Reading Notes: Native American Hero Tales, Part A

The story about the Jealous Uncle wastes no time in getting into the plot of the story. I think this really grabs a readers attention. I think the author could have added a few details about the setting, especially when he was walking through the woods with his nephew. I am wondering why the uncle wants to kill his nephews so badly, but did no harm when he thought the child was a girl. I feel really bad for the unnatural uncle's wife. He was so hateful towards his family, but they always tried to forgive him.

I thought it was interesting that Grouse caused such a big mischief in the plot, but he is not struggling on the boat himself. I am surprised the group did not make a fuss to Grouse. They were mean to him, but the journey he sent them on was a bit much compared to some teasing. I did have to use my own imagination throughout the story to fill in some gaps. Personally I would not say this story has a 'hero' because the one who saved the day also bullied someone at the beginning of the tale.


I really like the lead male character in Dug-From-Ground. The relationship between the 'son' and 'mother' develops clearly through the story. I liked the idea of the main character playing a game with earthquake and thunder because it is unique and you could create a very detailed scene with those elements involved.

When animals act as people in stories, it always makes for an interesting tale. This plot takes a turn though because the animals are the villains who eat humans. My favorite paragraph was when the spider was closing up the entrance with her web. I felt like the animals were on a side and the god/humans were on another side. There was a beautiful example of word usage when the young eagles said the mother/father returns with the rain or wind.

Image Information: Image of Bald Eagle captured by Bill Buchanan, Web Source: Wikimedia Commons
Bibliography: Tales of the North American Indians by Stith Thompson, Web Source: Native American Hero Tales Unit