Story Lovers World CONNECTING PEOPLE THROUGH STORIES   CZECH, CZECHOSLOVAKIAN, MORAVIAN, SLOVAK Stories, Folktales, Folklore, Fairy Tales, Legends, Myths, History, Nursery Rhymes, Fantasy & Facts The Story Lovers World home page is at: http://www.story-lovers.com To add to the category below, please e-mail jackie@storyloversworld.com

CZECH, CZECHOSLOVAKIAN, MORAVIAN & SLOVAK Stories, Folktales, Folklore, Fairy Tales, Legends, Myths, History, Nursery Rhymes, Fantasy & Facts Scroll down or click on your choice below • Books - Czechoslovakia, Moravia, Slovak • Online links - Czechoslovakia, Moravia, Slovak • SOS: Searching Out Stories - Czech-Moravia-Slovak Advice, Comments and References from Storytellers, Teachers and Librarians

BOOKS - CZECHOSLOVAKIA, MORAVIA, SLOVAK - ALL AGES

Book titles are in blue and underlined. Click on them to get more information.
To retell any stories, obtain permission from the copyright holder if the material is not in the public domain.
In peformance, always credit your sources.
Alphabetized with short descriptions for your convenience and to save you research time.

Czech, Moravian and Slovak Fairy Tales (Library of Folklore) by Parker Fillmore. (1998 - reprint from 1918) Fifteen stories are included in this marvelous collection. Includes "Betrothal Gifts," "Bird with the Golden Gizzard," "Flaming Horse," "Golden Godmother," "Grandfather's Eyes," "Prince Bayaya," "Rattle-Rattle-Rattle and Chink-Chink-Chink," "Story That Never Ends," "Three Golden Hairs," and "Wood Maiden."

Favorite Fairy Tales Told in Czechoslovakia (Favorite Fairy Tales, Book 10) by Virginia Haviland with Trina Schart Hyman (illus). (1966) Includes "Kuratko the Terrible," "Shepherd's Nosegay," "Three Golden Hairs of Grandfather Knows All," "Twelve Months," and "Wood Fairy."

Golem (The) by Isaac Bashevis Singer with Uri Shulevitz (illus). (1983 - Ages 9-12) Publishers Weekly described the Nobel laureate's interpretation of a Jewish legend as "stunning," adding that the black-and-white drawings are "superb. New York Times: Isaac Bashevis Singer's retelling of the legend of the golem is magical and compassionate, redolent with the warmth and philosophical wisdom for which this Nobel laureate is celebrated.

Golem (The): A Version by Barbara Rogasky with Trina Schart Hyman (illus). (1996 - Ages 9-12) According to legend, some four centuries or so ago a Rabbi in Prague dreamt that the Lord commanded him to create a creature to protect Jews from those who would do them wrong. The Rabbi fashioned a giant from clay and, with the help of a cabalistic spell, brought the creature to life. The story, of course, served as the basis for Frankenstein.

Tales from Two Pockets by Karel Capek (1994 - Adult) Capek wrote 48 stories that deconstruct the mystery story by breaking one rule here, three rules there, and yet also make for wonderful reading. His unique approaches to the mysteries of justice and truth are full of the ordinary and the extraordinary, humor and humanism.

Twelve Iron Sandals: And Other Czechoslovak Tales by Vit Horejs with Jim Spanfeller (illus). (1985 - Ages 9-12) Exciting and unusual collection of tales from Czechoslovakia, retold with great style and verve by a master storyteller. Beloved traditional figures of fairy tales-a peasant girl who outwits a king, a young prince whose quest for a golden firebird is aided by a magical vixen-give these tales universal appeal, while colorful details highlight their unmistakably Czech origin. Wry humor and unexpected twists.

Back to top

ONLINE LINKS - CZECHOSLOVAKIA, MORAVIA, SLOVAK

Online links are in blue and underlined. Click on them to get more stories and information.
Story titles are in quotation marks.
To retell any stories, get permission from the copyright holder if the material is not in the public domain.
Short descriptions included for your convenience and to save you research time.

• http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=fillmore&book=czech&story=_contents
The Baldwin Project: 15 full-text Czechoslovak Fairy Tales by Parker Fillmore

• http://volny.cz/enelen/baud/baudisf.html
Czech Folk Tales (1917) - translated by Josef Baudis

• http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/kog/index.htm
"The Key of Gold: Czech Folk Tales Index"
Above three submissions from Karen C. 9/4/06

• http://oaks.nvg.org/czech-folktales.html
100 full-text folktales. Fabulous site!

• http://www.spiritoftrees.org/folktales/west/Lady_in_white.html
"The Lady in White" - retold by Cristy West from SpiritofTrees.org.

• http://hca.gilead.org.il/stamps/czechoslovakia77.html
Beautiful Czech artwork on downloadable stamps.

• http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/books/slavonic/wratislaw/moravian.html
Sixty Folk-Tales from Exclusively Slavonic Sources by A.H. Wratislaw, M.A. from SurLaLune.

