk, and Modoc. The stories in this book would be good ones to compare to the Biblical creation story as there are many similarities to it. The brightly colored illustrations have a definite Native American feel to them. The book ends with brief information on each of the represented tribes.
Doner, Kim. Buffalo Dreams. WestWinds Press (Graphic Arts Center Publishing Company), 1999. 1-55868-475-1 Hardcover , 1-55848-476-X Paperback . 40 p. Gr. K-4
Author-illustrator Kim Doner was inspired to write this story by the 1994 birth of a white buffalo calf and the pilgrimages of many Native Americans to the site. Sarah and her family make a visit to the white buffalo calf. Sarah has been working on embellishing the dreamcatcher she received at birth to keep the evil spirits from giving her bad dreams. After a nighttime encounter with the white buffalo calf and its mother, she decides to leave her dreamcatcher as her gift to the calf. The book ends with a retelling of the story “The Legend of White Buffalo Calf Woman” and directions for making a dreamcatcher. Realistic paintings illustrate the book.
Hayes, Joe. Coyote &. Illustrated by Lucy Jelinek. Mariposa Publishing, 1983. 0-933533-01-3 Paperback 80 p. Gr. 3-Adult
Joe Hayes is a storyteller in the Southwest. He has written these Coyote tales so that they can be read aloud, much like the oral tradition they were created in. Coyote, often referred to as a trickster, tricks others in some of these tales and in others he is himself tricked. The drawings of Lucy Jelinek are done in brown ink. The illustrate portions of the text, but much of the text is left for the listener to imagine as he listens.
Sloat, Teri, The Eye of the Needle. Alaska Northwest Books (Graphics Arts Center Publishing), 1990. 0-88240-535-7 Paperback. 32 p. Gr. Pre-5
Teri Sloat has retold this Yupik tale she heard from Yupik elder Betty Huffmon. It tells the story of a boy who goes out for some food when the fish arrive after a long winter. The boy is so hungry he eats everything he catches forgetting to take some back to his grandmother. When he returns home he’s it too large to fit through the door. Grandmother uses her magic needle to get the food out of him and feed the village with it. The colored illustrations complement the text well.
Lacapa, Michael. The Flute Player. Rising Moon, 1990. 0-87358-627-1 Paperback. 48 p. Gr. K-5
Mr. Lacapa does a wonderful job of retelling the Apache folktale of the Flute Player. Two young people from different communities meet at a dance. He is a flute player. When they return to their communities, he plays his flute and she sends a leaf down the river to let him know she liked the song. When he goes on a hunt, the girl misses his flute playing and thinks he no longer likes her. She becomes sick and dies. When he finds out she is dead he goes to her grave and plays his flute for her. If you listen on a windy day, you can hear him playing still. The vibrant color illustrations have a Native American feel to them – they are similar to those of Gerald McDermott.
Renner, Michelle. The Girl Who Swam with the Fish. Illustrated by Christine Cox, Alaska Northwest Books (Graphic Arts Center Publishing), 1995. 0-88240-443-3 Hardcover. 0-88240-523-3 Paperback. 32 p. Gr. K-5
Author Michelle Renner retold this Athabascan story given to her by an Alaskan elder. A young girl waiting for the salmon to return to her village falls into the river and swims with the salmon. She gradually becomes a salmon and learns how the fish want to be treated by those who catch them. When she is big enough to return to the river she jumps out of the river and returns to her people again. She teaches them how the fish want to be treated. The wood cut illustrations of Christine Cox are beautiful.
Keams, Geri. Grandmother Spider Brings the Sun. Illustrated by James Bernardin. Rising Moon, 1995. 0-87358-694-8 Paperback . 32 p. Gr. K-5
Navajo Geri Keams has retold the Cherokee story Grandmother Spider Brings the Sun. The pourquoi story tells how the people in the dark side of the world got the sun. In the story the reader learns why the possum has black rings around his eyes and a skinny tale, why buzzard is bald, and why the Cherokee people fire their pottery. The acrylic and water color illustrations of James Bernardin bring the text to life, making this an excellent read-a-loud.
Webster, M. L. On the Trail Made of Dawn: Native American creation stories. Linnet Books (The Shoestring Press), 2001. 0208024972 Hardcover 70 p. Gr. 3-5
Ms. Webster has collected Native American folklore throughout her life. In On the Trail Made of Dawn she shares some of that collection. Creation myths from Eskimo, Makah, Cree, Tlingit, Maidu, Navajo, Aztec, Hopi, Seneca, Cherokee, Osage, Shoshone, and Sioux are shared. Each myth is followed by information on the tribe. A list of sources is provided at the end for further research.
