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The People Could Fly: American Black Folktales
"The well-known author retells 24 black American folk tales in sure storytelling voice: animal tales, supernatural tales, fanciful and cautionary tales, and slave tales of freedom. All are beautifully readable. With the added attraction of 40 wonderfully expressive paintings by the Dillons, this collection should be snapped up."--(starred) School Library Journal.
This book has been selected as a Common Core State Standards text Exemplar (Grade 6-8, Stories) in Appendix B.
This book has been selected as a Common Core State Standards text Exemplar (Grade 6-8, Stories) in Appendix B.
180 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1985
62 people are currently reading
3265 people want to read
About the author
Virginia Hamilton
137 books274 followersVirginia Esther Hamilton was the author of forty-one works of fiction and nonfiction. She was the first Black writer awarded the Newbery Medal and the first children's writer to be named a MacArthur Fellow (the "Genius" grant). She also received the National Book Award and the Hans Christian Andersen Medal.
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March 23, 2021
4 ⭐
”It is amazing that the former Africans could ever smile and laugh, let alone make up riddles and songs and jokes and tell tales. As slaves, they were forced to live without citizenship, without rights, as property – like horses and cows – belonging to someone else. But no amount of hard labour and suffering could suppress their powers of imagination”.
- Virginia Hamilton
’The People Could Fly – American Black Folktales’, told by Virginia Hamilton, is an illustrated collection of 24 folktales representing the foundational material of a storytelling tradition belonging to the Africans who were bought to America against their will, forcibly suppressed by their white slaveowners and condemned to a life of slavery.
For personal enjoyment and takeaway, I give this 3 stars. For Historical and Cultural significance of folktales, a resounding 5 stars, hence, the settling on 4.
The stories are divided into 4 distinctly themed “Chapters”.
The first is, essentially, tales of animal trickery and mischief. I failed to grasp the moral lessons presumably present in these stories, or the characteristics shared between the animals and the plantation residents that they were inspired by. Perhaps there wasn’t a moral lesson to be found and these tales were more a, sort of, fictional wish-fulfillment for plantation slaves who saw no way out but still shared a sharp wit and a strong imagination. I know that the common and recurring character in these animal tales, Bruh rabbit, seemingly small and helpless but, importantly, smart, tricky and clever would often outsmart other, more threatening animals such as He Lion or Bruh Alligator and “to the slaves, the rabbit came to be identified with themselves”. Strangely, I often found Bruh rabbit to be, in addition to smart, tricky and clever, quite cruel and selfish. Characteristics that made his character slightly less endearing than I imagine was intended. This continues in later chapters when the poor and weak triumph over a stronger opponent but often in cruel and immoral ways.
The second chapter contains tall-tales or Münchhausens, fanciful stories full of riddles and further trickery. I found a number of tales in this book that are probably, in my opinion, inappropriate (read:terrifying) for young children but this chapter takes the cake with the tale, ‘The Two Johns’ which contains some really out-of-the-blue grisly material. Chapter 3’s ‘The Peculiar Such Thing’ is a fantastic story to read as a bedtime story to your kids…. If you want them to a) Not go to sleep or b) wake up screaming in the middle of the night.
In fact, just throw the whole ‘Chapter 3’ into the category of slightly grim (but obviously left to the discretion of parents) tales for children, as they are all “spine-chilling ghost and devil tales”. One such tale, ‘Little Eight John’ was specifically told to mischievous children to frighten them into being good!
Chapter 4 contained my favourite stories in the collection. Made up of slave tales of freedom including the titular ‘The People Could Fly, probably the finest of the selection. These are, for the most part, tales of slaves making bets or deals to secure their freedom (a slaveowner would say “make me laugh” or “give me a riddle I can’t solve” and if successful, the slave would be set free). While most likely fanciful tales, as it was a very rare occurrence for a slave to win or be given freedom, I can only imagine their importance in terms of morale-boosting potential or brief respite from the terribly oppressive and dismal reality of a life in chains.
Hamilton opts for a simplified dialect and the use of “moderate colloquialisms” in her retelling of these stories. I’ve seen a number of differing opinions on the level of difficulty understanding the text but I have to say, I don’t think the majority of people will have any difficulty understanding any of the vocabulary used. There is one exception in the tale ‘Bruh Alligator meets Trouble’, in which Virginia includes a couple of dozen Gullah words but you can pretty much gather the meaning in context to the sentences they’re placed in. If not, there is also a glossary at the end of the tale. I will leave a small excerpt below of Virginia’s simplified dialect, followed by the actual gullah dialect of the same text for those who are interested in seeing the difference:
”And that how it been since the greement made. Whenever hounds run Bruh deer, Bruh deer take to the river and Bruh Alligator leave him alone. The hound gone track Deer, and Alligator gone get hound. But if Bruh Deer ever come to the river without the dogs chasin him, then he have to take he chance.”
”Dat w’ymekso ebbuh sence de’ ‘greement mek, w’enebbuh dog run’um, buh deer tek de ribbuh en’ buh alligettuh lem’lone, en’ w’en de beagle’ come ‘e ketch’um, but ef buh deer ebbuh come duh ribbuh bidout dog dey att’um, him haffuh tek ‘e chance.”
