Brer Rabbit and His Tricks

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Gorey's sly, elegant drawings are wittily paired with snappy, rhymed retellings of the well-known trickster's adventures. Ages 5-9. (Mar.)

Children's Literature - Deborah Zink Roffino

The strong tradition of Brer Rabbit fables in the southern United States has resulted in many outstanding versions, most written in dialect. They are delightful when read by a confident storyteller, ranking among the most cherished original American tales. But for those Brer Rabbit fans intimidated by dialect, this interpretation is a fine choice. The narration bounces along in rhyming verse with traditional spelling. Nothing is lost in the essence of the lessons, which remain a humorous study on how to outfox one who is bigger, stronger and hungrier, as well as statements of slave versus master. Brer Rabbit, depicted in unpretentious sketches as long and lean, frequently outfoxes himself and lands in some very hot water. Like Aesop's fables, the Brer Rabbit tales were created in an atmosphere of human bondage. By using animals with human traits to tell their stories, slave/storytellers protected identities and gained the freedom to poke fun at their owners. 1994