Thank you to everyone who participated in Summer Reading 2020: Imagine Your Story!
We also thank everyone who was understanding of the differences between this SRP and those in the past. We have the best patrons!
Come back next spring to check out Summer Reading plans for 2021: Tails and Tales, when we will focus on Animals in stories!
Here you can see the activities that we did in SRP 2020.
We also thank everyone who was understanding of the differences between this SRP and those in the past. We have the best patrons!
Come back next spring to check out Summer Reading plans for 2021: Tails and Tales, when we will focus on Animals in stories!
Here you can see the activities that we did in SRP 2020.
Scroll down for weekly activities and extra entries into the Grand Prize Drawing!
Teens are asked to read 3 hours a week.
Graphic novels, manga, audiobooks, and ebooks all count, too!
Finish logging your weekly reading and come in to the library for a prize!
Check here each week or come in to the library to pick up extra puzzles and activities that will earn you extra submissions into the grand prize drawing.
Graphic novels, manga, audiobooks, and ebooks all count, too!
Finish logging your weekly reading and come in to the library for a prize!
Check here each week or come in to the library to pick up extra puzzles and activities that will earn you extra submissions into the grand prize drawing.
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Weekly prize drawings for a prize bag stuffed with goodies are held each week on Monday mornings and the winner will be notified.
GRAND PRIZE DRAWING You must complete all 8 weeks to be eligible for the Grand Prize this year, so watch out! The app only lets you backdate your reading 10 days. Don't let it go too long! There will be 3 Grand Prizes for the Teens this year! The teen drawn first will get a Special Prize Bag containing a $100 Visa card and other cool stuff. The second and third place bags will contain a $30 Visa Card and other cool stuff. |
DON'T FORGET There will be TWO Community Bookwalks this year along the Riverfront Walk. Completing the Bookwalk gets you into the drawing for that prize, and ALSO earns you an extra entry into the Teen Grand Prize Drawing! |
Week 8- Magic!
The Summer Reading Program this year has been MAGICAL. Thank you to all of you who participated, even though it was a little weird this year! Since it is the last week, it is also your last chance to earn all of those extra grand prize drawing entries with the activities below. You can submit any of them in person until 2:00 PM on Saturday, or online until midnight on Saturday. Thank you so much for being mythical and legendary!
Week 7- Love
Love seems to be the most common theme among myths, legends, and folklore. But the traditional romance is often quite problematic when seen through a modern lens. Tell me about a myth, legend, or folktale in which the story is centered on a love story, but also tell me what you think about the relationship.
Bonus for this week: The first Teen to call the library this week before 5 PM, ask for Kia, and tell Kia your favorite character in Greek Mythology, will get a giant candy bar in addition to the weekly prize. I will note it on here once I have a winner.
KEEP READING!
Bonus for this week: The first Teen to call the library this week before 5 PM, ask for Kia, and tell Kia your favorite character in Greek Mythology, will get a giant candy bar in addition to the weekly prize. I will note it on here once I have a winner.
KEEP READING!
Week 6- Heroes
There's your average protagonist- and then there are heroes. Tales as old as time contain mythological, legendary heroes whose adventures are endless. One of the most commonly known heroes are knights! Everyone has heard a version of the Arthurian legends and the hero’s journeys. However, this week we are focusing on Yvain, one of Arthur’s vassals whose real recorded tales spur the question: Were heroes really heroes? Listen to the Myths and Legends podcast episode 1B-Knights of the Round Table: You’re So Yvain, or read the transcript of the episode below. It is the middle of the three part tale of the Knight Yvain and his quest for revenge. Then tell me why you think these men were considered heroes, and how they compare to other classic heroes like Hercules, Thor, or Beowulf.
If you are intrigued, the Myths and Legends podcast has many more episodes on Arthurian Legends. The first three episodes are about Yvain, but there are also episodes about Merlin, Arthur and Guinevere, Tristan and Isolde, Morgan le Fay, and more. Just search King Arthur on the podcast website for a full list.