Phew, my autocorrect hated that! I felt the dialect had a real Jamaican tinge to it and looking to it’s origins I was actually not far off.
It would be remiss of me not to mention the fantastic illustrations produced by Leo and Diane Dillon. The effect they have on bringing these folktales to life can't be overestimated. Really wonderful.
Overall, I enjoyed these folktale retellings but thought, at times, they felt so heavily abridged as to appear incomplete. I could be mistaken. In any case, I will have to think on it for a bit before considering whether the cultural significance of the work outweighs the potential for terrifying one’s children, when it comes to whether or not I would read this collection to my child.
”Remember the voices from the past. As do the folktales, keep close all the past that was good, and that remains full of promise.”
- Virginia Hamilton
”It is amazing that the former Africans could ever smile and laugh, let alone make up riddles and songs and jokes and tell tales. As slaves, they were forced to live without citizenship, without rights, as property – like horses and cows – belonging to someone else. But no amount of hard labour and suffering could suppress their powers of imagination”.
- Virginia Hamilton
’The People Could Fly – American Black Folktales’, told by Virginia Hamilton, is an illustrated collection of 24 folktales representing the foundational material of a storytelling tradition belonging to the Africans who were bought to America against their will, forcibly suppressed by their white slaveowners and condemned to a life of slavery.
For personal enjoyment and takeaway, I give this 3 stars. For Historical and Cultural significance of folktales, a resounding 5 stars, hence, the settling on 4.
The stories are divided into 4 distinctly themed “Chapters”.
The first is, essentially, tales of animal trickery and mischief. I failed to grasp the moral lessons presumably present in these stories, or the characteristics shared between the animals and the plantation residents that they were inspired by. Perhaps there wasn’t a moral lesson to be found and these tales were more a, sort of, fictional wish-fulfillment for plantation slaves who saw no way out but still shared a sharp wit and a strong imagination. I know that the common and recurring character in these animal tales, Bruh rabbit, seemingly small and helpless but, importantly, smart, tricky and clever would often outsmart other, more threatening animals such as He Lion or Bruh Alligator and “to the slaves, the rabbit came to be identified with themselves”. Strangely, I often found Bruh rabbit to be, in addition to smart, tricky and clever, quite cruel and selfish. Characteristics that made his character slightly less endearing than I imagine was intended. This continues in later chapters when the poor and weak triumph over a stronger opponent but often in cruel and immoral ways.
The second chapter contains tall-tales or Münchhausens, fanciful stories full of riddles and further trickery. I found a number of tales in this book that are probably, in my opinion, inappropriate (read:terrifying) for young children but this chapter takes the cake with the tale, ‘The Two Johns’ which contains some really out-of-the-blue grisly material. Chapter 3’s ‘The Peculiar Such Thing’ is a fantastic story to read as a bedtime story to your kids…. If you want them to a) Not go to sleep or b) wake up screaming in the middle of the night.
In fact, just throw the whole ‘Chapter 3’ into the category of slightly grim (but obviously left to the discretion of parents) tales for children, as they are all “spine-chilling ghost and devil tales”. One such tale, ‘Little Eight John’ was specifically told to mischievous children to frighten them into being good!
Chapter 4 contained my favourite stories in the collection. Made up of slave tales of freedom including the titular ‘The People Could Fly, probably the finest of the selection. These are, for the most part, tales of slaves making bets or deals to secure their freedom (a slaveowner would say “make me laugh” or “give me a riddle I can’t solve” and if successful, the slave would be set free). While most likely fanciful tales, as it was a very rare occurrence for a slave to win or be given freedom, I can only imagine their importance in terms of morale-boosting potential or brief respite from the terribly oppressive and dismal reality of a life in chains.
Hamilton opts for a simplified dialect and the use of “moderate colloquialisms” in her retelling of these stories. I’ve seen a number of differing opinions on the level of difficulty understanding the text but I have to say, I don’t think the majority of people will have any difficulty understanding any of the vocabulary used. There is one exception in the tale ‘Bruh Alligator meets Trouble’, in which Virginia includes a couple of dozen Gullah words but you can pretty much gather the meaning in context to the sentences they’re placed in. If not, there is also a glossary at the end of the tale. I will leave a small excerpt below of Virginia’s simplified dialect, followed by the actual gullah dialect of the same text for those who are interested in seeing the difference:
”And that how it been since the greement made. Whenever hounds run Bruh deer, Bruh deer take to the river and Bruh Alligator leave him alone. The hound gone track Deer, and Alligator gone get hound. But if Bruh Deer ever come to the river without the dogs chasin him, then he have to take he chance.”
”Dat w’ymekso ebbuh sence de’ ‘greement mek, w’enebbuh dog run’um, buh deer tek de ribbuh en’ buh alligettuh lem’lone, en’ w’en de beagle’ come ‘e ketch’um, but ef buh deer ebbuh come duh ribbuh bidout dog dey att’um, him haffuh tek ‘e chance.”
