The Serpent Slayer: and Other Stories of Strong Women (Hardcover)

~ (Author), Trina Schart Hyman (Illustrator) "In the dark time of the year, when the days are short and a cold wind blows from the north, a serpent came to live..." (more)
Key Phrases: golden flask, magic lake, fairy women, Sister Lace, Yung Ling, Oribe Shima (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Nothing is more satisfying than watching a valiant hero conquer a dragon, outwit a thief, or destroy a monstrous cannibal--unless it's seeing an intrepid heroine accomplish all these brave feats! In this remarkable anthology by the mother-daughter team of Trina Schart Hyman and Katrin Tchana, 18 stories showcase the courage, cleverness, and integrity of women who dare to go beyond their traditional roles and stand up for themselves and their people. Gleaned from fairy tales from around the world and retold by Tchana to make them "more vivid and vital to her audience," the stories include the tale of Li Chi, a 14-year-old girl who refuses to let a greedy sorcerer continue to sacrifice young girls to a horrible serpent. Clever Marcela is so cunning, she manages to outsmart a king--and fall in love while she's at it. Then there's Amarjit, the barber's wife, who, fed up with her handsome husband's laziness, manages to take matters in her own hands and create fabulous wealth from nothing. Caldecott Award-winner Trina Schart Hyman (Saint George and the Dragon) paints spectacular illustrations, worthy of their esteemed role in capturing both the noble and the grotesque. (Ages 7 to 11) --Emilie Coulter

From Publishers Weekly

From the Chinese tale of Li Chi who slays a serpent and saves her village to the Gambian story of an offbeat wise woman, Hyman (Saint George and the Dragon) and her daughter Tchana here collect 18 inspiring stories about women powerful in might and mind. While Tchana's retellings occasionally get bogged down in complicated or meandering plots, her heroines are uniformly impressive. They handle swords, needles and stew pots with equal skill, marry whom they please and even outwit the devil. A few tales contain odd scenariosAas when the skull of her grandmother tells Neruvana to kill her evil husband or the Sun-Girl chooses to abandon her baby to be with her true husband, the handsome Dragon-Prince. Brief source notes indicate the diverse origins of the stories, but Tchana maintains a consistent tone, emphasizing commonality rather than differences in cultures ("Hey, girl," calls the king to Clever Marcela, and "Hey, Janey," calls the squire in "Duffy the Lady"). The thick, oversize picture book features a single full-page watercolor and an opening spot illustration for each story. Hyman's spirited paintings emphasize bold and determined womenAJudith the pirate surrounded by her crew of court ladies, Vassilissa wrestling the duke's warlordAwhile keeping the details of the tales' settings intact. This is a fairy tale world where one can definitely hear women roar. All ages. (Sept.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4-8
  
• Hardcover: 128 pages
• Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers; 1st edition (September 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316387010
• ISBN-13: 978-0316387019
• Product Dimensions: 12.3 x 9.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #62,510 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Spectacularly illustrated, splendid vlaues, terrific stories, September 19, 2000

By	Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

In The Serpent Slayer And Other Stories Of Strong Women, Katrin Tchana artfully retells classic folktales from around the world which showcase strong women overcoming a diversity of daunting obstacles and fearsome challenges. These wonderful tales include The Barber's Wife; Nesoowa and the Chenoo; Clever Marcela; Sister Lace; The Rebel Princess; Beebyeebyee and the Water God; Kate Crackernuts; The Old Woman and the Devil; The Magic Lake; Grandmother's Skull; Three Whiskers from a Lion's Chin; Duffy the Lady; and the title piece, The Serpent Slayer are all spectacularly illustrated by the talents of Trina Hyman. These very highly recommended, multicultural stories of courage, cleverness, perseverance, and endurance are thoroughly entertaining, even as they hold forth splendid values and possibilities for their young readers as they live their own lives and overcome whatever obstacles or solve what ever problems they encounter while making their way through the world!

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Girls Night Out, September 11, 2000

By	Xeneri - See all my reviews

At last! A series of stories from around the globe written by a mother and daughter team all about female heroes (not heroines, mind you, but heroes.)

Featured in these pages are all kinds of women who are plucky, smart, resourceful, brave and just plain smart. This is just the sort of anthology to give to your daughters, to inspire and help them conquer their own life adventures. A very satisfying read for girls of all ages.

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Girls Rock!, December 6, 2001

By	S. Heidal "Sarah" (WA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

In this day and age, young girls are bombarded with not-so positive images of midriffs, barbies, and some rather unwholesome popstars. The "Serpent Slayer" offers a refreshing change of perspecitve. This book is a collection of tales from around the world, retold in an up to date, easy to understand and yet beautifully written format. The stories are specifically about strong, clever women. The illustrations are excellent and the main characters are uncompromising. The tales have classic fairy tale plots; dragons, thieves, mythical gods, and lions (oh my!). At only a couple pages each, a story can be read aloud in a reasonable amount of time, making them perfect for bedtime. Although I recommend this specifically for girls, I am sure children of any gender and age would be equally enthralled. I know I was! Buy this book! We need more like it.