If you are intrigued, the Myths and Legends podcast has many more episodes on Arthurian Legends. The first three episodes are about Yvain, but there are also episodes about Merlin, Arthur and Guinevere, Tristan and Isolde, Morgan le Fay, and more. Just search King Arthur on the podcast website for a full list.
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Week 5- Animals
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This week will be a little different!
Because it's a special week, the one activity will count as TWO EXTRA ENTRIES for the Grand Prize! Animals are featured in tons of myths, legends, folklore, and fairy tales. From creation myths to Grimm's Fairy Tales, animals are talking, walking, helping, and hurting. Whether the animal is a mindless monster or a clever critter, it makes sense that we would make animals part of our traditions and stories. They provide food, they keep us company, and they are our roommates on Earth. They are often mysterious to us, and have spawned many tall tales about creatures like massive sea serpents or monsters with the body parts of several different animals! Because there are just too many great stories featuring animals to choose from, this week we won't be doing the story and word search. Instead, choose one of the mythological creatures from the list, or find one of your own, and do some research. Decide what you think the creature looked like, and draw or paint it. Send a picture of it to kboyd@atchisonlibrary.org with your name and phone #, or bring it in to the circulation desk. |
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Week 4- Creation
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There are so many different themes within this week's theme! Some creation myths have a pair of divine twins, a duality, that bring everything into creation and create balance. Some myths have existence spawning from nothing. And yet even more have a primordial ocean, a plain covered in only water, and the creators drag the land up or create it from something in their plain of existence. The Serer creation myth, from West Africa, is one that shows a single being, Roog, bringing order from chaos. This week's word search lists many different similar myths from all over the world. Read the Serer version and then find a different one from the list- what do the two have in common? What is different? The file below contains the story, and a printable version of the word search. Or you can do the word search online and send me a picture of it completed at kboyd@atchisonlibrary.org. Happy reading!
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Week 3- Royalty
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With the amount of Disney princes, princesses, queens, and kings, you would almost think that fairy tales are only about royalty. So many myths, legends, and folk tales involve the aristocracy. The Community Bookwalk, up at the riverfront for this week, features a story about two girls and a king looking for a wife. Why do you think so many deity myths, folk tales, and grand legends feature royalty as main characters? Answer this question after reading this week's story, and do this week's crossword for two extra entries in to the Grand Prize Drawing. This week our story features ancient Egyptian gods battling for the kingship of Egypt and showing why the pharaohs were considered Gods themselves.
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Want a third extra entry into the Grand Prize drawing for this week? Color this picture and send me a picture or drop it off at the library. The best one will get an oversized candy bar!
You can get another entry by completing the Royalty crossword at https://thewordsearch.com/puzzle/1249963/mythological-kings/ and sending a picture of the complete crossword to kboyd@atchisonlibrary.org. Or print it out/ get it printed out at the library, and turn in a physical copy! Click below to download and print a copy:
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The everlasting struggle between Horus and Seth (Set)
The story begins with Osiris. Osiris is the firstborn son of Geb, the god of the earth, and Nut, the goddess of the sky. During the time that Osiris ruled over the two kingdoms, his consort was his sister Isis and together, the two of them reigned over a golden age of peace and prosperity and enjoyed the claim of all the gods. Osiris’s younger brother, Seth, grew jealous of Osiris and murdered him. After killing Osiris, Seth dismembered Osiris’s body, and he scattered the pieces of Osiris’s body over the face of the earth.
With Osiris dead, Seth assumed the rule of the two kingdoms with his consort and sister Nephthys. At the same time that Seth begins his rule, his sister Isis went into deep mourning over her lost husband. She wept day and night in her grief and, finally, Nephthys, her sister and the wife of Seth, agreed to help find Osiris.
