African Diaspora at Internet Archive: David Makhanlall

After some Brer Rabbit yesterday, it's more Brer Anansi today, with three books by David Makhanlall, a writer from Guyana (between Venezuela and Suriname on the northern coast of South America).

First up is The Invincible Brer Anansi:

You'll find 9 stories in this book — The Rainbow War ~ Disappearing Act ~ The Missing Voice ~ Anansi's Picnic ~ The Pumpkin Thieves ~ The Ghost ~ The Best Feast Ever ~ The Joy Ride ~ Iced Lemonade — and the illustrations are by Michael Jackson; here's King Leo drinking the iced lemonade of that final story:

Next up is The Further Adventures of Brer Anansi:

There are 9 stories in this book also: Vote for Brer Anansi ~ Walk on Water ~ The Big Supply ~ Potato Drink ~ Editor Anansi ~ Harvest Gold ~ A Day at the Grease Pole ~ The Brown Swindle ~ The Sound of Music. The illustrations are again by Michael Jackson, and Brer Rabbit figures in some of the stories too, as you can see in this illustration:

Then there is one more book, this one with a single story: Brer Anansi and the Boat Race.

The illustrations are by Amelia Rosato, and in her rendering, Anansi is a furry-looking sort of spider. Here he is relaxing at the end of the story:

So, if you are looking for Anansi stories retold for children, you will enjoy these stories from Guyana as retold by David Makhanlall!

The Invincible Brer Anansi

by David Makhanlall

The Further Adventures of Brer Anansi

by David Makhanlall

Brer Anansi and the Boat Race

by David Makhanlall