White Crow

by Shirley Frederick, Susan Roth (illustrator), Harcourt School Publishers (preparation)

Harcourt School Publishers Signatures: Reader Grade 2

According to the publisher note, this original story was inspired by two Native American legends: "Why the Rain Is Black" and "The Crow Who Was Eaten by his Shadow."

16 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

Reviews

[Mx. Andy Feje · Rating 3 out of 5]

Parang hindi ako agree na kwentong pambata ito. Ang ganda tho, daming possible interpretation. Kaya lang, kailangan i-explain ng adult sa bata, kung hindi eh ang morbid lang.

[Meredith · Rating 2 out of 5]

A vain white crow admires himself in a puddle until one day he is disturbed to see, instead of his reflection, a black crow who then follows him everywhere.

The illustrations are paper collage.

This is an unusual story, especially for a child's beginning reader published for use in elementary schools. It appears that the white crow is punished for his vanity by being eaten by his shadow. I asked my child what she thought happened, and she thought that an actual black crow swallowed the white crow after the two got into a fight.

A Google search failed to turn up a copy of or citation for the folktale "The Crow Who Was Eaten by His Shadow" upon which this story is supposedly loosely based. I would be curious to read it.