Spirit of America Bookstore
American Folklore, Tall Tales, and Legends
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short essay
general works
legends & heroes
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America's past is full of folk tales and legends, and there are even more among the various cultural groups of America - Latino-American,
Afro-American, Native American - and then the many regional cultures - Southern, New England, and Western.
E S S A Y
t e x t
h e r e
'folklore' entry at Wikipedia
"Fairytales don't teach children that monsters exist – they already know that monsters exist. Fairytales teach children
'folklore of the United States' entry at Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_folk_music
that monsters can be killed." — G.K. Chesterton [1874-1936]
General Works
search for 'folklore myths legends' books {returns 11,000+ titles} at Amazon
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 | "A Treasury of American Folklore: The Stories, Legends, Tall Tales, Traditions, Ballads, and Songs of The American People" [1944] Edited by B.A. Botkin, Foreword by Carl Sandburg described as a 'spectacular collection of five hundred stories and one hundred songs' Bantam Books mass pb [11/80] out of print/used Globe Pequot Press hardcover [10/2016] for $26.41 Bonanza Books hardcover [5/83] out of print/used hardcover [1993] out of print/many used Random House Value Publng 9¼x6½ Deluxe Edition hardcover [1/89] out of print/50+ used Random House Value Publng Deluxe Edition hardcover [12/88] out of print/many used Garden City Books 8½x5¾ hardcover [1951] out of print/70+ used Crown Publishers 8¾x6 hardcover [1944] out of print/100+ used |
 | "The Pocket Treasury of American Folklore" [1950] Edited by B.A. Botkin "An Abridged Edition: The present abridgement contains about one third - the cream - of A Treasury of American Folklore . . . The introductions have been completely rewritten to fit the contents . . . in this sense, the present selection may be said to be a 'revised and reduced edition'." — from the Preface by B.A. Botkin Pocket Books #684 mass pb [1950] out of print/used Pocket Books mass pb [1950] out of print/used |
 | "The Illustrated Book of American Folklore: Stories, Legends, Tall Tales, Riddles, Rhymes" [1958] by Ben Botkin & Carl Withers
Grosset & Dunlap hardcover [1958] out of print/used |
 | "Tall Tales of America" [1958] by Irwin Shapiro, Illustrated by Al Schmidt the nine stories are: "Anthony and The Mossbunker", "Johnny Appleseed", "Paul Bunyan", "Davy Crockett", "John Henry", "Joe Magarac, The Steel Man", "Old Stormalong", "Pecos Bill", and "Sam Patch's Last Leap" Guild Press 8¾x6¼ hardcover [1959] out of print/used Guild Press 8½x6 hardcover [1958] out of print/used |
 | "LIFE Treasury of American Folklore: Including A Comprehensive Guide To Persons, Places, and Events" [1961] Edited by Herbert Brean, with Paintings by James Lewicki Time, Inc. 11x8½ hardcover [1961] out of print/used Golden Press 11¼x8½ hardcover [1961] out of print/used |
 | "American Folk Tales and Songs: And Other Examples of English-American Tradition As Preserved In The Appalachian Mountains and Elsewhere In The United States - A Treasury of Lively, Old-Time English-American Lore" [grades 4-7; 1963] Compiled by Richard Chase, Drawings by Joshua Tolford Kindle Edition from Dover Publns [5/2014] for $7.99 Dover Publns 8½x5½ pb [6/71] for $9.95 Signet Key mass pb [1963] out of print/scarce |
 | "American Folklore and Legend: The Saga of Our Heroes and Heroines, Our Braggers, Boosters, and Bad Men, Our Beliefs and Superstitions" [1981] by Robert J. Dolezal Readers Digest hardcover [7/81] out of print/300+ used |
 | "Great American Folklore: Legends, Tales, Ballads, and Superstitions From All Across America" [1986] Compiled by Kemp P. Battle
Touchstone Books 8½x5½ pb [8/89] out of print/40+ used Doubleday 8½x5½ hardcover [5/86] out of print/100+ used Doubleday 9x5¾ hardcover [5/86] out of print/used Barnes & Noble 8¼x5¾ hardcover [1986] out of print/40+ used |