Bierhorst, John. The People with Five Fingers: A Native Californian Creation Tale. Illustrated by Robert Andrew Parker. Marshall Cavendish, 2000. 0-7614-5058-0 Hardcover. 32 p. Gr. K-5
Author John Bierhorst, who has worked on many Native American stories, has retold a tale shared by several Californian tribes. The story explains how Coyote and the other animals created the world and the people who live in it. The watercolor illustrations of Robert Parker at times have a bit of an abstract feel to them. They illustrate the text well.
Pijoan, Teresa. Pueblo Indian Wisdom: Native American Legends and Mythology. Sunstone Press, 2000. 0-86534-319-5 Paperback . 118 p. Gr. 9-Adult
Ms. Pijoan, while she is not a Native American, grew up on the San Juan Pueblo and Nambe Reservation. She collected these stories during her growing up years. She expertly weaves the legends together with a story about visits with Grandfather and the widow who tell the stories. Some are supernatural in nature; others are realistic. In her storytelling, Ms. Pijoan shows an understanding of the Pueblo way of life. The stories are an enjoyable read.
McDermott, Gerald. Raven: A trickster tale from the Pacific Northwest. Voyager Books (Harcourt, Inc.), 1993. 0-15-265661-8 Hardcover. 0-15-202449-2 Paperback. 32 p. Gr. Pre-5
Raven was a Caldecott honor book. Its vibrant pictures are done in gouache, colored pencils, and pastel. The story is a retelling of a popular myth among the Native American tribes of the Pacific Northwest. It tells how Raven wanted to help the people in his world who were without light. Raven wants to help them so he searches until he finds the light. He turns into a pine needle that is drunk by the daughter of the Sky Chief and becomes a boy. In this way he is able to get the light and take it to his people.
Bruchac, Joseph and Jonathan London. Thirteen Moons on Turtle’s Back: A Native American year of moons. Illustrated by Thomas Locker. Putnam, 1997. 0698115848 Paperback. 32 p. Gr. Pre-4
The turtle has thirteen scales on his back in the same way there are thirteen moons each year. Joseph Bruchac (an Abenaki) and Jonathan London have chosen stories from thirteen different Native American tribes about each of the moons. Each story takes about twenty percent of a two-page spread with the rest of the spread being taken up with illustration. Thomas Locker’s colored illustrations are beautiful.
Baylor, Byrd. The Way to Make Perfect Mountains. Illustrated by Leonard F. Chana, Cinco Puntos Press, 1997. 0-938317-26-1 Paperback. 62 p. Gr. 7-Adult
Ms. Baylor has retold some of the mountain myths of the Southwest Indians in poetic, free-verse form. The myths are divided into five chapters: Beginnings; Changes; Protection; Power, Magic, Mystery and Dreams; and The Beings in the Mountains. Dot pictures of Tohono O’odham artist Leonard Chana illustrated the text.
Vogel, Carole G. Weather Legends: Native American lore and the science of weather. The Millbrook Press, 2001. 076121900X Hardcover. 80 p. Gr. 3-7.
Ms. Vogel was fascinated by the weather as a child. With the help of other book she collected these Native American weather legends from the Chippewa, Papago, Pima, Micmac, Slavey, Acoma, Penobscot, Pueblo, and Lakota Sioux. Each myth is followed by scientific information on the topic of the myth. The myth on the formation of the earth is followed by information on the evolution of the earth over 25 million years. The book is illustrated with photographs of different aspects of weather. The book ends with an index.
CLASSROOM CONNECTIONS
-Compare myths from different tribes to see what similarities and differences there are
-Do further research on the tribe represented by the myth
-Have students act out the myth
-Compare the creation and flood myths to the story found in the Bible
-Play the game of Telephone with your class (Whisper a short story to the first child, have that child whisper it to the next, until all children have heard the story. Have the final child tell the version of the story s/he heard. You then tell your story and compare the two versions.) From this launch into a discussion how the original creation or flood story could have been changed over repeated tellings. Discuss how many of the creation myths could have had one beginning.
Weather Legends -Use the legends in this book to supplement a science unit on the weather.
Amazon Affiliate Links to books mentioned in this post
Anasazi Legends: Songs of the Wind Dancer
Bones in the Basket (Native Legends)
Buffalo Dreams
Coyote And… Native American Folk Tales
The Eye of the Needle: Based on a Yupik Tale
The Flute Player
The Girl Who Swam with the Fish: An Athabascan Legend
Grandmother Spider Brings the Sun: A Cherokee Story
On the Trail Made of Dawn: American Indian Creation Myths
The People With Five Fingers: A Native Californian Creation Tale
Pueblo Indian Wisdom: Native American Legends and Mythology
Raven: A Trickster Tale from the Pacific Northwest
Thirteen Moons on Turtle’s Back: A Native American Year of Moons
The Way to Make Perfect Mountains: Native American Legends of Sacred Mountains
Weather Legends: Native Americ
Read more in the Learning Native American Culture series.
