The Golden Slipper: A Vietnamese Legendby Darrell H. Compare The Boatman’s Flute in this book with The Fisherman and the Goblet: A Vietnamese Folk Tale. At the end of each folktale, Garland includes notes related each of the six folk tales about how this ties into modern-day Vietnam including flora and fauna, animals, and holidays. Use this folktale compilation as an introduction not just to Vietnamese folktales, but also Vietnamese history and culture. Ice Cubes at the Door: A Survey of Lunar New Year Traditions by Janet WongĬhildren of the Dragon: Selected Tales from Vietnam by Sherry Garland, illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman How about you? Have you read any Vietnamese folk tales? What books am I missing? Thanks!Įxploring Vietnam through Kidlit and Culture Unfortunately, there are not many folktale picture books in the United States that tell these stories but there are some great compilations of Vietnamese Folk Tales that I’ve included below.

With a country origination belief steeped in dragons and fairies, it’s not surprising that Vietnam has a rich culture of folk tales. It is still evident in much of Vietnamese folklore.įrom Children of the Dragon by Sherry Garland Although China influenced Vietnam greatly, the ancient Viet culture was never completely destroyed. China invaded Vietnam and ruled for almost one thousand years. Their oldest son founded the first Vietnamese kingdom. Au Co moved to the mountains with half of the children, and Lac Long Quan moved to the lowlands near the sea with the other fifty.

They had one hundred children, but this was too much for them to handle, so the parents agreed to separate. According to legend, Vietnam’s history began four thousand years ago when a dragon prince named Loc Long Quan married a fairy princess named Au Co.

The Dragon Prince by Thich Nhat Hanh