The sister goddesses searched throughout the two kingdoms of Egypt for the pieces of Osiris’s body. Eventually, they apparently were able to find almost all of the pieces of the body of Osiris, and they reassembled it at Abydos, which was the site of the gods’ primary shrine.
Once Osiris’s body had been reassembled—through her power of magic and through the power of her love—Isis was able to revive Osiris, although not entirely. Isis was able to revive Osiris sufficiently that she was able to conceive a son, the god Horus. After engendering the son who would eventually avenge his death, Osiris departed his earthly domain and entered the underworld—where thereafter, he ruled as king of the dead.
Isis initially hides the child, Horus, from Seth, and she does this by hiding him in the papyrus marshes. She serves as Horus’s protector and advocate throughout his childhood— complementing her earlier role as the loving wife of Osiris by playing the role of the loving mother and protector of the child, Horus. In this part of the story, Horus is called “Har-pi-kruti,” or “Horus the child.” He is entirely dependent on his mother, Isis, and her powerful magic as well as her powerful wits. He is often depicted in this part of the story as a child sitting on the lap of Isis.
Once Horus is grown up, he is Haroeris, or “Horus the Elder.” Now grown, he is ready to approach the assembly of gods under the authority of Rē and to ask for his legitimate right of succession. He wants to assume the throne of his father, Osiris, as king and to have Seth deposed as a usurper.
The contest between Horus and his uncle Seth takes on different forms, and these different forms appear in the various different sources of the story that come down to us. As the stories evolve and develop over time, we find the later versions of the stories of combat between Horus and Seth are increasingly detailed and increasingly complex.
The central contest is really a legal contest because we are talking about the right of succession to the throne. Horus appears before the council of the gods. The council of the gods is under the authority of the sun god, Rē. Horus makes a plea to the council of the gods to recognize his legal rights as the heir and son of Osiris. The council appears to favor and support Horus’s claim, but Horus is opposed by Rē, the head of the council. It appears that Rē believes that Horus is too young and inexperienced to rule as king.
There follows a contest between Horus and Seth, and it takes on different aspects. There is a contest by combat. Horus had been prepared by his father, Osiris, for this martial combat before Osiris departed into the underworld, but the combat also has overtones of a contest of skill, magic, and endurance—this is also a contest of wits. Seth and Horus look for ways to outmaneuver each other, ways to outsmart each other, and, sometimes, they devise strategies to bring disrepute to the other god in the eyes of Rē and the assembly of the gods.
The upshot of all these contests is a series of clear victories for Horus and a series of clear losses and humiliations for Seth. Finally, the divine assembly agrees that Horus should have the authority to rule because Seth has shown himself incapable of ruling.
However, Rē offers Seth something of a consolation prize. First of all, he gives Seth his two daughters, and, then, he gives him a job. The job that Seth is given is to protect Rē’s barge daily from the threats of the chaos monster Apophis, who resides in the sea of the sky that Rē’s barge must travel.
The story of the death of Osiris and the contest between Horus and Seth for kingship has a complicated web of connections and meaning relevant to royal rule in Egypt. At death, a pharaoh assumes the role of Osiris, the dead king, king of the underworld. He retains his royal identity as he departs into the underworld and, just as Osiris did, he leaves behind his heir—the new pharaoh who assumes the throne and the royal identity as Horus did. In this way, the continuity of the rule of the eternal divine pharaoh is maintained, because as soon as an individual pharaoh dies, he is no longer the divine pharaoh but is now identified with Osiris instead of Horus, and the new pharaoh assumes the role of Horus as the divine pharaoh.
The story also validates the legitimacy of the reigning pharaoh’s authority. The contest between Horus and Seth for supremacy is sometimes understood as a contest between Lower Egypt, which was associated with Horus, and Upper Egypt, which was associated with Seth—but on a more primary level, the contest is between order and disorder, between the virtues of autocratic kingly authority and the threat of social chaos.