 | "American Tall Tales" [ages 8-12; 1991] Retold by Mary Pope Osborne, Wood Engravings by Michael McCurdy includes chapters on: Johnny Appleseed, Paul Bunyan, Davy Crockett, Febold Feboldson, John Henry, Mose the Fireman, Pecos Bill, Stormalong, and Sally Ann Thunder Ann Whirlwind Kindle Edition from Knopf BFYR/Random House [8/2013] for $10.99 Scholastic, Inc. 11¼x8¼ pb [9/91] out of print/40+ used Knopf Books for Young Readers 11x8¼ hardcover [9/91] for $14.49 Scholastic, Inc. 11x8 hardcover [1992] out of print/70+ used AudioGo UNABR audio CD 'performed by Scott Snively' [4/2010] out of prodn/used |
 | "From Sea To Shining Sea: A Treasury of American Folklore and Folk Songs" [ages 7 & up; 1993] Compiled by Amy L. Cohn A collection of 140 folktales, songs, poems, and essays featuring Abbott & Costello, Bob Dylan, Stephen Foster, Woody Guthrie, Virginia Hamilton, Longfellow, Mark Twain, Walt Whitman, and many, many others. Scholastic, Inc. 11x8½ hardcover [10/93] out of print/100+ used Scholastic, Inc. 11x8½ hardcover [10/93] out of print/100+ used |
 | "A Treasury of American-Jewish Folklore" [1996] by Steve & Lion Koppman Kindle Edition from Jason Aronson, Inc. [7/2012] for $41.49 {sic} Jason Aronson, Inc. 9x6frac12 pb [5/98] for $56.99 {sic} Jason Aronson, Inc. 9¼x6½ hardcover [12/96] for $100.00 {sic} |
 | "Myths, Legends, and Folktales of America: An Anthology" [1999] by David Leeming & Jake Page Kindle Edition from Oxford Univ Press [1999 edition] for $16.19 Oxford Univ Press 9x6 pb [7/2000] for $27.86 Oxford Univ Press 9¼x6¼ hardcover [1/99] out of print/40+ used |
 | "Children's Folklore (North American Folklore Series)" [grades 7 & up; 2003] by Sherry Bonnice Mason Crest 11¼x8¾ hardcover [2/2003] out of print/used |
 | "American Children's Folklore: A Book of Rhymes, Games, Jokes, Stories, Secret Langauges, Beliefs, and Camp Legends For Parents, Grandparents, Teachers, Counselors, and All Adults Who Were Once Children" [2006] by Simon J. Bronner August House 9x6 pb [1/2006] for $21.45 |
 | "American Folklore, Legends, and Tall Tales For Readers Theatre" [2008] by Anthony D. Fredericks over 20 well-known and not-so-well-known tales to aid teachers in building fluency skills in their young readers Kindle Edition from Libraries Unlimited [10/2008] for $14.75 Libraries Unlimited 10¾x8½ pb [10/2008] for $40.00 |
 | "American Legends and Tall Tales" coloring book [2011] by Steven James Petrucchio "Journey into America's pop-culture past with images of 30 legendary figures, including Paul Bunyan, Pecos Bill, Annie Oakley, Johnny Appleseed, Casey Jones, Betsy Ross, and other immortals" Dover Classic Stories 10½x8 pb [2/2011] for $3.99 |
http://www.amazon.com/American-Legends-Pantheon-Folklore-Library-ebook/dp/B00GEYN1CK/
http://www.amazon.com/American-People-Stories-Legends-Traditions/dp/1560009845/
http://www.amazon.com/Treasury-AMERICAN-ANECDOTES-Ed-Botkin/dp/B002ZCVJOM/
Reference & Academic Works
 | "Dictionary of American Folklore" [1959] by Marjorie Tallman Kindle Edition from Philosophical Library [2/2015] for $9.99 Philosophical Library 8½x5½ pb [5/2007] for $19.00 Philosophical Library 9x6 hardcover [1959] out of print/used |
 | "The Study of American Folklore: An Introduction" [1968] by Jan Harold Brunvand W.W. Norton & Co. 4th edition 9¼x6½ hardcover [1/98] for $69.68 W.W. Norton & Co. 3rd edition hardcover [1986] out of print/used W.W. Norton & Co. 8½x5¾ hardcover [4/68] out of print/many used |
 |
"Handbook of American Folklore" [1983] Edited by Richard M. Dorson Indiana Univ Press 9¼x6 pb [2/86] for $35.95 Indiana Univ Press 9½x6½ hardcover [3/83] out of print/many used |
 | "American Folklore Studies: An Intellectual History" [1986] by Simon J. Bronner Univ Press of Kansas 9x6 pb [12/86] for $15.55 Univ Press of Kansas 9¼x6¼ hardcover [12/86] out of print/used |