Phew, my autocorrect hated that! I felt the dialect had a real Jamaican tinge to it and looking to it’s origins I was actually not far off.
It would be remiss of me not to mention the fantastic illustrations produced by Leo and Diane Dillon. The effect they have on bringing these folktales to life can't be overestimated. Really wonderful.
Overall, I enjoyed these folktale retellings but thought, at times, they felt so heavily abridged as to appear incomplete. I could be mistaken. In any case, I will have to think on it for a bit before considering whether the cultural significance of the work outweighs the potential for terrifying one’s children, when it comes to whether or not I would read this collection to my child.
”Remember the voices from the past. As do the folktales, keep close all the past that was good, and that remains full of promise.”
- Virginia Hamilton
March 11, 2018
The young woman lifted one foot in the air. Then the other. She flew clumsily at first, with the child now held tightly in her arms. Then she felt the magic, the African mystery. Say she rose just as free as a bird. As light as a feather.
This cherished image of escape from slavery is one of the most famous in all of folklore. What about the rest of the book? I would almost recommend that you read it in reverse- it felt to me like the stories got steadily better near the end.
The stories are divided into four groups. The first group is talking animal stories- a mix of trickster stories and Just-So stories. It was my least favorite part of the book. I am not predisposed to talking animals, and the heavy dialect* made it hard for me to catch the cadence of the story-telling.
*The author calls it "dialect," although modern linguists might call it an older form of AAE.
The second batch is fantastical stories that feel a lot like a classic Grimm's quest with magical objects tale. As with the talking animal tales (and the whole book), these are given added weight by the slavery subtext; the weak outwit the strong and escape is imperative.
The third batch feature the Devil or supernatural haunts of one kind or another. I loved every one of these and could have used a dozen more. They are just my mix of creepiness, tricksterism, and fantasy.
The fourth section is the most famous- folk tales that are explicitly about escape from slavery. The title story is the very last, and also the most powerful. In it, there are some people who can fly, but the overseers and slave owners are blind to this inner beauty. In the end, the slave owners are deceived by their own racism. This story is also available as a stand-alone picture book with full-color illustrations.
July 29, 2021
The People Could Fly: American Black Folktales is a collection of twenty-four folktales retold by Virginia Hamilton and illustrated by Leo and Diane Dillon. They encompass animal tales – including tricksters, fairy tales, supernatural tales, and tales of the enslaved Africans – including slave narratives.
For the most part, this collection of short stories was written rather well. The People Could Fly: American Black Folktales is a widely lauded anthology that boasts stunning black-and-white artwork and stirringly told stories. Hamilton has prepared a sampling of carefully and respectfully retold tales – not a living work of art. The Dillons have lent handsome black-and-white paintings to the work, but seems poised and static.
Like most anthologies there are weaker contributions and The People Could Fly: American Black Folktales is not an exception. Comparatively speaking, there were a couple of entries are weaker than others or which did not connect to me well. The book is organized into four sections: animal tales, fantasy, supernatural and tales of freedom. The final one is by far the most effective for the contemporary reader with the first three sections slightly less so.
All in all, The People Could Fly: American Black Folktales brings a good sampling of lore from the past to a new generation of readers.
For the most part, this collection of short stories was written rather well. The People Could Fly: American Black Folktales is a widely lauded anthology that boasts stunning black-and-white artwork and stirringly told stories. Hamilton has prepared a sampling of carefully and respectfully retold tales – not a living work of art. The Dillons have lent handsome black-and-white paintings to the work, but seems poised and static.
Like most anthologies there are weaker contributions and The People Could Fly: American Black Folktales is not an exception. Comparatively speaking, there were a couple of entries are weaker than others or which did not connect to me well. The book is organized into four sections: animal tales, fantasy, supernatural and tales of freedom. The final one is by far the most effective for the contemporary reader with the first three sections slightly less so.
All in all, The People Could Fly: American Black Folktales brings a good sampling of lore from the past to a new generation of readers.
March 10, 2021
My kids and I listened to The People Could Fly together. I was surprised by how much my kids enjoyed the stories. Two kids gave it five stars. The other kid gave it four stars, because some of the ghost stories were scary.
We talked about colloquialisms and how languages evolve. This book tied in nicely to our history lessons about enslaved people. We were able to imagine these stories being told at night when no other entertainment was available.
The book explains common motifs found in African American folklore. One thing I learned is how witches were used in stories as a way to control the environment. I’m glad we were introduced to the trickster Bruh Rabbit and the concept of Tar Baby.
Each story ends with a little explanation about the story. We all looked forward to explanation as much as the story.
I would highly recommend listening to audiobook while following along in the book to see the pictures.
We talked about colloquialisms and how languages evolve. This book tied in nicely to our history lessons about enslaved people. We were able to imagine these stories being told at night when no other entertainment was available.
The book explains common motifs found in African American folklore. One thing I learned is how witches were used in stories as a way to control the environment. I’m glad we were introduced to the trickster Bruh Rabbit and the concept of Tar Baby.
