Stories passed down through oral storytelling and from generation to generation fall under the broad term traditional literature. Over time and through many tellers, these stories altered, drawing upon each new generation's truth to become the stories we are familiar with today. Rich in tradition and richer in language, traditional literature connects the future to the past. Traditional literature consists of songs, stories, poems and riddles from anonymous sources.
"Folktale” is a general term for numerous varieties of traditional narrative. The telling of stories appears to be a cultural universal, common to primitive and complex societies alike. Even the forms folktales take are demonstrably similar from culture to culture, and comparative studies of themes and narrative techniques have been successful in showing these relationships (Answer.com).
Books for Kindergarten - Grade 2
Selected by Alma Flor Ada and F. Isabel Campoy; English version by Rosalma Zubizarreta
Illustrated by: Vivi Escriva
Publisher: Rayo, p2010.
ISBN-13: 978-0-06-134614-9
Non-Fiction
Interest Level: K-3/Reading Level: 1.6
Description: An illustrated, animal-themed collection of nursery rhymes, presented in Spanish with English translations.
The Duck & The Kangaroo*
by Jane WattenbergPublisher: Greenwillow, p2009
ISBN-13:978-0-06-136683-3
Non-fiction
Interest Level: K-3/Reading Level: 1.7
Description: Colorful illustrations and rhyming text tell how an adventurous duck befriends a kangaroo.
Nabeel's New Pants an Eid Tale*
Illustrated by: Proiti Roy
Publisher:Marshall Cavendish Children, p2010.
ISBN13: 978-0-7614-5629-2
Fiction
Interest Level: K-3/Reading Level: 1.8
Lexile Level: 450
Description: While buying gifts for his family to wear to the mosque on Eid a shoemaker is persuaded to get new pants for himself, but the only pair available is too long and no one seems to have time to shorten them. Based on a tale called Ismat's Eid.
Young Zeus
Written by: G. Brian Karas
Publisher: Scholastic Press, p2010.
ISBN-13: 978-0-439-72806-5
Non-fiction
Interest Level: K-3/Reading Level: 3.0
Lexile Level: 570
Description:With the help of six monsters, five gods, an enchanted she-goat, and his mother, young Zeus becomes the god of gods, master of lightning and thunder, and ruler over all.
How the Coyote stole the Summer: a Native American Folktale
Illustrated by: Kelly Dupre
Published by: Millbrook Press, p2009.
ISBN: 978-1-58013-848-2
Non-Fiction
Reading Level: K-3/Reading Level 3.6
Lexile Level: 500
Description: A retelling of a Native American folktale about a coyote that tries to steal summer from Old Woman who keeps it tied up in a bag. Includes biographical references.
Books for Grade 3 - Grade 5
Glass Slipper, Gold Sandal: a Worldwide Cinderella
Illustrated by: Julie Paschkis
Publisher: Holt, p2007.
ISBN13: 978-0-8050-7953-1
Non-Fiction
Interest Level: K-3/Reading Level: 4.1
Lexile Level: 700
Description: A retelling of the "Cinderella" story based on a variety of folk traditions, including elements from Mexico, Iran, Korea, Russia, Appalachia, and other countries and regions.
Porch Lies: Tales of Slicksters, Tricksters, and other Wily Characters
Illustrated by: Andre Carrilho
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade Books, p2006.
ISBN13: 978-0-375-83619-0
Folktale/Fiction
Interest Level: 3-6/Reading Level: 4.8
Lexile Level: 790
Description: A collection of nine original tales drawn from African American oral tradition that blends history and legend with sly humor, creepy horror, villainous characters, and wild farce.
Written by: Grace Lin
Publisher: Little, Brown and Co. Books for Young Readers, p2009.
ISBN-13: 978-0-316-11427-1
Fiction
Interest Level: 3-6/Reading Level: 5.5
Lexile Level: 820
Description: Minli, an adventurous girl from a poor village, buys a magical goldfish, and then joins a dragon who cannot fly on a quest to find the Old Man of the Moon in hopes of bringing life to Fruitless Mountain and freshness to Jade River. Many traditional folktales included within story. Biographical references included.
Lugalbanda: The Boy who got Caught up in a War
Illustrated by: Jane Ray
Publisher: Candlewick Press, p2006.
ISBN13: 978-0-7636-2782-9
Folklore
Interest Level: 3-6/Reading Level: 5.5
Lexile Level: 910
Description: Presents a retelling of the ancient Sumerian tale about the youngest of eight brothers, Lugalbanda, who is caught up in an ill-advised war and uses his wits and courage and eventually becomes king.
The Pirate Princess and Other Fairy Tales
Illustrated by: Mark Weber
Publisher: A.A. Levine, p2005.
ISBN13: 978-0-590-10855-3
Folklore/Fiction
Interest Level: 3-6/Reading Level: 5.9
Lexile Level:890
Description: A collection of seven Jewish folk tales by late eighteenth-century Ukrainian Rabbi, Nahman Ben Simha.
Books for Grade 6 - Grade 9
Written by Anne Shelby
Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press, p2007.
ISBN13: 978-0-8078-3163-2
Folklore-Appalachian Region
Interest Level: 5-8/Reading Level: 4.3
Description:A collection of fourteen stories that combine traditional Appalachian folktales with contemporary themes. Includes biographical references.
Trickster: Native American Tales: A Graphic CollectionCompiled/Edited by Matt Dembicki
Publisher: Fulcrum Books, P2010
ISBN13:978-1-55591-724-1
Non-Fiction
Interest Level:5-8/Reading Level: 4.5
Description: Collection of over twenty trickster stories, in graphic novel format, from various Native American traditions, including tales about coyotes, rabbits, ravens, and other crafty creatures and their mischievous activities.
