Delightful Collection of 10 Whimsical Folktales from Manipur – Feathers, Fools and Farts by L. Somi Roy

Feathers, Fools and Farts is a delightful and entertaining collection of 10 whimsical folktales from Manipur that give a glimpse of the cultural heritage of Manipur.

Synopsis

Be warned.These ten wacky stories in Feathers, Fools, and Manipuri Folktales Retold from Manipur, perched on India’s border with Myanmar, are not for scaredy-cats.Nor for those of you who do not enjoy a hearty laugh or a good cry. And if you try to copy the foolishness of the characters, animal and human, in these folktales, you just might turn into a tiger, get stung by a swarm of bees, or even get poo’ed on.If, however, you believe in strange romances, admire bravery, and like magic and sorcery, this book is for you, wherever you are.

Review

Feathers, Fools and Fart is a collection of 10 whimsical folktales from Manipur that the author and many other Manipuri folk grew up listening from their mothers and grandmothers and their ancestors who handed down these stories from generation to generation, now retold for young generations around the world.

All 10 stories are entertaining, vivid, and imaginary with a bit of magic, humor, and wisdom. I’m not much aware of Manipur culture and traditions. It was interesting to read about ethnic group, topography, rhymes, and illustrations in Subika art form.

Here is how I felt about these 10 whimsical folktales from Manipur –

The Autumn Lamp is about two brothers living on the mountain but one day they get separated one day, the elder brother staying behind on mountain while the younger makes a home in the valley. When they reunite but decide to have their separate home, they start a tradition of lighting a lamp on the full moon night of the autumn month of Mera that is still followed by the Meiteis ethnic group in Manipur. This was my most favorite story as it had more culture background than rest of the stories in this collection. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Kong, The Warrior Toad is story of Kong the Toad who wages war against the king as he insults his mother and refuses to give his daughter’s hand in marriage. It’s a bit weird story and I didn’t like attitude of any characters except Kong’s mother.

They were all arrogant and I wouldn’t blame a king for rejecting Kong’s proposal. Who would give one’s daughter’s hand to a toad! And what kind of man sends his mother to propose for the marriage! Well, it was still interesting to see how Kong waged war and it turned a bit like The Princess and The Frog story, the only difference is there was no curse, and kissing didn’t turn Kong into man, it was a magical talisman. ⭐⭐⭐

The Demon, The Tiger and The Crybaby was an amusing and fun story of a mother soothing her crybaby that saves them from thief and the tiger. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Hornbill Girl is a sad story of a girl who lost her parents and is troubled and tortured by her stepmother. She gathers Hornbill feathers and attaches them to her shirt and flies away one day. Sounds a bit like Daedalus and Icarus story but thankfully she didn’t fall from the sky. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Mother Bird is story of a clever mother bird who saves her babies from a cunning cat who disguises himself as a monk and trying to make her bring her babies down from the tree. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Demoness With The Long Arm is story of brave mother who keeps her son safe from the long-armed demoness whil her husband has been away for work and once he returns they both face her. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

There is a Good Sister, Bad Sister story part I and II. It a bit resembles Cindrella but without any ball dance and glass shoes. Though good characters were a little gullible, I really enjoyed both stories. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Tiger Man is story of a witch doctor who likes to play with black magic. One day he finds ritual to turn himself into tiger but his wife gets scared and doesn’t turn him back into man making him find life in forest. One day he kidnaps a beautiful girl but she manages to escape by outwiting him and her seven brothers save her from the tiger man. This was an interesting story and I loved the sibling bond. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Farting Old Couple is a story of an old couple who becomes victims of mischievous monkeys living in a nearby forest. When they try to teach them a lesson, monkeys attack back and in trying to escape they hide inside the huge pot. While hidden inside the pot the old couple cannot control their farts that managed to save and avenge them. That was really funny and entertaining story. I could imagine kids laughing hearing/ reading this story. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Overall, Feathers Fools and Farts: Folktales from Manipur” is a delightful, entertaining and whimsical folktales that give a glimpse of cultural heritage of Manipur.

Book Links

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