Each story ends with a little explanation about the story. We all looked forward to explanation as much as the story.
I would highly recommend listening to audiobook while following along in the book to see the pictures.
January 25, 2018
If you can manage to get a hold of an edition that includes the CD done by Hamilton and James Earl Jones, please do so! The two of them do a fantastic job!
I really enjoyed this collection, but I have never used more formats to listen to a book as I did with this collection.
I read the titular story out of the picture book.
Then I listened to the Audio CD included in this book - which only has about half the tales and none of the notes but it's fantastic.
Then I flipped through the hardback to look at the pictures and notes for the tales I'd listened to.
Then I listened to most of the rest of the stories in a full collection narrated by Andrew Barnes. This one does include the end notes, and Barnes is a decent narrator, but he doesn't hold a candle to James Earl Jones.
Then I read the last couple of tales from the hardback and looked at all of the illustrations.
So 4 different formats for one book. I think that's a record! (for me at least.)
I really enjoyed this collection, but I have never used more formats to listen to a book as I did with this collection.
I read the titular story out of the picture book.
Then I listened to the Audio CD included in this book - which only has about half the tales and none of the notes but it's fantastic.
Then I flipped through the hardback to look at the pictures and notes for the tales I'd listened to.
Then I listened to most of the rest of the stories in a full collection narrated by Andrew Barnes. This one does include the end notes, and Barnes is a decent narrator, but he doesn't hold a candle to James Earl Jones.
Then I read the last couple of tales from the hardback and looked at all of the illustrations.
So 4 different formats for one book. I think that's a record! (for me at least.)
February 2, 2018
Lovely illustrations and wonderful folk tales.
November 15, 2015
The People Could Fly is a folk tale because it includes in it its four parts. The first part that it includes is that it must have supernatural powers. For example, in this folktale the supernatural powers are that people could fly and magic.“Kum...yali, kum buba tambe,” and more magic words, said so quickly, they sounded like whispers and sighs.The young woman lifted one foot on the air. Then the other. She flew clumsily at first, with the child now held tightly in her arms. The she felt the magic, the African mystery. Say she rose just as free as a bird. As light as a feather”(Page 2, paragraphs 19 and 20). The second part of a folktale is that it passes from generation to generation and doesn’t have an author. This might be a bit confusing because in the tittle it says that its written by Virginia Hamilton. But she didn’t create it, instead, she wrote the folktale in a book. The third rule that needs to be in a folktale is that it must have a theme, and in this folktale the theme is that if you want something you need to say it.“Take us with you!” Their looks spoke it, but they were afraid to shout it. Toby couldn’t take them with him. Hadn’t the time to teach them to fly. They must wait for a chance to run. “Goodie-bye!” the old man called Toby spoke to them, poor souls! And he was flyin’ gone. So they say. The Overseer told it. The one called Master said it was a lie, a trick of the light. The Driver kept his mouth shut”(Page 2, paragraph 28). The fourth and last part of a folktale is that it must show a culture, which in this one is an African Culture."They say the people could fly. Say that long ago in Africa, some of the people knew magic. And they would walk up on the air like climbin’ up on a gate. And they flew like blackbirds over the fields. Black, shiny wings flappin’ against the blue up there."
July 30, 2017
Most of the stories are folk tales, so there is a certain amount of repetition. I really appreciated the source notes on where the tale came from, because there are familiar elements from other sources. "The Two Johns" was almost exactly like something I'd read in a book of fairy tales, but its origins are Portuguese, from where it was carried down through slaves, but it was also carried into European fairy tales.
The last section contains some true stories and some that appear to be less true, and these were the most interesting to me. That is especially true for the title tale, "The People Could Fly", which is beautiful and still affecting all these years later.
The last section contains some true stories and some that appear to be less true, and these were the most interesting to me. That is especially true for the title tale, "The People Could Fly", which is beautiful and still affecting all these years later.
February 17, 2023
What's not to love about folk stories. This collection circled a few different themes, but generally the idea was to be clever and outwit the devil to survive. When that fails, sometimes you just gotta fly.
November 12, 2015
"A Wolf and Little Daughter" is an American-Black folktale. It takes place in a house and in a forest. The cause of the problem is the wolf; he wouldn't stop chasing Little Daughter. Three main events are: Papa tells Little Daughter,"No," when she asks if she could go to the forest and out of the gate because she saw a beautiful flower. Papa went off the house and Little Daughter disobeyed him by going to the other side of the gate. Little Daughter encounters the wolf. At the end, Little Daughter sang a song ('tray bla tray bla cum qua kimo") and the wolf chased Little Daughter until she shuts the gate right in his face.
Now, moving on to the evidence to prove this is a well-developed folktale with all of its requirements. First of all, a folktale's got to have a lesson to give to the one receiving the story. In this story, there's exactly no given lesson by text, but in page 1, lines 4-5 it states: "He told Little Daughter never to go out of the gate alone," or else the wolf will hunt you down. Now a story's got to have a culture of origin. It doesn't say it clearly in the story, but from research we can tell it has an African-American origin. A folktale needs to include supernatural powers as well. Its hard to see, but if you think for a while, wolves can't talk. But in the dialogue of page 2, lines 20-22 we can see that the wolf says in a low gruff voice, "Sing that sweetest, goodest song again." Those are the elements required for a folktale.