Although in some later versions of the story, Seth is ultimately destroyed, in most versions, he retains a distinctive role in the order overseen by Horus, and it is a role that is uniquely suited to his talents as a mighty warrior and trickster. At the same time, it’s notable that Horus himself is able to outwit and to outmaneuver Seth. Horus is something of a trickster himself; that is, he incorporates principles of disorder into the order that his rule has established. Horus becomes the master of all creation, even the power of disorder.
In its many variations, then, the story of Osiris, Seth, and Horus is not only a myth about kingship, but also an explanation and a justification for “the way things are now.” In this sense, the story is also a creation myth, because creation myths like this explain how the world of gods and human beings has assumed its present shape, how the cosmos has come to be ordered as it is.
The story begins with Osiris. Osiris is the firstborn son of Geb, the god of the earth, and Nut, the goddess of the sky. During the time that Osiris ruled over the two kingdoms, his consort was his sister Isis and together, the two of them reigned over a golden age of peace and prosperity and enjoyed the claim of all the gods. Osiris’s younger brother, Seth, grew jealous of Osiris and murdered him. After killing Osiris, Seth dismembered Osiris’s body, and he scattered the pieces of Osiris’s body over the face of the earth.
With Osiris dead, Seth assumed the rule of the two kingdoms with his consort and sister Nephthys. At the same time that Seth begins his rule, his sister Isis went into deep mourning over her lost husband. She wept day and night in her grief and, finally, Nephthys, her sister and the wife of Seth, agreed to help find Osiris.
The sister goddesses searched throughout the two kingdoms of Egypt for the pieces of Osiris’s body. Eventually, they apparently were able to find almost all of the pieces of the body of Osiris, and they reassembled it at Abydos, which was the site of the gods’ primary shrine.
Once Osiris’s body had been reassembled—through her power of magic and through the power of her love—Isis was able to revive Osiris, although not entirely. Isis was able to revive Osiris sufficiently that she was able to conceive a son, the god Horus. After engendering the son who would eventually avenge his death, Osiris departed his earthly domain and entered the underworld—where thereafter, he ruled as king of the dead.
Isis initially hides the child, Horus, from Seth, and she does this by hiding him in the papyrus marshes. She serves as Horus’s protector and advocate throughout his childhood— complementing her earlier role as the loving wife of Osiris by playing the role of the loving mother and protector of the child, Horus. In this part of the story, Horus is called “Har-pi-kruti,” or “Horus the child.” He is entirely dependent on his mother, Isis, and her powerful magic as well as her powerful wits. He is often depicted in this part of the story as a child sitting on the lap of Isis.
Once Horus is grown up, he is Haroeris, or “Horus the Elder.” Now grown, he is ready to approach the assembly of gods under the authority of Rē and to ask for his legitimate right of succession. He wants to assume the throne of his father, Osiris, as king and to have Seth deposed as a usurper.
The contest between Horus and his uncle Seth takes on different forms, and these different forms appear in the various different sources of the story that come down to us. As the stories evolve and develop over time, we find the later versions of the stories of combat between Horus and Seth are increasingly detailed and increasingly complex.
The central contest is really a legal contest because we are talking about the right of succession to the throne. Horus appears before the council of the gods. The council of the gods is under the authority of the sun god, Rē. Horus makes a plea to the council of the gods to recognize his legal rights as the heir and son of Osiris. The council appears to favor and support Horus’s claim, but Horus is opposed by Rē, the head of the council. It appears that Rē believes that Horus is too young and inexperienced to rule as king.
There follows a contest between Horus and Seth, and it takes on different aspects. There is a contest by combat. Horus had been prepared by his father, Osiris, for this martial combat before Osiris departed into the underworld, but the combat also has overtones of a contest of skill, magic, and endurance—this is also a contest of wits. Seth and Horus look for ways to outmaneuver each other, ways to outsmart each other, and, sometimes, they devise strategies to bring disrepute to the other god in the eyes of Rē and the assembly of the gods.
