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The
Iroko-man
A
Yoruba Folktale
illustrated by Holly Kim
Orchard, 1994
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*Bank
Street's Children's Books, 1994
*American
Bookseller's "Pick of the Lists"
*Adventuring
with Books, National Council of English Teachers, 1997
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| From
the
book jacket: |
The
Iroko-man, a tree spirit, is used to hearing prayers. When the women of
the village kneel to him, begging that children once again be born to
them, the Iroko-man asks a high price in exchange for his magic.
One woman, Oluronbi, can offer only her
firstborn; she has no corn, fruit, yams, goat, or sheep, like the
others. The Iroko-man accepts.
But when her baby is born, Oluronbi and her
husband, a woodcarver, cannot bear to part with him.
Furious, the Iroko-man casts a wicked spell
upon Oluronbi--but the story, in all its cleverness, mystery, and
exotic beauty, is far from done.
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| A
little
about the book: |
I always disliked the ending of the Grimm Brothers'
"Rumpelstiltskin"--it was so unjust, so unfair and cruel! When I read
about the Iroko-man, I thought, There
are similarities in these two
tales. If I give it a twist, I'll make a point: there CAN be a happy
ending, a THIRD way to resolve a conflict.
One of my dearest friends is a mediator, and with
this story, in a very small way,
I felt that I, too,
was contributing to his (our) vision of a better
world.
My father, Morton
Dimondstein, an artist and
collector of African art,
opened
my eyes to the power and beauty of African art, and he gave me the
statue which served as Holly Kim's model for the
Iroko-man's baby.
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| From the reviews: |
"In
her first children's book, Kim creates sumptuous compositions of
painted cut papers. Radiant backgrounds and such details as regional
textile patterns suffuse her visual spreads with light and motion. A
visual feast." Publishers Weekly
"A handsomely set out African 'Rumpelstiltskin.'" Kirkus
"The story has a more clever and satisfying climax than most: a wooden
child for a wooden man! Rarely anthologized, this unusual tale, with
its chants that invite audience participation, should have success in
story times. It is just the sort of mildly frightening tale young
listeners relish. An author's source note is appended." School Library Journal
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