Now, moving on to the evidence to prove this is a well-developed folktale with all of its requirements. First of all, a folktale's got to have a lesson to give to the one receiving the story. In this story, there's exactly no given lesson by text, but in page 1, lines 4-5 it states: "He told Little Daughter never to go out of the gate alone," or else the wolf will hunt you down. Now a story's got to have a culture of origin. It doesn't say it clearly in the story, but from research we can tell it has an African-American origin. A folktale needs to include supernatural powers as well. Its hard to see, but if you think for a while, wolves can't talk. But in the dialogue of page 2, lines 20-22 we can see that the wolf says in a low gruff voice, "Sing that sweetest, goodest song again." Those are the elements required for a folktale.
December 16, 2016
This book is good. You can't get stuck in it like other good books, because of the short stories.
The stories are good, but the bad grammar that is supposed to reflect how the slaves talk makes it difficult to read at first but after a while you get used to it.
You can really tell how badly the slaves wanted to escape from the slaveowners, because in a lot of the stories, they are told about slaves/animals getting their freedom in return for something.
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes to search for the theme in a book or that like fables, myths or folktales.
The stories are good, but the bad grammar that is supposed to reflect how the slaves talk makes it difficult to read at first but after a while you get used to it.
You can really tell how badly the slaves wanted to escape from the slaveowners, because in a lot of the stories, they are told about slaves/animals getting their freedom in return for something.
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes to search for the theme in a book or that like fables, myths or folktales.
May 6, 2015
You don't have to be Black or American to enjoy this book. The stories are ideal to read to your kiddy at bedtime.
May 29, 2019
Classics never get outdated.
April 16, 2022
I thoroughly enjoyed the book of American Black Folktales told by Viginia Hamilton. While many of the stories were new to me, a few of them were better versions of stories that I heard as a child. The books is broken into four section: Animal Tales, Tales of the Real, Extravagant, and Fanciful, Tales of the Supernatural, and Slave Tales of Freedom. In addition to enjoying the stories, I also love that each story is followed by a brief explanation and bit of history to give context to the story.
I think these stories would be great to teach to young children in conjunction with a unit on slavery, as they give a voice to the people of this time period. The tales are filled with sorrow, joy, silliness, anger, and hope and humanize the experience of each person who turned to these tales to escape, make sense, and cope with this horrific time. They are a true testament of the power of storytelling. I can see how reading these stories aloud would be impactful in a classroom (or any) setting as the dialect and cadence of the stories makes the listener feel like they’re getting a front row seat to listen to the storyteller. I would definitely recommend this as a classroom read aloud or a book to be read at home to your children.
I think these stories would be great to teach to young children in conjunction with a unit on slavery, as they give a voice to the people of this time period. The tales are filled with sorrow, joy, silliness, anger, and hope and humanize the experience of each person who turned to these tales to escape, make sense, and cope with this horrific time. They are a true testament of the power of storytelling. I can see how reading these stories aloud would be impactful in a classroom (or any) setting as the dialect and cadence of the stories makes the listener feel like they’re getting a front row seat to listen to the storyteller. I would definitely recommend this as a classroom read aloud or a book to be read at home to your children.
January 18, 2013
For anyone who wants to experience a wide variety of folktales from the diaspora, The People Could Fly is the perfect place to start. Hamilton retells tales from the African continent, the Caribbean, and the American south. Each tale is embellished by the beautiful paintings of the Dillons, husband and wife artists. Some of the stories use dialect while others don't. All of them open a window into the daily lives, fears, and hopes of people of color during the time of slavery.
December 16, 2016
I think this book was pretty good, it has a bunch of stories that were pretty good the last story was probably my favorite because it was written so well. This definitely was not my favorite book because I didn't like every story, I wasn't to interested in this book because not everything was interesting but it's still good. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes folk tales and is interested about how life was for slaves.
August 21, 2019
This is a collection of folktales, with detailed notes on where they're from, similar repeating themes and other interesting information after each one. There were four categories: 1) animal tales 2) tales of the real, extravagant and fanciful 3) tales of the supernatural and 4) slave tales of freedom.
I read this book as part of the Coretta Scott King Book Awards 50th anniversary challenge promoted through the LA Public Libraries.
I read this book as part of the Coretta Scott King Book Awards 50th anniversary challenge promoted through the LA Public Libraries.
March 5, 2021
I read this out loud to my (about to be )5 and 7 year olds. Some of the stories were a little scary for them, but I still think they got a lot out of it. We read it for a virtual book club hosted by a friend.
From my own perspective, I thought there was a wonderful variety to the stories. Some of them were hilarious, others were really creepy. Some were sad, some were angry, some were tricky, and a lot of them were hopeful.
I highly recommend this book!
From my own perspective, I thought there was a wonderful variety to the stories. Some of them were hilarious, others were really creepy. Some were sad, some were angry, some were tricky, and a lot of them were hopeful.
