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Dialect Variation in Children's Literature

This list provides examples of children's books that contain African-American, Afro-Caribbean, Latino, Creole, Cajun, Irish and other regional dialects. All of these titles are available in the Bank Street College Library. For more information call 875-4452 or stop by the Library.

Stories with African-American Characters

Bo Rabbit Smart for True: Tall Tales from the Gullah / retold by Priscilla Jaquith; drawings by Ed Young. - New York: Philomel Books, 1995.
Bank Street Library: J 398.2J
Animal tales in the Gullah dialect.

The Cay / Theodore Taylor. - Garden City, N.Y: Doubleday, 1969. ISBN: 0370012208
Bank Street Library: JFT
When the freighter on which they are traveling is torpedoed by a German submarine during World War II, an adolescent white boy, blinded by a blow on the head, and an old black man are stranded on a tiny Caribbean island where the boy acquires a new kind of vision, courage, and love from his old companion.

Chicken Sunday / Patricia Polacco. - New York, NY: PaperStar, 1998. ISBN: 0698116151
Bank Street Library: JPP
To thank Miss Eula for her wonderful Sunday chicken dinners, three children sell decorated eggs to buy her a beautiful Easter hat.

The Complete Tales of Uncle Remus / Joel Chandler Harris. - Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1955.
ISBN: 0395067995
Bank Street Library: J 398.2H

Flossie & the Fox / Patricia McKissack; pictures by Rachel Isadora. - New York: Dial Books for Young Readers, 1986. ISBN: 0803702515
Bank Street Library: JPM
A wily fox, notorious for stealing eggs, meets his match when he encounters a bold little girl in the woods who wants proof that he is a fox before she will be frightened.

Mirandy and Brother Wind / by Patricia C. McKissack; illustrated by Jerry Pinkney. - New York: Knopf, 1988. ISBN: 0394887654
Bank Street Library: JPM
This Caldecott Honor book takes place in the rural South 40 years after the end of slavery. Mirandy tries to capture the wind for her partner, to win the first prize in the Junior Cakewalk.

The People Could Fly: American Black Folktales / told by Virginia Hamilton ; illustrated by Leo and Diane Dillon. - New York: Knopf: Distributed by Random House, 1985. ISBN: 0394869257
Bank Street Library: J 398.2H
Retold Afro-American folk-tales of animals, fantasy, the supernatural, and desire for freedom, born of the sorrow of the slaves, but passed on in hope.

Shimmershine Queens / Camille Yarbrough. - New York: Putnam & Grosset Group, 1989. ISBN: 0698113691
Bank Street Library: JFY
Two fifth graders try to uplift themselves and their class-mates out of a less than beautiful urban present by encouraging dreams and the desire to achieve them.

Sukey and the Mermaid / Robert D. San Souci; illustrated by Brian Pinkney. - New York: Four Winds Press, 1992. ISBN: 0027781410
Bank Street Library: J 398.2S
This story is based on a folktale from the Sea Islands of South Carolina, as well as on Caribbean and West African sources. Unhappy with her life at home, Sukey receives kindness and wealth from Mama Jo the mermaid.

The Talking Eggs: A Folktale from the American South / retold by Robert D. San Souci; pictures by Jerry Pinkney. - New York: Dial Books for Young Readers, 1989. ISBN: 0803706197
Bank Street Library: J 398.2S
A Southern folktale in which kind Blanche, following the instructions of an old witch, gains riches, while her greedy sister makes fun of the old woman and is duly rewarded. A Cinderella-type story from Louisiana.

Wiley and the Hairy Man / retold by Judy Sierra; illustrated by Brian Pinkney. - New York: Lodestar Books, 1996. ISBN: 0525674772
Bank Street Library: J 398.2S
A popular Alabama folktale is given new life, when Wiley encounters the Hairy Man in the swamp one day.

Working Cotton / Sherley Ann Williams. - San Diego: Scholastic Inc., 1998. ISBN: 0590029320
Bank Street Library: JPW
A young black girl relates the daily events of her family's migrant life in the cotton fields of central California.

Stories set in the Caribbean

Grannie and the jumbie: a Caribbean tale / by Margaret Hurst. - New York: Harper Collins, 2001.
Bank Street Library: J 398.2 H
When a young Caribbean boy does not listen to his grandmother, an evil spirit threatens to snatch him.

The Faithful Friend / Robert D. San Souci; illustrated by Brian Pinkney. - New York: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 1995. ISBN: 0027861317
Bank Street Library: J 398.21S
This folktale from the French West Indies tells the story of two young men, one black, one white, who are friends from childhood. Together they encounter love, zombies, and danger on the island of Martinique.

An Island Christmas / Lynn Joseph; illustrated by Catherine Stock. - New York: Clarion Books, 1992. ISBN: 0395587611
Bank Street Library: JPJ
Speaking in a lyrical patois, a young girl describes in wordy discourse the preparations she and her family are making for a traditional Christmas on the islands of Trinidad and Tobago.