"Tall Tale America: A Legendary History of our Humorous Heroes" [1/1987] by Walter Blair
http://www.amazon.com/Tall-Tale-America-Legendary-Humorous/dp/0226055965/
"The Tall Tale in American Folklore and Literature" [8/1987] by Carolyn S. Brown (Author)
http://www.amazon.com/Tall-Tale-American-Folklore-Literature/dp/0870495291/
"Encyclopedia of Urban Legends" [11/2002] by Jan Harold Brunvand
http://www.amazon.com/Encyclopedia-Urban-Legends-Harold-Brunvand/dp/0393323587/
 | "Encyclopedia of American Folklife (4 Volume Set)" [2006] Edited by Simon J. Bronner 1469 pages {very large file = 21.5MB} Kindle Edition from Routledge [3/2015] for $126.40 {sic} Routledge 11¼x8¾x4¾ inches {11.2 pounds!} hardcover set [7/2006] for $158.00 {sic} |
 | "American Myths, Legends, and Tall Tales: An Encyclopedia of American  Folklore" in 3 volumes [2016] Edited by Christopher R. Fee & Jeffrey B. Webb 1138-page ABC-CLIO hardcover set [8/2016] pre-order for $294.68 {sic} |
 | "Folklore: The Basics" [2016] by Simon J. Bronner
Routledge pb [DUE 2017?] for $24.95 Routledge hardcover [10/2016] for $115.28 {sic} |
Regional & Topical Works
http://www.amazon.com/Treasury-Southern-Folklore-B-1988-07-13/dp/B01FGL59DA/
http://www.amazon.com/Treasury-Southern-Folklore-Traditions-Folkways/dp/B0028SFJP8/
http://www.amazon.com/Treasury-New-England-Folklore-Traditions/dp/0517109182/
http://www.amazon.com/Treasury-Mississippi-River-Folklore-Botkin/dp/0517641372/
http://www.amazon.com/Treasury-Mississippi-River-Folklore-Mid-American/dp/0517246058/
http://www.amazon.com/Treasury-Mississippi-River-Folklore-Mid-American/dp/B010TTPY98/
http://www.amazon.com/Civil-Treasury-Tales-Legends-Folklore/dp/0883940493/
http://www.amazon.com/Sidewalks-America-Folklore-Legends-Traditions/dp/0837193125/
http://www.amazon.com/New-York-City-Folklore-Botkin/dp/B000NWUOTC/
Legends & Heroes
Spirit of America Bookstore's
'Johnny Appleseed' Page
legendary Bigfoot, aka Sasquatch
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bigfoot
Information on this folklore legend was gathered on the Pseudo-Science & Fortean Mysteries Page at Maison d'Être Philosophy Bookstore in Autumn 2020.
Billy the Kid [1859-81] Page
at 'Readers of The Purple Sage' Western Bookstore
William Bonney would be just another teenage horse thief who died young were it not for the very American story: He was befriended by a rancher (who taught Billy to read),
the rancher was murdered by local cattle barons, and Billy became an outlaw to revenge his mentor's murder. Billy's death was almost an accident, and the fact that
Sheriff Pat Garrett used to be Billy's friend adds dramatic flavor to the legend.
Daniel Boone
Paul Bunyan
Davy Crockett
John Henry, the Steel-Drivin' Man
"John Henry and The Railroad: The True Tall Tale"
live-action short [Whitestone Feb 2013]
 | Ex-slave John Henry and his son hire on at the railroad, expecting forty acres of land by helping make the contract deadline; the railroad brings in a steam drill and fires the crew, but John Henry doesn't quit . . . Co-produced, written & directed by Brandon McCormick; filmed in Georgia (USA); starring E. Roger Mitchell, Eugene H. Russell IV, Jamie Renell, Michael Iluma, Adam Boyer, Vince Canlas, Billy Wilkerson, Matthew Dunaway
Whitestone MP-3 soundtrack album download [1/2013] 8 tracks for $7.92 full credits at IMDb • official movie website • watch full movie [21:26] online at YouTube |
Jesse James
La Llorona of Mexico and Southwest United States
 | "The Legend of La Llorona: A Short Novel" [1984] by Rudolfo Anaya
listed among the 100 Best Books In New Mexico [Jan 2011] • A different version of La Llorona (the Weeping Woman), a folk legend of Old Mexico, interwoven with the controversial historical figure La Malinche, who helped Hernán Cortés [1485-1547] conquer the Aztec Empire. Tonatiuh-Quinto Sol Intl. 9x6 pb [1984] out of print/used Tonatiuh-Quinto Sol Intl. 2nd edition 9x6 pb [10/94] out of print/used |
