RABBIT AND THE WOLVES

The sixth in the “Grandmother stories” is a lively tale that combines two Cherokee stories. Rabbit, Ji-Stu, loves to sing and to lead the dances. He loves to hear his friend Wa-ya, the wolf, tell the story of Redbird. In that story, a raccoon tricks a wolf into believing he’s blind by covering his eyes with clay, but a little bird pecks off the clay. In gratitude, the wolf shows the bird a cache of red paint. The bird covers himself in the beautiful red, and “his song was even more beautiful than his feathers.” Ji-Stu wants to sing as beautifully as Redbird, so he seeks out the paint rock in Wa-ya’s story, but his voice remains the same and he is surrounded by wolves who want to eat him. Ji-Stu tricks them by teaching them a new dance and escapes home. Wa-ya reminds him that the song was already inside Redbird, but presents his friend with a red feather to tie to his dance rattle. The elaborate art is white on black, with a look of woodcuts, though too overwhelmingly detailed to enjoy easily. No source notes are given. (Picture book/folktale. 5-9)