Canadian Fairy Tales

Canadian Fairy Tales is a collection of 26 of Native American folk tales gathered from across Canada by Professor Cyrus MacMillan, who did not indicate the origin tribe of each story. The collection was originally published in 1922, and several tales within contain themes of creation. This is MacMillan's second collection of fairy tales. Like the Grimms Brothers did in Europe, MacMillan traveled the country seeking tales from the First Nations people in Canada. HOW GLOOSKAP MADE THE BIRDSRABBIT AND THE GRAIN BUYERSSAINT NICHOLAS AND THE CHILDRENTHE FALL OF THE SPIDER MANTHE BOY WHO WAS CALLED THICK-HEADRABBIT AND THE INDIAN CHIEFGREAT HEART AND THE THREE TESTSTHE BOY OF THE RED TWILIGHT SKYHOW RAVEN BROUGHT FIRE TO THE INDIANSTHE GIRL WHO ALWAYS CRIEDERMINE AND THE HUNTERHOW RABBIT DECEIVED FOXTHE BOY AND THE DRAGONOWL WITH THE GREAT HEAD AND EYESTHE TOBACCO FAIRY FROM THE BLUE HILLSRAINBOW AND THE AUTUMN LEAVESRABBIT AND THE MOON-MANTHE CHILDREN WITH ONE EYETHE GIANT WITH THE GREY FEATHERSTHE CRUEL STEPMOTHERTHE BOY WHO WAS SAVED BY THOUGHTSTHE SONG-BIRD AND THE HEALING WATERSTHE BOY WHO OVERCAME THE GIANTSTHE YOUTH AND THE DOG-DANCESPARROW'S SEARCH FOR THE RAINTHE BOY IN THE LAND OF SHADOWSThe tales in this collection, like those in 'Canadian Wonder Tales,' were gathered in various parts of Canada by river and lake and ocean where sailors and fishermen still watch the stars; in forest clearings where lumbermen yet retain some remnant of the old vanished voyageur life and where Indians still barter for their furs; in remote country places where women spin while they speak with reverence of their fathers' days. The skeleton of each story has been left for the most part unchanged, although the language naturally differs somewhat from that of the story-tellers from whose lips the writer heard them.