The upshot of all these contests is a series of clear victories for Horus and a series of clear losses and humiliations for Seth. Finally, the divine assembly agrees that Horus should have the authority to rule because Seth has shown himself incapable of ruling.
However, Rē offers Seth something of a consolation prize. First of all, he gives Seth his two daughters, and, then, he gives him a job. The job that Seth is given is to protect Rē’s barge daily from the threats of the chaos monster Apophis, who resides in the sea of the sky that Rē’s barge must travel.
The story of the death of Osiris and the contest between Horus and Seth for kingship has a complicated web of connections and meaning relevant to royal rule in Egypt. At death, a pharaoh assumes the role of Osiris, the dead king, king of the underworld. He retains his royal identity as he departs into the underworld and, just as Osiris did, he leaves behind his heir—the new pharaoh who assumes the throne and the royal identity as Horus did. In this way, the continuity of the rule of the eternal divine pharaoh is maintained, because as soon as an individual pharaoh dies, he is no longer the divine pharaoh but is now identified with Osiris instead of Horus, and the new pharaoh assumes the role of Horus as the divine pharaoh.
The story also validates the legitimacy of the reigning pharaoh’s authority. The contest between Horus and Seth for supremacy is sometimes understood as a contest between Lower Egypt, which was associated with Horus, and Upper Egypt, which was associated with Seth—but on a more primary level, the contest is between order and disorder, between the virtues of autocratic kingly authority and the threat of social chaos.
Although in some later versions of the story, Seth is ultimately destroyed, in most versions, he retains a distinctive role in the order overseen by Horus, and it is a role that is uniquely suited to his talents as a mighty warrior and trickster. At the same time, it’s notable that Horus himself is able to outwit and to outmaneuver Seth. Horus is something of a trickster himself; that is, he incorporates principles of disorder into the order that his rule has established. Horus becomes the master of all creation, even the power of disorder.
In its many variations, then, the story of Osiris, Seth, and Horus is not only a myth about kingship, but also an explanation and a justification for “the way things are now.” In this sense, the story is also a creation myth, because creation myths like this explain how the world of gods and human beings has assumed its present shape, how the cosmos has come to be ordered as it is.
Week 2- Natural Events
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Throughout history people have used their deities and myths to explain natural events that they had no way of understanding at the time. While we now know that the seasons are caused by the tilt of the Earth on its axis, the Greek story of Hades falling in love with and abducting Persephone from her mother Demeter was their way of accounting for the yearly cycle of warming and cooling. The following story about Loki and his misdeeds was a Norse myth that explained earthquakes. After reading the story, find another example in legends, myths, or fairy tales where a character is the cause of a natural disaster, or makes a natural cycle happen. Answering this question and completing this week's word search will get you two extra bonus entries into the grand prize drawing!
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"Loki Bound" as found at https://norse-mythology.org/tales/loki-bound/
Loki had always been more of a burden than a help to the other gods and goddesses. But after his contriving the death of Baldur and ensuring that that fair god would remain in the underworld until the cosmos is destroyed during Ragnarok, he went about slandering the gods at every opportunity. At last, the gods decided that his abuse had become too much, and they went to capture him.
Loki ran far away from Asgard. At the peak of a high mountain, he built for himself a house with four doors so that he could watch for his pursuers from all directions. By day he turned himself into a salmon and hid beneath a nearby waterfall. By night he sat by his fire and weaved a net for fishing for his food.
The far-seeing Odin perceived where Loki now dwelt, and the gods went after him. When Loki saw his former friends approaching, he threw the net in the fire and hid himself in the stream in his salmon form so as to leave no traces of himself or his activities. When the gods arrived and saw the net smoldering in the fire, they surmised that the wily shapeshifter had changed himself into the likeness of those he intended to catch for himself. The gods took up the twine Loki had been using and crafted their own net, then made their way to the stream. Several times they cast their net into the stream, and each time the salmon barely eluded them. At last, the fish made a bold leap downstream to swim to the sea, and while in the air he was caught by Thor. The salmon writhed in the war-god’s grasp, but Thor held him fast by his tail fins. This is why, to this day, the salmon has a slender tail.
