Myth-Folklore Unit: African Stories from Lang's Fairy Books

Overview. These stories are drawn from the fairy books of Andrew Lang (with accompanying audio if you would like to listen to the stories read aloud), and they cover a range of traditions. The wonderful story of little Motiktatika and the ogre is a Ba-Ronga story from southern Africa, while the stories of the trickster jackal come from the Berbers of northern Africa. There are also Swahili stories from eastern Africa like the tale of "Hassebu and the King of the Snakes" and "The Monkey and the Shark." The final story in the selection is a hero legend from Zimbabwe about the mighty Makoma, who defeated the earth giant Chi-dubula-taka, the forest giant Chi-gwisa-miti, the fire-eating giant Chi-idea-moto, and the river giant Chin-debou Mau-giri, before his final battle with the five-headed monster Sakatirina.

Language. These stories are told in modern English prose, so the language used should pose no difficulties.

Story Length. These are mostly longer stories, two or three pages in length. There are eight stories total, and one of those is a double story where one tale is told inside another one.

Navigation. You will find the table of contents below, and you can also use this link to see the story posts displayed on two pages total: African Stories from Lang's Fairy Books. Click "Older Posts" at the bottom of that page to see the second page.

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Free audiobooks available:

Grey -Violet - Crimson - Orange - Lilac

READING A:

1. Motikatika
2. Motikatika (cont.)
3. Jackal and Spring
4. Adventures of a Jackal
5. Adventures of a Jackal (cont.)
6. Adventures of a Jackal (end)
7. Adventures of Jackal's Eldest Son
8. Adventures of Jackal's Eldest Son (cont.)
9. Adventures of Younger Son of Jackal

READING B:

1. Hassebu
2. Hassebu (cont.)
3. The Heart of a Monkey
4. The Heart of a Monkey: The Washerman's Donkey
5. The Heart of a Monkey: The Washerman's Donkey (cont.)
6. Makoma
7. Makoma (cont.)
8. Makoma (end)