• http://ladyofx.deviantart.com/art/Moravia-s-Tale-72472841
"Moravia's Tale" by ladyofx.

• http://www.czechsouvenirs.com/
Offers some famous Czech products for people around the world. They also have some fairy tales on DVDs and other movies, plush toys etc.

Back to top

SOS: SEARCHING OUT STORIES AND INFORMATION - CZECHOSLOVAKIA, MORAVIA, SLOVAK
Advice, Comments and References from Storytellers, Teachers and Librarians
(excerpts from Storytell posts plus original research)

Book titles, movie titles and online links are in blue and underlined. Click on them to get more information.
Story and song titles are in quotation marks.
To retell any stories, obtain permission from the copyright holder if the material is not in the public domain.
Posts are added chronologically as they are received by Story Lovers World.

1) QUERY:

Does anyone know a PRIMARY source for the following fable, which I found in Tales of the Amber Ring (Baltic folktales -- zippo source notes) and again recently in Feathers and Tails, Animal Fables retold by David Kherdian (who gives sources for some of the stories but just says "Czechoslovakian" for this one).

RESPONSES:

a) Feathers and Tails
Review — A stellar blend of story and illustration that will appeal to storytellers, readers, and listeners of many ages. Kherdian has gathered tales from such diverse sources as the Bidpai fables, Aesop (of course!), Panchatantra, and the Brothers Grimm. The appeal of such stories, historically, has been that lessons can be taught palatably and listeners can see themselves indirectly. Who among us hasn't been bamboozled by a fast-talking ``wolf'' (``The Ungrateful Wolf''); or pretended to be someone we are not, as King Fierce-Howl (``The Blue Jackal''); or had so much trouble making up our mind that a golden opportunity was lost (``Crane Woos Heron'')?'' The book design enhances each selection's impact. Like the fables they illustrate, Hogrogian's pen-and-ink-and-watercolor drawings are spare, uncluttered, and engaging. Her beautifully drawn animals remain animals despite their human activities and foibles. Brief descriptions of the sources are appended. Children will flock to this volume.
Lee Bock, Brown County Public Libraries, Green Bay, WI

b) "Bear & Pig at Market"
Synopsis
Bear and Pig wanted to earn money, so they brought (respectively) baked potatoes and doughnuts to the market square and set up their booths early in the morning. Bear had one coin in his vest; Pig had nothing. While waiting for customers, Bear became hungry and bought one of Pig's doughnuts. Pleased to make his first sale, Pig bought one of Bear's potatoes. They waited; still no customers, but at least each had made a sale. Bear bought another doughnut. Pig bought another potato. So it continued until late morning, when they learned they had come to market on the wrong day. But even so, they had both sold out of their wares! Pleased, they counted their earnings. And found that Bear had one coin, Pig had nothing.
Source:
Twelve Iron Sandals: And Other Czechoslovak Tales by Vit Horejs includes this tale. That's a 1996 book with folktales that he writes from memory, as I understand. There are additional and earlier sources for other tales in that collection, but I have not seen this story in any of them, and I've recently read lots of the classic Czech folktale collections (with much help from inter-library loans; they're hard to find!) Horejs is the director(?) of the Czech American Marrionette Theatre in New York. There is contact information on their interesting Web site:
http://www.czechmarionettes.org/camtboox.htm


2) Czechs love wonder tales, and they have made some first rate films staring their best actors and actresses starting in the 1970s. They show them over and over again on TV throughout the Christmas season and grown-ups and children alike watch for hours. I did not see any video rental places in our quick trip, but it surely seems like there must be some way to watch movies on video these days! The Czech word for fairy tales is "pohadky."

To get yourself in the spirit before you leave (or to take with you), here are my reading suggestions. The classic Czech folktale collector is Bozena Nemcova, and probably the best known purely "Czech" folktale is The Twelve Months, which is included in many world folktale collections. In English, look for The Key of Gold: 23 Czech Folk Tales, translated by Josef Baudis, Fairy Tales of the Slav Peasants and Herdsmen retold by Joanne Asala, and any of several collections by Parker Fillmore, Czechoslovak fairy tales, retold by Parker Fillmore; with illustrations and decorations by Jan Matulka. For Czech Legends, find Alois Jirasky's Old Czech Legends (Unesco Collection of Representative Works. European Series) with great stories about the Old Town Clock (which you'll see in Old Town Prague), Dr. Faustus, and the origins myths of the Czech people, too. The best book on Czech history and culture is The Shores of Bohemia by ?

If you are a fan of the poster art of Alfonse Mucha (as I am) you can discover some story art among his work, such as "Princezna Hyacinta," even though he worked in Paris. In his later life, he returned to Prague and became very involved in the Nationalist movement, and a number of his paintings illustrate their national legends.

