Folklore of Canada

by Edith Fulton Fowke

Folk tales, legends, tall tales, jokes, riddles, myths, sea shanties - all types of folklore, from every corner of Canada, make up this classic collection by one of the most prominent folklorists in Canada today.

Genres: Canada, Nonfiction, Folklore, History

352 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1976

Reviews

[Lucas · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s funny to read the negative reviews of this book
As if people are surprised at the history of this country

[Ira Therebel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Canada may be a young country and some may be mistaken that it doesn't have any own culture and traditions, but in reality this isn't so. This book by Edith Fowke, somebody who studied Canadian folklore and published about 20 books on it, is a good introduction to the topic.

The book includes any kind of folklore in it. There are songs, fairy tales, legends, riddles, food jokes, traditions and games. And the origin of those are also vary widespread, we have the section on what came from the Natives, the French-Canadians, Anglo-Canadians and other cultures that are a big part of Canada such as Germans and Ukrainians.

It was pretty interesting to read all of them and see where it came from, liked the fact that there were descriptions before that gave a short look on where it was coming from or how it developed. Giving an idea on the variety of Canadian culture as well as hat one would like to read about more.

[Ali · Rating 3 out of 5]

While there are lovely stories here, and this book does feature many types of Canadian folk literature, it does show its age. Indeed, the racist, dated language is hard to contend with, especially with regards to indigenous people and other marginalized groups. Definitely a lot of objectionable content, if well researched and laid out.

[RunRiverRead · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm very interested in the topic of Canadian folklore, and while I thought this book would be what I was looking for, it definitely wasn't.

The author has a strange definition of folklore that more accurately describes folkculture. There's everything from actual stories of faeries and pre-european contact spiritual entities, to folk songs and how to build a log cabin? It's very broad and only a small part actually focuses on creatures.

The book is also distractingly racist due to outdated terms being used all over the place- and while that could be tolerated due to it originally being written in the 70s, the copy I read was published in the 90s, and the book definitely did not update its content with the times.

The only thing I consider the book worth looking at for is how meticulously it is sourced and credited. There is a solid 50 pages at the back of every credit, source, and person consulted for every line of text in the book. That it's so exhaustively done when this was written pre-internet age is a bit mind-blowing to me.

[Akimbo1 · Rating 5 out of 5]

A unique expression of Canadian history as told through folklore, including songs, tales, and native legends. This history mostly pre-dates my family's arrival after WW2, but it describes similar rudimentary living accommodations, harsh terrain, freezing winters, dangerous rivers, hard labour, unfamiliar foods, and other struggles that my family endured when they came to Canada in 1952. This book gave me a lot of insight as to how immigrants and native peoples lived and worked in this land and how they educated and entertained themselves through the sharing of stories.

[Scott Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is really a brief survey featuring but a handful each of various types of folklore from indigenous myths, to French legends, to sailor’s stories, and even Newfie jokes. What impressed me is the amount of effort that must have gone into the research for this book. It must have been quite a titanic effort in the 1970s. These days, the internet could connect one to all sorts of different storytellers across the country. This had to have been done the hard way.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Was readable, but not every story all the way through. I skimmed until the superstitions and scary stories at the end.

[Ana · Rating 4 out of 5]

An impressive collection of well-researched and presented long-lost (almost! If it weren’t for such books) lore.