I highly recommend this book!
February 22, 2021
So many beautiful tales and pictures. 🙏🏽
April 2, 2019
I was not feeling this read at the start, however it did not take long for the tales to pull Mi N.
December 8, 2025
Who doesn't love a good story? And folktales are the kind that stick with you.
November 13, 2025
lovely folktales with a great context of history and cultural significance
February 27, 2016
There are 4 requirements every folktale needs to fulfill to be able to be called a folktale. The first aspect of a folktale is its author. Folktales never have a specific author; instead they are passed on from generation to generation. The People Could Fly was passed on until Virginia Hamilton decided to write it down, she says so on the background of page 63 “… these people nurtured a strong sense of tradition, passing stories from generation to generation. Virginia Hamilton (1934-2002) grew up listening to such stories. As an adult she put many of them into writing…” Also on the first line on page 63 it says, “They say the people could fly,” proving that there were many others. The next requirement is that a folktale should be focused, or based on a specific culture. The People Could Fly specifically refers to the African American culture and even more detailed, slaves in southern USA. On page 63 it directly tells us what we want to hear, “ Between the 1600s and 1800s, millions of Africans were taken forcibly to the Americas as enslaved people.”The third aspect of a folktale is that it includes a supernatural power or force. In The People Could Fly, as the title says, the free slaves rose up and flew away. As it says on page 65 “And he flew away." Last but not least, the last requirement for a folktale is that it has to teach a lesson. The People Could Fly has a very abstract theme, what I found after digging very deeply was the following. You have to be patient and have hope because there is a time for everything. I drew this conclusion because on page 64 it says, “I must go soon, she told him. Soon, he said.”
I totally recommend this folktale because it is interesting and it reflects a lot of its culture. I really liked how it narrates the story or what is happening.
I totally recommend this folktale because it is interesting and it reflects a lot of its culture. I really liked how it narrates the story or what is happening.
November 15, 2015
A Wolf and Little Daughter is an african american folktale which took place in Little Daughters house, and in the other side of the gate (the forest). In this folktale there is a big problem. Little Daughters father didn’t want Little Daughter to run in the forest, where there were wolves (Pg.157, line 3). Little Daughter, after her father left, saw a yellow flower on the other side of the gate and decided to go and pick it. She kept seeing more and more flowers, and went farther into the forest. As she was getting farther from her house, she heard a noise: "Pit-a-pat,pit-a-pat,pit-a-pat" (Pg 157, line 20). There was a wolf! She was frightened and started to go back to her house, but the wolf was walking right behind her. The wolf kept getting closer and closer to her while she was singing and getting closer to the gate, until she slip in the gate and was once again safe!
This is a folktale because it contains the four elements that are required to be a folktale. This is a story passed from generation to generation. For example in page 157, right below the title, it says that it is an African American foltale retold by Virginia Hamilton. This folktale is based on an African American culture. The whole story is written like an African American person would have told it, for example: "But she hears big and heavy, PIT-A-PAT, PIT-A-PAT, comin behind her." Coming is spelled without the g. In this folktale the words are spelled the way they are pronounced. It also shows their beliefs and traditions,"They sang- tray bla, tray bla, cum qua, kimo" (Pg 157, line 24). This folktale is full of supernatrual features: "Did you move?" The wolf said (Pg 158, line 28). "A wolf and Little Daughter" teaches you a lesson that will help everyone throughout there lives. It teaches you to never take risks and to obey your parents. Overall it is a very good folktale!
This is a folktale because it contains the four elements that are required to be a folktale. This is a story passed from generation to generation. For example in page 157, right below the title, it says that it is an African American foltale retold by Virginia Hamilton. This folktale is based on an African American culture. The whole story is written like an African American person would have told it, for example: "But she hears big and heavy, PIT-A-PAT, PIT-A-PAT, comin behind her." Coming is spelled without the g. In this folktale the words are spelled the way they are pronounced. It also shows their beliefs and traditions,"They sang- tray bla, tray bla, cum qua, kimo" (Pg 157, line 24). This folktale is full of supernatrual features: "Did you move?" The wolf said (Pg 158, line 28). "A wolf and Little Daughter" teaches you a lesson that will help everyone throughout there lives. It teaches you to never take risks and to obey your parents. Overall it is a very good folktale!
August 15, 2017
“The People Could Fly” is a collection of folktales for ages 8-13. It is the winner of Coretta Scott King Awards for both author and illustrator. Virginia Hamilton curated and put these traditionally oral stories in written form, explaining in the foreword that she retold them with the original dialects in order to retain their true sense of history, specifically that of African slaves in America.
Some lucky readers might get a hold of an edition of this folktale anthology that includes an audio CD of the author’s own narration. It is a priceless experience to hear these stories told as they were intended, and they are actually easier to understand when listened to. Reading alone, one might find it a bit laborious to work through the incorrect grammar and flip back to the glossary to know the meaning of some words and phrases, thus missing the full effect of these rich and clever stories.