In Prague go to the Charles Bridge and watch the jugglers, opera singers, watercolorists, woodcarvers, puppeteers, Dixieland bands, snake handlers, and just plain beggars. Get a Krusovice beer and sit outside to wait for the old town clock to do it's thing on the hour. Find Franz Kafka's house, the statue of Jan Hus, and the Jewish cemetary--oops! that's not in Old Town, but find it anyway. Go to Wenceslaus square where the Velvet Revolution was announced. If you're going to be there on May Day, look for Maypoles in the villages, tulips and daffodils, flourescent yellow fields of rapeseed (canola), and forests that look like they grew out of a comb tossed bo someone running away from Baba Yaga.
Mary Grace K. 4/9/05


3) Some of the stories you may already know are Czech (or ALSO Czech--Northern Europe just sort of flowed together once upon a time, and most Czech speakers were, by necessity every decade or so, also speakers of German). Also search under Bohemian tales, the part of Czech Republic where Prague is, or Moravian, farther east.

Some folk and fairy tales you may already know are "Clever Manka," "The Lute Player," "Three Golden Hairs," and "The Devil and the Blacksmith," and the "12 Month Brothers" (Is that the right title? A good and bad sisters story). Look for collections by Parker Fillmore in English. For legends such as "The Old Town Clock" and "Dr. Faustus," check Alois Jirasek's Old Czech Legends (Unesco Collection of Representative Works. European Series). He was a nationalist who dug up the old stories to give people pride in their Czech heritage (along with others around the time of the wars, 1849). As an art museum person, you may also enjoy a favorite poster artist of mine Alfons Mucha, who became famous in France (think Sarah Bernhardt) but later returned to Czechoslavakia and joined the nationalist movement there. I have his "Princezna Hiacinta" (reproduction) on my wall as a tribute to my grandmother, and other Czech women with their plaited hair. I think of her when I tell "Clever Manka," for she looks wise for her years and a bit sly.
Mary Grace K. 9/4/06


4) Doing some research and came across this story. I know I have read it somewhere before as it sounded vaguely familiar; it tickled me tonight. Passing it along.

Story:
"Reason and Fortune" - A Czech Folktale
Once upon a time, Reason met Fortune on a bridge. Fortune said to Reason, “Let me pass.” But Reason refused and said, “I will go first; you are not better than me.” Fortune then proposed a test to see who was better. He pointed out a boy working in a field nearby. He said, “Go inside that boy, and if he is better off with you than me, I will always let you pass first when we meet.” Reason agreed to the challenge and entered the boy’s head.

When the boy noticed reason in his head, he wondered why he was spending his life plowing the fields when he would rather be a gardener. The boy went home and talked to his father. He said, “I do not like farming and want to become a gardener.” The father at first was angry, but then he agreed and told the boy to do what he felt he must.

The boy, named Vanek, left his home and traveled to the home of the king where he began to work with the royal gardener. Within a short time, Vanek did not need the gardener anymore and began to take care of the royal gardens all alone. The garden became a beautiful place, and the king and his wife and young daughter began to walk in the garden often. But, the king was troubled because a few years before, his beautiful young daughter had stopped speaking.

The king and queen had tried everything and were desperate to help their beloved child. They announced that anyone who could teach the girl to speak again would be granted the girl’s hand in marriage. From all over the land, princes and dukes tried everything to get the girl to speak, but they all failed.

When Vanek heard about this challenge, he became determined to use reason to win the girl’s hand in marriage. He approached the king and was taken to meet the girl in a room in the palace. Upon entering the room, Vanek dropped to the ground and began to speak to the dog that was the princess’s constant companion and did not acknowledge the princess. He said to the dog, “I have a problem, and I need your advice.” Vanek said, “On my way to the castle with two friends, a carver and a tailor, we encountered a dilemma. As we passed through the woods one night, we decided to make camp. There we made a fire, which we took turns watching. First, as the carver watched the fire, he decided to spend his time carving. He carved a beautiful girl. When the tailor took his turn, he sewed the girl a beautiful gown. When it was my turn, I taught the girl to speak and sing. You see, now we all believe the girl belongs to us. To whom should she belong?”

The dog remained silent, but suddenly a voice cried out, “You should have the girl because you gave her the most important gift.” The princess was speaking. Vanek was happy and asked the king when he could marry the princess.

But the king’s counselor told the king that the boy could not marry the princess because he was not of noble birth. Vanek tried to argue, and the counselor advised the king to have the boy executed. The king agreed and sent Vanek to have his head cut off. Now, Fortune returned and told Reason to leave the boy. When Fortune entered Vanek, the sword to behead the boy broke. Before a new sword could arrive, the royal coach pulled into the courtyard. Out climbed the princess who begged her father to spare Vanek’s life, make him a duke, and allow her to marry him. Finally, the king agreed, and Vanek and the princess lived happily every after.

From that day on, when Reason and Fortune meet, Reason gets out of the way so that Fortune can pass.
Karen C. 9/3/07

Back to top

Created 2005; last update 3/10/11