Korean Folk & Fairy Tales

by Suzanne Crowder Han

A representative sampling of Korean stories which have been passed down from generation to generation through spoken and written traditions. Dragons, ghosts, ogres, tigers, demonic foxes, supernatural spouses and, of course, people with all their human frailties are among the characters that populate Korean folk tales.
Through them are revealed perceptions of life and notions about power, money, justice, love and interpersonal relations that, through the ages, have become ingrained in the Korean pysche. Passed on from generation to generation, the tales reflect the deep-rooted beliefs and customs of ancient Koreans and the creeds and codes by which they lived.

Korean Folk & Fairy Tales is thus a window through which to gain some understanding of present-day Korean culture. It includes fables, anecdotes, fairy tales, pourquoi tales, and tales of the bizarre. Some of the tales are known in many versions and some can be traced back to classical examples set down centuries ago. Some are peculiar to Korean and some are international in currency. Some are charming, some gruesome, and some humorous. Together they provide much insight into the Korean ethos.

Illustrations and bibliography.

Genres: Fiction, Fantasy, Childrens, Short Stories, Fairy Tales

269 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 1991

Reviews

[Sue · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a cute collection of Korean folk tales my mommy got for me. My favorite story is abbreviated as follows:

Dogs used to have three legs. But one day the God of the mountains said to Dog - "Go do something nice for humans and I will rewards you". Dog says "Word. Will do, yo." Dog comes back to the Mountain God some time later to report back his good deeds to human-folk. Mountain God asks Dog "So, what's the dilly, yo?" And Dog says "Wellllll....I took to sleeping during the day so I could stay up all night and guard humans while they slept." Mountain God says "Okie dokie, that's pretty helpful...I know reward you for your good deeds by giving you a fourth leg." Dog says "woot woot!" And ever since then, Dogs lift up their leg when they are take a wee so they don't defile their reward of a fourth leg from the Mountain God. The End!

[Arthur M. · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fascinating collection of folk stories. It has some editing issues (dropped words or phrases) and occasional logic problems. Some conclusions don’t seem to pay off what has been set up. I’m not sure if those story problems originate from the source material or are a product of sloppy translation and editing.

[Aleksandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

The stories themselves are great, and I learned a lot about Korean folklore. But the writing and editing aren’t the best - some sentences sound weird, there are missing words, typos, and spelling mistakes. Some stories end abruptly, while others drag on too long or just don't make much sense. I’m not sure how much of that comes from the original tales and how much is due to poor translation or writing.

[Charissa Ty · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lol the amount of typos and inappropriateness in this book is astounding. The stories are so similar to little mermaid, jack and the beanstalk, rumplestiltskin.. Makes me wonder how these stories traveled all over the world (by mouth and by ship probably) and evolved to fit diff cultures.

[Zuzanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tiger, rabbit and dried persimon.

[Meghan · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Marfita · Rating 2 out of 5]

Okay, the necklace of tigers one is a winner. Especially the illustration, which pulls the whole story into focus. You forget that the puppy is tied to the tree and has then, with the rope, passed through the digestive systems of three tigers.
This book was a gift from a local club to the library and the author/reteller is local. It was put in the children's room, no doubt because it has "folk & fairy tales" in the title and a picture of two horrified children in a tree that's being chopped down by a gorgeous tiger in Korean dress. The language is not really appropriate for children in this neck of the woods, as it were. I suppose no one has read far enough in to run into the language. Oh, and the situations (such as puppies being swallowed whole by a tiger and squirting directly out the anus because it's so greasy) too.
Many of the stories have familiar parallels to anyone familiar with folktales. Some of them read so oddly that you think they must be authentic.
I read this to deepen my embarrassingly shallow understanding of Asian culture in general. Folktales tell you so much about the culture of an area. We're lucky to have anything this comprehensive from Korea.
All the tiger illustrations are wonderful ... while some of the other animals are more cartoon-like. The illustrator must have loved tigers!

[Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amusing stories that are fun to read, fun to read for kids too I think! Unfortunately I have not had the chance to read it to any kids x')

I recommend this collection, because it is written in an engaging style (not academic or old) and has some accompanying explanations for the few Korean terms that it uses. :)

[Jason · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good read, but I felt my understanding and satisfaction was hindered by translation and cultural barriers.

[Bob · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. I enjoyed re reading stories from my childhood as well as getting to read stories I've never heard before!

[Saxitlurg · Rating 4 out of 5]

There were a few typos and not all of the stories were great. But there were enough really good ones to make this book a fun read.