Customer Reviews

The Cow-Tail Switch: And Other West African Stories

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Looking for African folktales? Look first to the work of Harold Courlander. He is one of the finest folktale anthropologists of his generation. "The Cow-Tail Switch and Other West African Stories" is one several of his books which are of interest to Africanists. (He also authored several similar books of folktales and traditional literature from other parts of the world.) In 1947 when "The Cow-Tail Switch and Other West African Stories" was first published, there were far fewer books of this kind than there are today. Two things that make Courlander's work stand out, even now, are: 1) his well written prose, and 2) the notes, which give the reader more information about the story, where it came from, and how to understand it in the context of the culture that produced it. This second point is especially important today, when a lot of books of so-called "African" stories are published without any background information at all. This collection of stories, all from Western Africa, is great for kids and adults. (Harold Courlander is also the author of "The African", which bears many similarities to "Roots" by Alex Haley, though Haley's book was published years later.)

This is a must have book. Eight to twelve year olds love it! I had countless requests for this book as a substitute teacher. Students would ask me to read stories from it year after year. I began taking it with me whenever I subbed because it was always requested. They would give up play time at recess just to hear the stories. Not dependent on a child's background.

If you've never had any exposure to African folk lore, this is the way to go. This book gives detailed and fun recollection of African stories.

Prior to reading it, I had never taken an interest, nor had any exposure, to African stories. I hardly knew what to expect. What I didn't expect was to love it. But I do. The stories are so creative and very interesting. This book is a very good beginning and I was able to read it pretty quickly. It gives insight to history, anthropology and the culture of Africa.

I really enjoyed the style of writing that this book used. Rather than just simply telling the story, there were so many other elements. It was humorous, witty and fast paced.

I highly recommend the book to all you beginners and those that enjoy the simplicity and moral of folk lore.

this is a book about tall tales that come from west africa. most of the stories are obviously fiction, while one or two make you wonder if they are really true or not. all of the stories are short and most provide a moral at the end. this book is only entertaining if you are into tall tales or old myths.

This book has many great stories in it and I enjoyed each one dearly. One of the all the stories that I enjoyed the most was the Cow-Tail Switch. It was very entertaining and descriptive. I really liked how the sons have magical powers to revive bodies. The details were pretty interesting too. Only if this story was bigger, then it would be an outstanding book. This is a great book!!

This book has many great stories in it and I enjoyed each one dearly. One of the all the stories that I enjoyed the most was the Cow-Tail Switch. It was very entertaining and descriptive. I really liked how the sons have magical powers to revive bodies. The details were pretty interesting too. Only if this story was bigger, then it would be an outstanding book. This is a great book!!

I reviewed one of the many stories from this book, The Cow Tail Switch, which is the cover story.

One day in the village of Kundi there was a brave hunter named Ogaloussa. He had to go out to hunt because he had 6 sons and one on the way. He knew they would eat a lot. The first day he had not come home the family was a little worried but not that much. After a week and 3 months of waiting for him they began to really worry. Then the baby was born and they named him Puli. Puli's first words were " Where is my father?" Another son said, "Yes, where is our father?" "I saw which direction he went," said another son.

So the 6 sons set off to find their father. They found him dead with his body parts everywhere. One son said could he put his bones back together and another said he could put the flesh on. "We are not done," yelled another son, "He needs blood and I will give him some." "I can give him breath," said another son. "We are still not done," protested another son. "I will give him the power of movement." "I can give him the power of speech," said the last son and they put him back together.

The sons brought Ogaloussa back to the village and everyone was happy to see him. The next day he made a very nice beaded cow tail and was going to give it to one of his sons. He ended up giving it to Puli who first asked, "Where is my father?" I would rate this story a 7.8 on a scale of 1-10 because it is a great story. I also liked this story because it was interesting how they put him back together

I really hated this book because it was stupid and unrealistic. I learned nothing from this book even though I read it for school. I guess taking detailed notes and writing literary responses to each and every chapter makes the book seem worse. I didnt really like that it was unrealistic because I like realistic stories. That way I can relate to them. I have nothing in common with the characters from these stories and it was easy to fugire out the moral of each story. I find it easy to tell poeple not to read this book. EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[unless you're obsessed with Africa . . . : )]