The Jolly Mon / by Jimmy Buffett & Savannah Jane Buffett; illustrated by Lambert Davis. - San Diego: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1988. ISBN: 0152405305
Bank Street Library: JPB
Relates the adventures of a fisherman who finds a magic guitar floating in the Caribbean Sea. It includes the music for the song "Jolly Mon Sing".

Tap-tap / by Karen Lynn Williams; illustrated by Catherine Stock. - New York: Clarion Books, 1994. ISBN: 0395656176
Bank Street Library: JPW
After selling oranges in the market, a Haitian mother and daughter have enough money to ride the tap-tap, a truck that picks up passengers and lets them off when they bang on the side of the vehicle.

Tiger Soup: An Anansi Story from Jamaica / retold and illustrated by Frances Temple. - New York: Orchard Books, 1994. ISBN: 0531068595
Bank Street Library: J 398.24T
A West Indian pourquoi story about Anansi the Spider; after tricking Tiger into leaving the soup he has been cooking, Anansi eats the soup himself and manages to put the blame on the monkeys.

Books with Spanish Dialects

Abuela / by Arthur Dorros; illustrated by Elisa Kleven. - New York: Dutton Children's Books, 1991. ISBN: 0525447504
Bank Street Library: JPD
We join Rosalba and her grandmother, her abuela, on a magical journey, as they fly over the streets, sights, and people of Manhattan. The story is narrated in English and sprinkled with Spanish phrases

Abuelita's Heart / Amy Córdova. - New York: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 1997. ISBN: 0689801815
Bank Street Library: JPC
Before returning to the city with her parents, a young girl walks with her grandmother, learning about the special feelings, places, and plants that are part of her heritage and the Southwestern desert where Abuelita lives. Spanish words, followed by their English translations, appear frequently in the text.

Born in the Gravy / Denys Cazet. - New York: Orchard Books, 1993. ISBN: 0531054888
Bank Street Library: JPC
Margarita's lively retelling of her first day in kindergarten to her papa is sprinkled with Spanish words and phrases, true to the speech patterns of most bilingual children.

Chato's Kitchen / Gary Soto; illustrated by Susan Guevara. - New York: Putnam's, 1995. ISBN: 0399226583
Bank Street Library: JPS
Chato, a cat, prepares to serve up a housewarming party for his new neighbors, a family of mice, in which the guests are also the main course. There's a glossary of Spanish words, but it's the characters and their talk that give the story its special flavor.

The Farolitos of Christmas / Rudolfo Anaya; illustrations by Edward Gonzales. - New York: Hyperion Books for Children, 1995. ISBN: 0786800607
Bank Street Library: JPA
With her father away fighting in World War II and her grandfather too sick to create the traditional luminaria, Luz helps create farolitos, little lanterns, for their Christmas celebration instead. The Spanish words are a natural part of the narrative (they're explained in a glossary at the back).

Isla / by Arthur Dorros ; illustrated by Elisa Kleven. - New York: Dutton Children's Books, 1995. ISBN: 0525451498
Bank Street Library: JPD
A little girl and her grand-mother, first seen flying over New York City in Abuela (1991), take off on another imaginary flight, this time to the Caribbean island where Abuela grew up. Complete with a glossary and pronunciation guide for the Spanish words that are sprinkled throughout the text.

The Old Man and His Door / by Gary Soto; illustrations by Joe Cepeda. - New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1996. ISBN: 0399227008
Bank Street Library: JPS
Instead of bringing el puerco, a pig, to their neighbors for a barbecue as his wife asked, el viejo puts the door, la puerta, over his back and heads to the house of la comadre. A glossary at the front explains the Spanish words in the text, and Soto quotes from a Mexican song that frames his story.

Creole Stories

Gator gumbo: a spicy hot tale / Candace Fleming. - New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2004.
Bank Street Library: J P F
A hungry alligator, slow with age, hopes to catch some good meat to add to his spicy gumbo.

Bouki Dances the Kokioko: A Comical Tale from Haiti / Diane Wolkstein; illustrated by Jesse Sweetwater. - San Diego: Harcourt Brace, 1997. ISBN: 0152000348
Bank Street Library: J 398.2W
The king offers a reward to anyone who can dance the Kokioko, and clever Malice takes home the money without dancing a step. A guide to unfamiliar words is included.

Cendrillon: A Caribbean Cinderella / Robert D. San Souci; illustrated by Brian Pinkney. - New York: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 1998. ISBN: 068980668X
Bank Street Library: J 398.2S
A Creole version of the familiar Cinderella tale set in Martinique and narrated by the godmother who helps Cendrillon find true love.

The Girl Who Spun Gold / Virginia Hamilton. - New York: The Blue Sky Press, 2000. ISBN: 0590473786
Bank Street Library: J 398.2H
In this West Indian version of the Rumpelstiltskin story, Lit'mahn spins thread into gold cloth for the king's new bride.

Grannie Jus' Come! / story by Ana Sisnett; pictures by Karen Lusebrink. - San Francisco, Calif.: Children's Book Press, 1997. ISBN: 0892391502
Bank Street Library: JPS
A Panamanian girl enjoys her grandmother's weekly visit, during which the girl admires her grandmother's dress, shoes, hat, skin, and hair, finally proclaiming: Oh, Grannie! Ah luv yu so much!