Loki was then taken, in his regular form, to a cave. The gods then brought in Loki’s two sons and turned one into a wolf, who promptly killed his brother, strewing his entrails across the cave floor. Loki was then fastened to three rocks in the cave with the entrails of his slain son, which the gods had turned into iron chains. Skadi placed a poisonous snake on a rock above his head, where it dripped venom onto his face. But Loki’s faithful wife, Sigyn, sat by his side with a bowl that she held up to the snake’s mouth to catch the poison. But every so often, the bowl became full, and Sigyn would have to leave her husband’s side to dispose of its contents, at which point the drops that fell onto the unrepentant god’s face would cause him to shake violently, which brought about earthquakes in Midgard, the world of humanity. And this was the lot of Loki and Sigyn until, as fated, Loki will break free from his chains at Ragnarok to assist the giants in destroying the cosmos.
Loki had always been more of a burden than a help to the other gods and goddesses. But after his contriving the death of Baldur and ensuring that that fair god would remain in the underworld until the cosmos is destroyed during Ragnarok, he went about slandering the gods at every opportunity. At last, the gods decided that his abuse had become too much, and they went to capture him.
Loki ran far away from Asgard. At the peak of a high mountain, he built for himself a house with four doors so that he could watch for his pursuers from all directions. By day he turned himself into a salmon and hid beneath a nearby waterfall. By night he sat by his fire and weaved a net for fishing for his food.
The far-seeing Odin perceived where Loki now dwelt, and the gods went after him. When Loki saw his former friends approaching, he threw the net in the fire and hid himself in the stream in his salmon form so as to leave no traces of himself or his activities. When the gods arrived and saw the net smoldering in the fire, they surmised that the wily shapeshifter had changed himself into the likeness of those he intended to catch for himself. The gods took up the twine Loki had been using and crafted their own net, then made their way to the stream. Several times they cast their net into the stream, and each time the salmon barely eluded them. At last, the fish made a bold leap downstream to swim to the sea, and while in the air he was caught by Thor. The salmon writhed in the war-god’s grasp, but Thor held him fast by his tail fins. This is why, to this day, the salmon has a slender tail.
Loki was then taken, in his regular form, to a cave. The gods then brought in Loki’s two sons and turned one into a wolf, who promptly killed his brother, strewing his entrails across the cave floor. Loki was then fastened to three rocks in the cave with the entrails of his slain son, which the gods had turned into iron chains. Skadi placed a poisonous snake on a rock above his head, where it dripped venom onto his face. But Loki’s faithful wife, Sigyn, sat by his side with a bowl that she held up to the snake’s mouth to catch the poison. But every so often, the bowl became full, and Sigyn would have to leave her husband’s side to dispose of its contents, at which point the drops that fell onto the unrepentant god’s face would cause him to shake violently, which brought about earthquakes in Midgard, the world of humanity. And this was the lot of Loki and Sigyn until, as fated, Loki will break free from his chains at Ragnarok to assist the giants in destroying the cosmos.
Teens: Find another example in legends, myths, or fairy tales where a character is the cause of a natural disaster, or makes a natural cycle happen, and submit the answer to the right!
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You can get another entry by completing the Natural Disasters and Cycles crossword at https://thewordsearch.com/puzzle/1235767/natural-disasters-and-cycles/ and sending a picture of the complete crossword to kboyd@atchisonlibrary.org. Or print it out/ get it printed out at the library, and turn in a physical copy! Click to the right to download and print a copy:
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Week 1- Tricksters
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According to mythology.net, a Trickster is "a character who uses wits, rather than strength or authority, to accomplish his goals. Like heroes, Tricksters usually come out of their adventures unscathed, having won the prize they desired and upset the regular social order in a way that will cause lasting effects for the people around them. Unlike heroes, Tricksters are usually morally questionable. They may lie, cheat, or steal to get what they want, and their ends don’t justify their means. These slippery characters don’t set out to save the world. They set out to get what they want."
