Maria Cristina Brusca

With a foul temper and poor judgment, a South American king manages to make a complete hash of his rule in this folktale from Argentina. Ignorant of life outside his castle, he delivers a series of decisions that lead to further injustice in a variety of disputes. His only wise move was to hire sharp-witted Florinda as his cook, after firing her predecessor, and that lady uses her food to show the king the error of his ways. Of course, he isn't a willing student, and almost burns her at the stake, but fortunately she has a sprig of basil to remind him of better times...

Published in 1993, The Cook and the King is the second picture book retelling of a South American folktale that I have read from María Cristina Brusca (who also contributed the artwork) and Tona Wilson, following upon their 1992 The Blacksmith and the Devils. It pairs an engaging story, one in which a clever servant must correct her unwise master, with appealing illustrations that capture the humor of the tale. I enjoyed many of the little cultural details here—the indigenous Andean celebration of Pachamama, the northwestern Argentine custom of picking basil to dance with—which are present in both the story and in the brief afterword. Recommended to young folklore enthusiasts, and to anyone looking for children's stories with a South American and/or Argentine cultural background.… (altro)

The author grew up in Buenos Aries and spent weekends and vacations on the pampas, first at her grandparent's ranch (as related in her first autobiographical picture book, [On the Pampas]) and then at her mother's ranch. This book takes place a few years after the first and in it the author talks about mending fences, branding and vaccinating cattle, and the birthing season, including a cow that needs a Cesarean. All ends well, but the three-year-old was a little put off by the pig roast and Cesarean. Along with the first book, this is an excellent introduction to life on the pampas.… (altro)

Published simultaneously in English and Spanish, and co-authored by María Cristina Brusca (who also contributed the artwork) and Tona Wilson, The Blacksmith and the Devils is a traditional folktale from Argentina, concerning an impoverished blacksmith who outwits the devil, leading a long, adventurous life at his expense. When Juan Pobreza (whose surname means "poverty" in Spanish) replaces the shoe of a mule belonging to a gaucho who is none other than San Pedro, the gatekeeper of heaven, and is granted three wishes as reward, he doesn't believe, and wishes (so it seems) unwisely. But when he is visited by the Devil, and given wealth, and twenty years of youth, in return for signing away his soul, those wishes come in handy...

This amusing story of a trickster who manages to wrest sixty years of youth out of the Devil, eventually finding himself, when he comes to die, unwelcome in both heaven and hell, is one of the first Argentine folktales I have read, but I certainly hope it will not be the last. An amusing story, and engaging, colorful illustrations, kept me involved until the end, and I will definitely be looking for more, from both Brusca and Wilson!… (altro)