 | "Maya's Children: The Story of La Llorana" [ages 6-9; 1996] by Rudolfo Anaya, with illustrations by Maria Baca Generations of Hispanic-American young people have heard the tale of 'La Llorona', the crying woman who killed her children long ago and who wanders through the night wailing with grief and sometimes kidnapping unchaperoned youngsters. New Mexico author Anaya provides a less violent version of the story, one that is sad and poetic and wistful. Disney Press 10½x8¼ hardcover [5/97] out of print/used Hyperion Books 10¼x8¼ library hardcover [5/97] out of print/used |
 | "La Llorona: The Crying Woman" bilingual children's book [2012] by Rudolfo Anaya, Illustrations by Amy Córdova won the 2012 New Mexico-Arizona Book Award for Children’s Picture Book • essentially the same story as the 1997 book, with new illustrations, and with deft Spanish translation by Enrique Lamadrid Univ New Mexico Press bilingual edition 10¾x9 hardcover [9/2011] for $16.34 |
"La Llorona: A Short Play" by Jules Tasca
children might enjoy comparing Joe Hayes's La Llorona (Cinco Puntos, 1986), a traditional rendition
"The Curse of La Llorona" [Warner Bros./NewLine Cinema April 2019]
 | The film stars Linda Cardellini as Anna Garcia, a social worker and widow raising her two children in Los Angeles who discovers La Llorona has latched onto her with the intent of taking her children.
Directed by Michael Chaves; written by Mikki Daughtry & Tobias Iaconis; starring Linda Cardellini, Patricia Velasquez, Raymond Cruz, Tony Amendola, Sean Patrick Thomas, Madeleine McGraw, Marisol Ramirez {as La Llorona}, John Marshall Jones, Jaynee-Lynne Kinchen, Andrew Tinpo Lee, Irene Keng, Ricardo Mamood-Vega, Aiden Lewandowski, DeLaRosa Rivera, Sophia Santi, Roman Christou, Oliver Alexander DVD/Blu-ray not yet available • full credits at IMDb • official Facebook page • movie entry at Wikipedia watch 10/2018 official teaser trailer [2:25] at YouTube |
The Nutcracker
Not really American except that children here have no idea that the story is from Germany & France and the ballet is from Russia.
disambiguation page for 'The Nutcracker' at Wikipedia
"The Nutcracker and The Mouse King (Nussknacker und Mausekönig)"
[1816 short story] by E.T.A. Hoffmann [1776-1822]
A young girl's favorite Christmas toy, the Nutcracker, comes alive and, after defeating the evil Mouse King in battle,
whisks her away to a magical kingdom populated by dolls.
1816 story entry at Wikipedia
"The Nutcracker (Histoire d'un Casse-Noisette)" [1844 short story]
adaptation of Hoffmann's story by Alexandre Dumas père [1802-70]
"The Nutcracker" ballet [1892]
Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky [1840-93] and choreographers Marius Petipa & Lev Ivanov turned the adaptation by Dumas
into what is perhaps the most popular ballet in the world.
1892 ballet entry at Wikipedia
lots more on "The Nutcracker and The Mouse King" Page at Spirit of America Bookstore
top of page • synopsis & history • the books • the ballets • the music • movies & TV •
Kindle Editions • the authors • other media • merchandise • image gallery • links
Pecos Bill
The Uncle Remus Tales of Joel Chandler Harris
Uncle Remus website •
Uncle Remus entry at Wikipedia
 | "The Complete Tales of Uncle Remus" [ages 9-12; 1955] by Joel Chandler Harris, compiled by folklorist Richard Chase includes 185 stories Houghton Mifflin 9½x6¼ hardcover [5/2002] for $27.39 Houghton Mifflin 8½x6 hardcover [9/55] out of print/many used Houghton Mifflin hardcover [9/55] out of print/used |
more details (stories & history, ebooks, movies & TV, merchandise & brands, other media) on
Spirit of America Bookstore's 'Uncle Remus' Tales by Joel Chandler Harris Page
Movies & TV, Stageplays, Other Media
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  | The New Christy Minstrels ensemble was part of the folk music phenomenon of the 1960s, with many hit songs and albums; they continued recording and touring in the 1970s.
