A Folktale: Seth the Slithering Snake

There once was a snake named Seth. He hid under the porch of a girl named Beth. Now Beth was a girly girl to the highest degree. She wore pretty pink dresses and swung from a tree. She played in the backyard with her barbies all day when all of a sudden, Seth came her way.

"Hello, Beth. I'm in need of a friend." said slithering Seth. "You see, it's been quite the day. A hawk picked me up and dropped me on the way." He was taking me back to his nest, where I would be dinner to some hawklings, or so, I have guessed."

"Ahhhhhhh!!" screamed the child. "Stay away don't you see?! I can't believe my eyes a snake is talking to me!

"Calm down little child, you have nothing to fear, I'm not poisonous and will not eat you my dear!"

"Then what shall I do for you Mr. Snake? If my mom finds you here you'll be fried up like steak!"

"Just take me to the tree that you swing. Then swing back and forth until you get real high. Then when you get up there release me into the sky!"

"You can't fly silly snake! What if you fall then it's your life that's at stake?" said Beth.

"I know that there is a lake just over that fence. If you swing hard enough I'll fall into it." said Seth. "Then I'll be back into the place I know. It's near the water where the greenest grasses grow."

"Oh, no. I can't do that you see, the hawk will come back and make a mess of thee."

"Don't worry my friend, I trust you can do it. Just pump those legs and let's get right to it!"

"Okay, Seth. I'll do it for you. You were brave enough to come to me. I'll be brave enough to let you go free!"

So Beth got on the swing and tried her best for Seth. She picked him up and flung him around like a lasso. As she got high in the sky she let go and Seth was back to where the greenest grasses grow.

The End.

This is a folktale. The animal talks with a child. It was explained in an easy way to understand and is a poem with a simple message.

Reader's Sketch/ Rough Draft

Courtney Thorson

Children's Literature, Spring 2012

Reader's Sketch/ Rough Draft

1/20/12

Snippets of my Childhood

Early-Mid 1980's

I can still recall some of the first books I layed my eyes upon. I was probably around 3 or 4 when I was introduced to the Little Golden Books series which were leftover from my father's childhood. I mostly remember the older books because the pages were ripped and the binding on them were falling apart. Some of the books that I can still remember included, The Poky Little Puppy, Bambi, The Saggy Baggy Elephant, Cinderella, and The Monster at the End of the Book. I used to sit on my father's lap as he would read to me and I would take in all of the drawings set before my eyes. When I was little, I heard bible stories in Sunday School every week. One of the first bible's that I received was from my godmother, Lisa. She gave me a Precious Moments Bible. I knew early on that these stories were not just stories, they were His stories passed on down to all men, women and children. Early on, I also loved the Care Bears. Not only did I love the books, but I enjoyed collecting the plush little animals and figurines. I watched the cartoons faithfully. I owned countless coloring and sticker books. I even remember owning the Care Bears board game when I was about 5 years old.

As I started to read on my own, books like Clifford the Big Red Dog, and Rainbow Brite come to mind. Rainbow Brite was yet another obsession for me. Once again I loved collecting all of the characters such as, Rainbow Brite herself, a sprite, named Twink, and the whitehorse, known as Starlite. Cassette tape recorders were popular when I was a kid. I used to go to the library and listen to different narrators read all sorts of books to me. They would help me to sound out new words with ease. I think this helped me to become a good reader early on. Teddy Ruxpin was a popular toy talking bear that held an audio cassette tape in his back. He came with a book and would read to me as I watched his eyes and mechanical mouth move up and down. I was fascinated by this talking toy! He would read to me as I would try to sound out the words and flip through the pages. At the peak of his popularity, Teddy became one of the best selling toys of 1985 and 1986.



Early-Mid 1990's

In 4th grade, I read the classic, Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott for the first time. I think it was one of the thickest books I had ever read. It was something close to 500 pages or more! I remember to this day that it was a tough read and it really opened up my eyes to the life and times during the Civil War period.

It was in my 9th grade English class that I remember reading the most books. I read Jon Steinbeck's popular novels, Of Mice and Men, and The Pearl. The classic William Shakespeare's, Romeo and Juliet, was a required read. We also had to read William Golding's, Lord of the Flie's. I found this book to be one of the most adventurous books I had ever read. The story became so real to me that I almost felt as if I were there with those boys, alone on the island.

