Synopses & Reviews
When Animals Were People takes children into a magical time and place in Huichol Indian folklore where newly-created beings were evolving into the creatures they were meant to be and finding the habitats they were meant to enjoy. According to tradition, these early ancestors of today's forest-dwellers had human characteristics, physical as well as emotional; hence they were sometimes referred to as animal people. This concept of animal people is very appealing to children as well as easily and intuitively understood.
This delightful folktale shows how Turtle Wolf Person learned to not allow greed to block his common sense--all important survival skills for each of these animals today. While enjoying an animal tale filled with bits of wisdom and humor, children will be able to learn some lessons about the interdependence of all living things and the natural environment.
The brilliantly-colored illustrations are from Indigenous yarn paintings called cuadros, created by applying bees
Table of Contents
Prologue/Pr§ologo -- The story/El cuento -- The wisdom of animals/La sabidurâia de los animales -- About the illustrations/Sobre las ilustraciones -- About the Huichol people/Sobre la gente huichol.