Age-old folklore themes and symbols, such as trickster animals and good versus evil, are all very present in these tales. Several of them are about animals, some about people, while others mix animals and people. But each one leaves the reader with a lesson or unexpected twist at the end. The sometimes eerie black and white illustrations are also noteworthy, depicting harrowed, surreal characters in dire circumstances, and beautiful African princesses from a bygone era.
It would be a mild statement that this book leaves an impression. “The People Could Fly” is one of a kind, a true inheritance, as it authentically captures the oral tradition of an entire population among us. We are privileged to be able to share this piece of human history with our children and students. It fills a hole in an array of folktales piled high with romantic tales from the West, yet it stands just as strong among our well-known folklore.
Some lucky readers might get a hold of an edition of this folktale anthology that includes an audio CD of the author’s own narration. It is a priceless experience to hear these stories told as they were intended, and they are actually easier to understand when listened to. Reading alone, one might find it a bit laborious to work through the incorrect grammar and flip back to the glossary to know the meaning of some words and phrases, thus missing the full effect of these rich and clever stories.
Age-old folklore themes and symbols, such as trickster animals and good versus evil, are all very present in these tales. Several of them are about animals, some about people, while others mix animals and people. But each one leaves the reader with a lesson or unexpected twist at the end. The sometimes eerie black and white illustrations are also noteworthy, depicting harrowed, surreal characters in dire circumstances, and beautiful African princesses from a bygone era.
It would be a mild statement that this book leaves an impression. “The People Could Fly” is one of a kind, a true inheritance, as it authentically captures the oral tradition of an entire population among us. We are privileged to be able to share this piece of human history with our children and students. It fills a hole in an array of folktales piled high with romantic tales from the West, yet it stands just as strong among our well-known folklore.
November 16, 2015
"A wolf and little daughter" is a folktale based on African-American culture. One day little daughter was picking some flowers. There was a fence around her house ,and her papa who lived in with her ,didn't want her to go outside the fence. The reason he prohibited his daughter from going outside was because there were wolves outside ,dangerous wolves.
One day her papa had to go away for something. Little daughter thought it wouldn't keep any harm to go outside the fence to pick some flowers. She saw a beautiful flower and one after it then she said another one and another one she won so far that she could no longer see the fence clearly. Sometime later little daughter saw the Wolf he started to follow her and to tell her to sing that sweetest good as song again. And she started thinking. "Tray bla, tray bla, cum qua kimo" again and again until she ran away and " BAM, CLAM"she close the door in the big bad Wolf's face. Sweetest goodest safe!
What makes quotation a wall and little daughter quotation a folktale is the fact that it includes the four elements needed to make a story a folktale. The first element need it is inclusion of supernatural powers. In page 61 paragraph three line four, the wolf starts to talk, asking little daughter "did you move". The second element is that it comes from a specific culture, but it has no specific author. On page 64 first paragraph it says; " in this African American sayings, words" the third characteristic is reflected when it says " goes back to the time where the slaves were made the story teller". The fourth characteristic is the theme, it is not directly stated, but we can conclude that it is to obey and listen to your parents.
One day her papa had to go away for something. Little daughter thought it wouldn't keep any harm to go outside the fence to pick some flowers. She saw a beautiful flower and one after it then she said another one and another one she won so far that she could no longer see the fence clearly. Sometime later little daughter saw the Wolf he started to follow her and to tell her to sing that sweetest good as song again. And she started thinking. "Tray bla, tray bla, cum qua kimo" again and again until she ran away and " BAM, CLAM"she close the door in the big bad Wolf's face. Sweetest goodest safe!
What makes quotation a wall and little daughter quotation a folktale is the fact that it includes the four elements needed to make a story a folktale. The first element need it is inclusion of supernatural powers. In page 61 paragraph three line four, the wolf starts to talk, asking little daughter "did you move". The second element is that it comes from a specific culture, but it has no specific author. On page 64 first paragraph it says; " in this African American sayings, words" the third characteristic is reflected when it says " goes back to the time where the slaves were made the story teller". The fourth characteristic is the theme, it is not directly stated, but we can conclude that it is to obey and listen to your parents.
November 10, 2015
"A Wolf and Little Daughter" is an African American folktale set in a cabin in the woods where papa, as a worried father, warned Little Daughter not to go out the gate where there are wolfs, Little Daughter never did. One day papa had to leave to do something, Little Daughter thought it wouldn't harm anyone if she went outside the gate to get some flowers, so she did. Little Daughter heard a noise and saw a big bad wolf. The wolf would tell Little Daughter to sing the sweet song she sang when she was picking flowers, so Little Daughter did.
Every time Little Daughter sang the wolf left and Little Daughter tip-toed towards the gate. Little Daughter got to the point were she was so close to the gate that when the wolf was ooming she slide right into the gate and shut it, crack, right into the wolfs big fat face. Little Daughter was sweetest goodest safe.