"The New Christy Minstrels: Tell Tall Tales! (Legends and Nonsense)" [1963] Columbia Records vinyl album [1963] 11 tracks - out of prodn/used includes 11 tracks: 'The Old Timer', 'Billy's Mule', 'Susianna', 'In The Hills of Shiloh', 'Beaucatcher Mountain', 'Song of The Pious Itinerant', 'The Cat', 'Down To Darby', 'Julianne', 'Jimmy Grove and Barbara Ellen', and Treasury of Nonsense Medley ('The Barefoot Boy', 'The Hefalump', 'Famous Victory', and 'Boy's Best Friend') "The New Christy Minstrels: Land of Giants" [1964] Columbia Records vinyl album [1964] 12 tracks - out of prodn/used Columbia Records vinyl album [1964] 12 tracks - out of prodn/used Columbia Records MP-3 album download [11/2013] 13 tracks for $9.99 the 13 tracks on the MP-3 version are: 'The Land of Giants', 'Joe Magarac', 'John Henry and The Steam Drill', 'Paul Bunyan', 'Casey Jones', 'Stormy', 'Mighty Big Ways', 'Mount Rushmore', 'Blacksmith of Brandywine', 'Natural Man', 'Appleseed John', 'El Camino Real', and 'My Name Is Liberty' double album of both the above [2003] Collector's Choice audio CD [7/2003] 26 tracks - out of prodn/used includes the 24 tracks as above, plus previously unreleased 'Whippoorwill' and 'Captain (What Shall I Do?)' |
 | "Paul Bunyan and Other Tall Tales of America" [1960s] Told by Will Rogers, Jr. and sung by Tom Scott Riverside/Wonderland mono vinyl LP [1960s] out of prodn/used |
Shelley Duvall's "Tall Tales & Legends" cable series [Showtime 1985-86]
 | Nine hour-long episodes broadcast on Showtime; the episodes are: "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" starring Ed Begley Jr.; "Annie Oakley" [12/85] starring Jamie Lee Curtis & Brian Dennehy; "Pecos Bill"; "Casey At The Bat" starring Elliott Gould & Carol Kane; "My Darlin' Clementine" starring Shelley Duvall & Edward Asner; "Johnny Appleseed" starring Martin Short; "Ponce de Leon" starring Michael York; "John Henry" starring Danny Glover; and "Davy Crockett" starring Mac Davis Co-produced by Shelley Duvall & Fred Fuchs
Complete Series: E1 Ent. color DVD [9/2009] 3 disks for $13.99 full credits at IMDb • series entry at Wikipedia |
"Disney's American Legends" cartoon shorts
[Walt Disney Pictures 2002]
 | includes four 'legendary tales' Disney Technicolor™ cartoon shorts, hosted & narrated by James Earl Jones: 19-minute "Johnny Appleseed" [1948] { IMDb }; "The Brave Engineer" [1950] { IMDb }, a 7-minute Disney-fied musical version of the Casey Jones legend; "Paul Bunyan" [1958] { IMDb }, a 17-minute cartoon of the life and career of the legendary lumberjack; and "John Henry" [2000] { IMDb }, a 10-minute cartoon of the legend of the Afro-American steel-drivin' man
Walt Disney Video color DVD [2/2002] for $6.31 Walt Disney Video color VHS [2/2002] for $7.74 watch official trailer [0:54] online at YouTube |
L i n k s
Northern Sky Theatre (est. 1970, formerly American Folklore Theatre) presents family-friendly original musicals in repertory
under a canopy of stars in Peninsula State Park, Fish Creek, Wisconsin from mid-June through August.
The Folklore Foundation at Vassar College [1920-1938]
![American Folklore Society [est. 1888] based at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana](images/AFSlogo.jpg "American Folklore Society [est. 1888] based at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana"){kind=small}
Fresno [CA] Folklore Society
The Folklore Society of Greater Washington [DC] based in Cabin John, MD
Louisiana Folklore Society [est. 1956] based in Lafayette, Louisiana
Monadnock Folklore Society [est. 1980] based in Keene, NH
New York Folklore Society [est. 1944] based in Schenectady, NY
North Carolina Folklore Society [est. 1913] based in Durham, NC
Tennessee Folklore Society [est. 1934] based in Knoxville, TN
Texas Folklore Society [est. 1909] based in Nacogdoches, TX
Virginia Folklore Society [est. 1913] based at University of Virginia in Charlottesville, VA
Seattle [WA] Folklore Society [est. 1966]
Western States Folklore Society (formerly California Folklore Society) [est. 1941] based in Grass Valley, CA
Greek American Folklore Society [est. 1983] based in Astoria, NY
here on the American Folklore, Tall Tales, and Legends Page at Spirit of America Bookstore
top of page • short essay • general works • reference works • regional works •
legends & heroes • movies, plays, other media • image gallery • links
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