Week 6 Reading Diary: African Stories from Lang's Fairy Books

This week's reading is from African Stories from Lang's Fairy Books.
From The Grey Fairy Book by Andrew Lang and illustrated by H. J. Ford (1900)

Golden Jackal

Motikatika, 

• I like that this tale reverses the roles, the wife is very difficult at first, and so when the husband is thirsty, he makes equally difficult requests of his wife.
• The baby named Motikatika is surprisingly clever. He consulted his bones, managed to avoid the ogre who would eat him, but the stories always refers to him as a baby.  This doesn't sell the story for me.  Motikatika might be a child, and his is just the culture's way of referring to him

Jackal and Spring

• When the jackal told the rabbit, "If you really want me to give you some more, you must have your paws tied behind you and lie on your back so that I can pour it into your mouth," I expected the jackal to eat the rabbit. The rabbit is very gullible and I am surprised worse didn't happen. 
• The hare gets tricked in the exact same was as the rabbit, i am surprised the animals didn't learn from the previous mistakes. 

Adventures of a Jackal

• I notice a theme between these tales, the Jackal is always the trickster.  Although I do not know why the Jackal made the panther bad shoes, since it did not benefit him at all. 
• The jackal's flaw is that they always want to eat.  The panther always find the Jackal again because the Jackal is always hungry. 

Adventures of Jackal's Eldest Son

• I am enjoying reading the animal tales. Each animal has a distinct and persistent type of personality.  Although the characters been stories aren't the same, the personality traits of a single type of animal is. 
• The jackal gets completely sidetracked from his goal of reaching the bell first.
• Wow, that ending was completely unexpected. I did not expect the Jackal to get crushed to death by a stone. 

Adventures of Younger Son of Jackal

• Once again, it is the jackal's love of food that is his downfall.  These seems to be a theme between the story. 
• Often, although the Jackal is the trickster, the other animals manage to get their fair share, and outsmart the Jackal. It seems the jackal aren't the only animal with wits, but jackals are always the ones who start the mischief.