How Rabbit Lost His Tail: A Traditional Cherokee Legend

Rabbit, whose Cherokee name is Ji-Stu, is known far and wide for his splendid tail. Long and bushy, and covered with thick, silky fur, he likes to show his tail off at the dances. All the girl animals want to dance with Ji-Stu because of his beautiful tail. But one night Otter comes to the dance, and both Ji-Stu and his tail are quickly forgotten when the girls see Otter's magnificent coat.

Impressed by Otter, all the animals plan a council to decide who, of all the animals in the forest, owns the most beautiful coat. Now Ji-Stu must find a way to trick Otter out of his coat in time to win the contest, but in the process the trickster rabbit loses much more than he bargains for.

Deborah L. Duvall and Murv Jacob also collaborated on The Great Ball Game of the Birds and Animals and How Medicine Came to the People (UNM Press). Duvall is the author of several books on Cherokee history and legend. Jacob, a descendant of Kentucky Cherokees, is an internationally known artist and pipemaker who has also worked on over 70 book and video projects. Jacob won the 2003 Oklahoma Book Award in the Design and Illustration category for his drawings in The Great Ball Game of the Birds and Animals.

All ages.

When Rabbit becomes jealous of Otter's beautiful coat, which causes his own beautiful tail to be ignored, he plots to steal the coat and become popular again.

In this, the third volume of the Grandmother Stories, Rabbit, whose Cherokee name is Ji-Stu, loses his long tail which is covered with thick, silky fur.

Deborah L. Duvall is an author of books and short stories on Cherokee history and tradition, a singer-songwriter, and a professional in financial management. She was born and continues to live in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, capital of the Cherokee Nation.

Murv Jacob, a descendant of Kentucky Cherokees, is an internationally known artist whose illustrations appear in over seventy book and video projects. He won the 2003 Oklahoma Book Award for Design and Illustration for his drawings in The Great Ball Game of the Birds and Animals.