As I read through "A Wolf and Little Daughter" I noticed it was a folktale as it includes the four elements of a folktale. First it includes the supernatural of a talking wolf: "The wolf said to her, in a low, gruff voice´Sing that sweetest goodest song again" (Page 61). It does not have an specific author: "None of these stories were ever written for children. They were just told; so I re-did them" (Author Story). Then its based on African Americans' during slavery: "In 1985 she published The People could Fly (were A Wolf and Little Daughter is) a collection of African American folktales dating from the time of slavery" (About the Author). Last but not least it teaches the theme of obeying your parents when they tell you not to do something: "Papa told Little Daughter never to go out the gate alone" (Page 60).
Every time Little Daughter sang the wolf left and Little Daughter tip-toed towards the gate. Little Daughter got to the point were she was so close to the gate that when the wolf was ooming she slide right into the gate and shut it, crack, right into the wolfs big fat face. Little Daughter was sweetest goodest safe.
As I read through "A Wolf and Little Daughter" I noticed it was a folktale as it includes the four elements of a folktale. First it includes the supernatural of a talking wolf: "The wolf said to her, in a low, gruff voice´Sing that sweetest goodest song again" (Page 61). It does not have an specific author: "None of these stories were ever written for children. They were just told; so I re-did them" (Author Story). Then its based on African Americans' during slavery: "In 1985 she published The People could Fly (were A Wolf and Little Daughter is) a collection of African American folktales dating from the time of slavery" (About the Author). Last but not least it teaches the theme of obeying your parents when they tell you not to do something: "Papa told Little Daughter never to go out the gate alone" (Page 60).
November 15, 2015
“A Wolf and Little Daughter” is a folktale about a little girl that lives in a house with her papa, and around the house there is a dangerous forest, but fortunately there is a gate. One day, Papa had to go away for something. Little daughter was picking some flowers close to the gate and in the other side she saw a special one, so she thought of crossing the gate to pick it, so she did. Then little daughter started to pick the row of yellow flowers that was leading her farther from the gate and closer to danger. Little daughter when being far enough while singing a sweet song, looked up and saw a big wolf. Then the wolf told her not to move, but to sing the sweetest goodest song again and again. Little daughter was scared. She looked to the wolf and he was gone, but when she moved, the wolf came back again and again, and little daughter saw the gate, yet she wasn’t inside. When the wolf was running behind her, she finally closed the gate and stayed safe at home.
“A Wolf and Little Daughter,” is known as a folktale, (“Author Study”) because it has no author, and it is passed from generation to generation. It is also from an African American culture, (“Author Study”) and it has told a lesson: “She is sweetest goodest safe.” Meaning never get close to danger (pg. 156, paragraph 60, line 3). Also supernatural powers are included, because the wolf can talk: “Sing the sweetest, goodest song again…” (Pg. 158, paragraph 50). In this story many lessons are discovered (For example: You should always follow directions pg.157, paragraph 9). I highly recommend this story to someone who loves folktales.
“A Wolf and Little Daughter,” is known as a folktale, (“Author Study”) because it has no author, and it is passed from generation to generation. It is also from an African American culture, (“Author Study”) and it has told a lesson: “She is sweetest goodest safe.” Meaning never get close to danger (pg. 156, paragraph 60, line 3). Also supernatural powers are included, because the wolf can talk: “Sing the sweetest, goodest song again…” (Pg. 158, paragraph 50). In this story many lessons are discovered (For example: You should always follow directions pg.157, paragraph 9). I highly recommend this story to someone who loves folktales.
October 30, 2015
A folktale is a story that does not have an specific author, is based on a specific culture or tradition, always implies the supernatural, and teaches a lessonor explains the world. An example of a folktale is The "People Could Fly". I really liked this story because it explains in a funny way a part in history. Fisrtly, it does not have a specific author: "they say that the children of the ones who could not fly told their children. And now, me, I have told it to you." (pg. 67, lines 122-123). Secondly, is based on a specific culture or tradition: "say that long ago in Africa, sone people knew magic" (pg. 63, lines 1-2) and "wrote a number of her own books about African American history and culture" (pg. 63, background). Thirdly, it implies the supernatural: "kum...yali, kum buba tambe" (pg. 65, lines 58-59) and "say she rose just as free as a bird. As light as a feather" (pg. 65, line 64). Finally, it explains how slaves escaped from their Overseer. All these information is enough to qualify "The People Could Fly" a floktale. I highly recommend this book to all of you.
November 4, 2015
I think the folktale "The People Could Fly" is a very good folktale, because it meets all the requirements of a folktale. First of all, it includes supernatural powers. "The young women lifted one foot in the air. Then the other. She flew clumsy at first..." (page 65, lines 61-62). Secondly, it was passed from generation to generation. In the background it says, "Strong sense of tradition, passing from generation to generation,"(page 63, background). Plus, it is based on a specific culture, which is African-American beliefs. "'He raised his arms, holding them out to her. 'Kum...yali, kum buba tombe,' and more magic words said so quickly, they sounded like whispers and sighs," (page 65, line 58-60). It even teaches a lesson, that there is a time for everything. "I must go soon," she told him. "Soon," he said. (page 64, line 43-44). I recommend this folktale to somebody that teaches history.
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