Painted Dreams / by Karen Lynn Williams; illustrated by Catherine Stock. - New York: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard, 1998. ISBN: 0688139019
Bank Street Library: JPW
Because her Haitian family is too poor to be able to buy paints for her, eight-year-old Ti Marie finds her own way to create pictures that make the heart sing.

Cajun Stories

Bayou Lullaby / Kathi Appelt, pictures by Neil Waldman. - New York: Morrow Junior Books, 1995. ISBN: 0688128564
Bank Street Library: JPA
A colorful goodnight poem to a "bayou gal." Includes a glossary with Cajun pronunciation.

Feliciana Feydra Leroux: A Cajun Tall Tale / by Tynia Thomassie; illustrated by Cat Bowman Smith. - Boston: Little, Brown, 1995. ISBN: 0316841250
Bank Street Library: JPT
Although Grampa Baby spoils Feliciana most of the time, he refuses to take her alligator hunting. Feliciana, a spunky, determined young girl, decides to go anyway and sneaks off to the swamp after her grandfather and brothers. Told in a lilting Cajun dialect, this original tale includes a glossary and a brief history of the Cajun people

Feliciana Meets D'Loup Garou: A Cajun Tall Tale / by Tynia Thomassie; illustrated by Cat Bowman Smith. - Boston: Little, Brown, 1998. ISBN: 0316841331
Bank Street Library: JPT
D'Loup Garou is a werewolf that lives deep in the swamps of Louisiana and comes out when the moon is full. His favorite meal is a naughty girl or a sassy boy.

Irish Stories

Ballymara Flood / Chad Stuart. - San Diego: Harcourt Brace, 1996. ISBN: 015205698X
Bank Street Library: JPS
Pandemonium reigns when a boy's bathtub overflows and floods the Irish town of Ballymara.

Fin M'Cool, the Giant of Knockmanny Hill / Tomie De Paola. - Holiday House, 1981. ISBN: 082340384X
Bank Street Library: J 398.2D
Fin M'Coul's wife, Oonagh, helps him outwit his archrival, Cucullin.

Books with Other Regional U.S. Dialects

Across Five Aprils / Irene Hunt. - Morristown, NJ : Silver Burdett Press, 1993. ISBN: 0382243587
Bank Street Library: JFH
Young Jethro Creighton grows from a boy to a man when he is left to take care of the family farm in Illinois during the difficult years of the Civil War.

The Jack Tales / set down from the sources and edited by Richard Chase. - [Boston]: Houghton Mifflin, 1943. ISBN: 0395669510 (pbk.); 0395066948 (hard)
Bank Street Library: J 398.2C
The Jack Tales are told by R. M. Ward and his kindred in the Beech Mountain section of western North Carolina and by other descendants of Council Harmon (1803-1896) elsewhere in the southern mountains; with three tales from Wise County, Virginia. With an appendix compiled by Herbert Halpert; and illustrated by Berkeley Williams, Jr.

Liza Lou and the Yeller Belly Swamp / by Mercer Mayer. - New York: Parents' Magazine Press, 1976. ISBN: 0819308013
Bank Street Library: JPM
With her quick thinking Liza Lou manages to outwit all the haunts, gobblygooks, witches, and devils in the Yeller Belly Swamp.

Possum Come A-Knockin' / by Nancy Van Laan; illustrated by George Booth. - New York: Knopf, 1990. ISBN: 0394822064
Bank Street Library: JPV
While Granny is a-rockin' and a-knittin' and Ma's a-cookin' and Pa's a-fixin', that old possum in his top hat and vest just keeps on knocking. The narrator, a redheaded boy, tries to tell family members about the possum, and when the family checks, the possum hides. A cumulative tale in verse about a mysterious stranger that interrupts a family's daily routine.

The Rag Coat / Lauren Mills. - Boston: Little, Brown, 1991. ISBN: 0316574074
Bank Street Library: JPM
Eight-year-old Minna is teased at school because the coat she wears is made of rags. But she tells her classmates that the coat is made from pieces of all their childhoods, and they come to understand how special it really is. The Appalachian setting is strong.

Strawberry Girl / Lois Lenski. - New York: Harper-Collins Publishers, 1945. ISBN: 0397301103
Bank Street Library: JFL
Set in a little-known backwoods region of Florida, Strawberry Girl is the first of the Lenski regional books and the winner of the Newbery Award.

The Three Little Pigs and the Fox / William H. Hooks; illustrated by S.D. Schindler. - New York: Macmillan; London: Collier Macmillan, 1989. ISBN: 0027444317
Bank Street Library: J 398.2H
In this Appalachian version of the classic tale, Hamlet, the youngest pig, rescues her two greedy brothers from the clutches of the "mean, tricky old drooly-mouth fox."

Acknowledgements: This bibliography was prepared with the assistance of members of the LM-NET listserv for school librarians, particularly Josephine G. Dervan, Library Media Specialist; Strathmore Elementary School, Aberdeen, NJ 07747