Lore of the Wild: Folklore & Wisdom From Nature - A Review


Lore of the Wild: Folklore and Wisdom from Nature 

 

Written by Claire Cock-Starkey

Illustrated by Aitch

Published by Wide Eyed Editions, 2021

 

In a time when the role of narrative, storytelling and folklore in shaping our relationship with nature is gathering increasing interest, my November recommended environmental read for children takes us on a well-travelled journey through the nature lore of many different places and cultures. Nature lore, or traditional nature folklore, gives us insight into how our ancestors interacted with the world around them and allows us to view nature from a new perspective, and in some circumstances helps us nurture empathy and a love of the natural world. In terms of lore, this fascinating book offers a mixture of the familiar, such as the bad luck associated with seeing a single magpie, and the lesser known, for example how in Japanese folklore the giant dragon-headed beetle known as Jinshin-mushi is said to burrow under the earth, causing earthquakes. It’s great cultural and historical breadth is one of its key strengths.

 

The book is divided into six main sections: Animals; Birds; Insects; Flowers, Plants and Trees; Weather Lore and Omens. Something I particularly like about it is that each section starts with a fuller traditional folktale or creation story from a particular culture (mostly European, though one comes from China and another represents the Twana of the Pacific Northwest). Seeing as the majority of the text is made up of assorted fragments of lore, which are grouped by creature or topic into subthemes presented on richly illustrated spreads, these ‘weightier’ introductory tales are a nice way in to each section and help set the scene and frame what’s to come. Something else that knits each section together are the vibrant, painted illustrations by Aitch that accompany the text, which leap, flutter and dance off the page.

 

I would recommend this book for children in Years 2 to 6 in primary. This is quite a range for a picture book, but it can be approached in different ways. For example, class teachers will enjoy reading it aloud to the class in Years 2 and 3, promoting discussion about human-nature relationships, whereas older children will enjoy pouring over the many different tales independently and making comparisons between the different cultures they come from, such as the European belief that spiders in the house are a good thing and are to be left alone versus the Japanese belief that they are evil-beings in disguise and should be treated with caution. An outcome of this is that not only does the book promote an engagement with the beauty of the natural environment, but it also inspires appreciation of different cultures as well. This makes it highly relevant to the teaching of English, Geography and PSHCE learning throughout both Key Stage 1 and 2.

 

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