Tricksters: Ring of Tricksters

After the Iktomi books last week, I decided to look at some anthologies of trickster stories this week, starting with a book by one of my favorite writers: Virginia Hamilton. I've featured this book before, in fact, because you will find African tricksters here, African American tricksters, and Caribbean tricksters too: Ring of Tricksters: Animal Tales from America, the West Indies, and Africa.

There are 11 stories in the book, and you will find familiar tricksters here like Brer Rabbit and Anansi, but also the "Cunnie Rabbit," the tiny royal antelope of western Africa. You can find out more about Hamilton's sources in her notes at the back of the book.

The illustrations are by Barry Moser, who was one of Hamilton's regular collaborators. Here's a two-page spread showing Rabbit and Wolf in Hamilton's version of the famous tops-and-bottoms folktale:

And here's another two-page spread showing how Tortoise made Leopard his riding horse, another famous folktale type:

So if you're already familiar with the stories, you can kick back and enjoy Hamilton's storytelling style and Moser's illustrations... and if the stories are new to you, you'll get the added benefit of being surprised by the tricksters' tricks!

Ring of Tricksters:

Animal Tales from America,

the West Indies, and Africa

by Virginia Hamilton