Late 90's

I must've been in 11th grade when I took a Humanities course for the first time. Homer's The Illiad and the Odyssey based on Greek Mythology, and Dante's The Divine Comedy were some of the most eerie poems and stories that I remember reading in high school. I actually enjoyed them too. Another good read that I took an interest in, was John Bunyan's, Pilgrim's Progress. There was something about these stories that made me think about philosophy and question if there was a God out there who cared about the affairs of mankind.

Early 2000-Today

As I made it to my 20's, I realized that I enjoyed reading non-fiction more than fiction. I wanted to be able to learn about something or someone that was real and that I could more or less relate to. I guess I was looking to find some truth in my life. I didn't want to hear about some made-up stories anymore. I was interested in the cold hard facts, or at least as close to them as possible. Within time, this lead me back to one particular book of my childhood. The Holy Bible. I was at a period in my life where I needed comfort and healing. Without going into too much detail, I took time to read the entire New Testament within a matter of days. Over the next year, I would read almost all of the other half of the Bible, which was the Old Testament. I can say with all honesty, that this book, has changed my life for the better.

To this day, I continue to read mostly non-fiction. I love to read biographies and autobiographies of men and women who have made a a huge impact on history. Corrie Ten Boom, was a Dutch Christian who helped many Jews escape the Nazi Holocaust. Elizabeth Elliot, was a missionary, who helped spread the gospel to a remote Ecuadorian tribe that killed her husband. Fanny Crosby, was a public speaker, rescue mission worker, poet, lyricist, and composer who was best known for her hymns and gospel songs. C.S. Lewis was a novelist, medievalist, literary critic, and Christian apologist well known for The Chronicles of Narnia. These are just some of people who have inspired me throughout the years.

These days, I continue to read mostly non-fiction works, but I'm learning to expand on my selections of other genres as well. Whatever it is, I'm looking forward to the reading the next chapters in my life.....

First Blog Journal: What is Allowed in Young Adult Literature?

These days just about anything is allowed in Young Adult Literature. Bookstore bookshelves are lined with stories of vampires, zombies, self mutilation, sexual perversion, drug-use and anything else that is considered cool and controversial. I'm not too surprised. We live in a messed up world. First of all, my aim is not to pass judgement on the authors of the more explicit YA books. They have their beliefs and convictions about what is right or what is wrong to publish into a book. I figure that these authors will either inspire or have the opposite impact. They will have to answer to their own supporters and critics. In one way or another, they will do something.  I do strongly believe that it is the sole responsibility of the parents or guardians to have a say in what their child is reading and digesting internally. Young adults need positive influences in their lives. There is enough bad stuff in the world. I'm not saying children should be completely sheltered. There are plenty of great YA books that focus on fantasy and real-life tragedies without being overtly explicit. Some children are in situations where they have seen things and experienced things in their life that no child should have to. In a sense, their mentality is at the level of an older adult. But, we must keep in mind that there are many other children out there who haven't seen it all. We should be sensitive to where young adults are both mentally and emotionally. Children are growing up way too fast the way it is.

Two articles written from the opposite sides of the table, have some interesting points and strong opinions about what should be in Young Adult Literature. I respect and consider both views, but I personally have more in common with author, Megahn Cox Gurdon, on this one.  I agree with the majority of what was mentioned in the article, "Darkness too Visible." Gurdon writes, "The book business exists to sell books; parents exist to rear children, and oughtn't be daunted by cries of censorship. No family is obliged to acquiesce when publishers use the vehicle of fundamental free-expression principles to try to bulldoze coarseness or misery into their children's lives." Sherman Alexie, author of "Why the Best Kids Books are Written in Blood," responds in disgust and makes it sound like Gurdon is coming down on him personally with a condescending tone. I could tell that Alexie was trying to defend his side because he was offended by her article. I got the impression that he was still hanging onto a lot of anger and unforgiveness towards those who have caused him pain in the past. Alexie explains, "I don’t write to protect them. It’s far too late for that. I write to give them weapons–in the form of words and ideas-that will help them fight their monsters. I write in blood because I remember what it felt like to bleed." The world can be cruel. There is no doubt about that.  But we don't have to sit in it and let it consume our hearts and minds by feeding off of it either. It's just my opinion. So take it for what it's worth.