3 h 11 minAudiobook6 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · 78 pagesHardcover · 6 × 9 in · 78 pagesAbout this book
What happens when a small creature has more wit than a powerful rival?
In West African Folk-Tales, animals speak, spirits intervene, and cleverness can turn the tables. Anansi the spider and Tortoise the trickster share this world with rulers and ordinary villagers. Compiled by W. H. Barker and Cecilia Sinclair, these stories draw on the oral traditions of West African peoples, where tales pass from one generation of storytellers to the next.
The collection brings together animal tales, trickster stories, and lessons told through choices and consequences. Greed, jealousy, laziness, and kindness all have their place. A small creature may outwit a larger one, while mischief raises questions about fairness. Rhythm, repetition, and sudden turns invite you to slow down and read aloud, letting the humor and the warning reach you together.
What you’ll discover
- Tricksters at work Meet Anansi and Tortoise, whose clever antics bring wit and mischief into the tales.
- Animals with human failings Find greed, cunning, and familiar weaknesses reflected in creatures that talk and scheme.
- Choices carry consequences Explore lessons about honesty, humility, and respect through what characters do and what follows.
- Stories shaped for the ear Enjoy rhythm, repetition, and sudden turns that reward reading slowly and aloud.
- A shared storytelling heritage Encounter tales passed through generations at firesides and village gatherings across West Africa.
Who will love it
Readers who love fables, fairy tales and why-stories, parents who want tales to read aloud, and anyone curious about the storytelling of West Africa and the roots of the Brer Rabbit tales.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- Anansi the spider wants every story
- Greed and cunning drive Anansi's schemes
- Kweku Tsin is the quick, honest son
- Why-stories explain the animal world
- Ordinary people meet luck, secrets and temper
- Animals, kings and riddles test wit
- The tales carry a village and its history
Who’s who
- AnansiA spider who is wise, cunning and greedy, and who wants every story told to be about him.
- Kweku TsinAnansi's clever, honest son, who can change his shape and often outwits his father's schemes.
- NyankuponThe chief of the gods, whose name means Lord of the Sky and who bargains with Anansi.
- OhiaA poor man with a wife named Awirehu who tries palm wine and chases a thief to a gathering of animals.
- AdzanumeeA girl who comes from a yam and lives happily with the woman who longed for a daughter.
- Quarcoo Bah-boniA baby who speaks at a week old and goes to live among five animals.
- KloA tortoise, once a strong traveller, sent by the chief Mauri to buy palm wine for a yam festival.
- Maku MawuA man whose name means I will die God's death and who is a close friend of Maku Fia.
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West African Folk-Tales
by W. H. Barker; Cecilia Sinclair (compiler) · 1917
A spider bargains with the sky god for every story, and sets out to meet his demands.
Medium level2–5 hours to readEnglish
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In short
An evening in a Gold Coast village. The sun drops behind the hills, a lantern comes out, and a voice calls for friends to listen to a story.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
Anansi the spider wants every story
The collection opens with a bold bargain. In the old days all tales are about Nyankupon, the chief of the gods. Anansi, the spider, is so conceited that he wants people to tell stories about him instead.
Nyankupon names his price: a jar of live bees, a boa constrictor and a tiger. Anansi takes an earthen pot, a long stick, and a needle and thread.
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Also in the Fairy Tales Book Set: Six Collections
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A spider bargains with the sky god for every story, and sets out to meet his demands.
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Details
- First published
- 1917
- Language
- English
- Level
- Medium level
- Paperback
- 78 pages · 6 × 9 in
- Hardcover
- 78 pages · 6 × 9 in
- Large print paperback
- 118 pages · 8.5 × 11 in
- Large print hardcover
- 118 pages · 8.5 × 11 in
- Delivery and returns
- Printed when you order. Usually here in 12 to 14 days.Arrives Thu 12 Nov to Wed 18 Novto United States, printed for you at cost
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What is West African Folk-Tales about?
It is a collection of folk tales from the Gold Coast, told by people in the evening. Many feature Anansi the spider, while others explain animal habits or follow ordinary people, rulers and gods.
Who is Anansi in West African folk tales?
Anansi is a spider, described in the introduction as wise, cunning and deceitful. He is often seen with his son Kweku Tsin, and the tales give him the habit of hiding in ceiling corners.
Who is Nyankupon?
Nyankupon is the chief of the gods in the stories. The introduction says the Tshi-speaking people borrowed him from Christians after contact with Europeans and called him Lord of the Sky.
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