Doctor Coyote: A Native American Aesop's Fable

Bierhorst, John

ISBN 10: 0027097803 ISBN 13: 9780027097801

Publisher: Simon & Schuster, 1987

Synopsis

Coyote is featured in each of these Aztec interpretations of Aesop's fables. The illustrations are set in the twentieth century.

About this title

From School Library Journal

Grade 1-4 Behind this collection of fables lies a history of moral stories. Originating with Latin and Greek traditional stories, retold by Aesop, transported to the New World in Spanish, and then merged by Aztec storytellers with their own trickster tales, these fables are now translated into English. Twenty of the forty tales from an Aztec manuscript in the National Library of Mexico have been retold in English, keeping several Native American figures of speech. The trickster Coyote is prominent in each tale which ends with a moral statement. Based on oral tradition, the tales read well aloud, but will need some discussion for children to understand the moral advice. Each fable is presented on a separate page with accompanying illustrations. The pictures vary from one to multiple blocks per page and feature the clever Coyote with his friends and enemies in the soft pastel colors of the desert. The presentation of the fables is similar to other editions of Aesop, but is unique because of its Native American flavor. It is a nice complement to the various traditional versions of Aesop found in most libraries. Karen Zimmerman, I.D. Weeks Library, University of South Dakota, Vermillion
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Publishers Weekly

Subtitled A Native American Aesop's Fables, this is a unique collection of 20 fables, translated and retold by Bierhorst, an acknowledged expert. According to him, these tales were adapted by Aztec Indian storytellers in the 1500s, from a Spanish collection of Aesop. The Aztec versions include animal tricksters from Native American traditions (Coyote and Puma). Each fable is complete on one page with a picture on the facing page. The language is rather formal, incorporating Native American figures of speech. Although the tales may be ancient, Watson's (Father Fox's Pennyrhymesstet lighthearted watercolors depict animals dressed as Southwest Indians, in a contemporary New Mexican setting. Sometimes the effect can be jarring: pickup trucks, Hawaiian-style shirts, cigarettes, lawn chairs. But all in all, an interesting and valuable effort. Ages 7-10.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Publication date: 1987
• ISBN 10: 0027097803
• ISBN 13: 9780027097801
• Binding: Library Binding
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 46
• Illustrator: Watson Wendy