FAIRY TALES FROM BRAZIL - 18 Brazillian Folk Stories

It is late afternoon in a Brazilian garden. The dazzling blue of sea and sky which characterises a tropical noonday has become subdued and already roseate tints are beginning to prepare the glory of the sunset hour. A lizard crawls lazily up the whitewashed wall. The song of the sabiá, that wonderful Brazilian thrush, sounds from the royal palm tree. The air is heavy with the perfume of the orange blossom. There is no long twilight in the tropics. Night will leap down suddenly upon this garden from out of the glory of the sunset sky. Theresa, the ama, stands before us on the terrace under the mango trees, and we, her yáyázinhas and yóyózinhos, know that the story hour has come. For to sit at the feet of Theresa, the ama, is to pass, from this world, through the gates of story land. It should be noted that there are not many volumes of Brazilian Folklore to be found. But within this unique volume of Brazilian Fairy Tales, you will find 18 stories from that vast and amazing country. Tales like HOW NIGHT CAME, HOW THE RABBIT LOST HIS TAIL, HOW THE TOAD GOT HIS BRUISES, WHY THE LAMB IS MEEK and many more. Residents of the Amazonian forests know that the animals of the forest and the birds which flit through the trees each have their own language. To them the beasts break silence and talk like humans. For them, the magic wonders of these tales stand forth as testament and living truth that the animals do speak to humans, if only we would take the time to stop and listen to what they have to say. This little volume is an interpretation of a few of the stories they have told. 33% of the net income from the sale of this book will be donated to charities in Brazil.