There are examples of these wily deities in almost every culture, as you can see from the graphic on the right. 
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Activities/ Extra Prize EntriesThis week we are focusing on Anansi, one of the most famous tricksters and the god of stories! Read the story below and answer the questions in the form to get an extra entry into the Grand Prize Drawing.
You can get another entry by completing the Trickster crossword at https://thewordsearch.com/puzzle/1203238/ and sending a picture of the complete crossword to kboyd@atchisonlibrary.org These activities are available printed out at the circulation desk, and can be turned in there as well! |
By Michael Auld
Once in a before time, Anansi was walking far into the bush. Soon he came to a house with a very, very, VERY old man sitting inside the mouth of the front door. The old man looked like skin and dry bones. Anansi gathered up his courage and said.
"Good day sir! I have been walking all morning and would love to have a cool drink of ice water."
However, the old man said nothing. Anansi, who thought that the old man might have been deaf, walked closer to the seated figure and repeated in a loud voice.
"I said... GOOD MORNING SIR! MAY I HAVE A DRINK OF WATER?”
Nevertheless, the old man said nothing.
Anansi scratched his head and said, "Oh, you said to go inside the house and help myself?"
The old man still said nothing to Anansi.
Anansi walked past the old man and went into his house and not only helped himself to ice cold water but to as much food as he could eat. When he had finished eating, Anansi went outside to see the old man who was sitting in the same spot by the door. Anansi thanked him for his hospitality and returned home.
The next day Anansi went to the house of the old man and again ate his fill. Still, the old man said nothing to Anansi.
On the third day, Anansi the spider brought his eldest daughter to the old man’s house. "Good morning sir,” Anansi greeted. “Since you have been so kind to me I have brought my beautiful daughter who wants to be a cook. I will give her to you as your wife," said Anansi. Then he turned to his daughter. "Here is a wedding ring. Now go into the house and fix your father a nice plate of food." The old man still said nothing.
The next day Anansi got up early. He headed for the old man's house. The old man had not moved and was still sitting by his door. Anansi said his good morning and entered the house. He called for his daughter but she did not answer. He knew that she liked Hide-and-Seek so he looked in every closet. He then checked under the bed. Although he knew that it was a dangerous hiding place, he looked into the icebox, but he could not find her. Anansi searched all over the house but he was not able to find his daughter. He thought of one place that he had not looked.
"I know where she is. She is hiding in the oven! " He said as he opened the door to the stove's oven. Anansi jumped back. For in the oven lay his daughter's wedding ring. Anansi rushed outside the house and grabbed the old man by the collar.
“Where is my daughter?" he shouted.
Finally, the old man spoke in a deep raspy voice. “Do… you …know… who… I… am?” He said slowly, chewing on every word that escaped his throat.
“Yes.” Anansi said. “You are my son-in-law.”
"Hah! Your son-in-law!” The old man rasped. “My name is Death and you came looking for me. I did not invite you into my house. To add insult to injury, you brought me your ugly daughter... so I ate her. Now I am going to have you for lunch," Brother Death said as he grabbed Anansi by the shirt.
Anansi tore the buttons from his shirt, slipped out of it and ran for his life. He ran as fast as he could in the belief that he could easily outdistance an old man like Brother Death. However, wherever Anansi turned, Death was right behind him. Finally, out of desperation, Anansi lunged for a tree limb and climbed as high as he could. To his surprise, Brother Death did not follow Anansi up the tree. Death could not climb!
Brother Death picked up a rock, an old shoe, anything that he could find, and threw them at Anansi. They all missed. Death could not throw either. He soon ran out of things to throw. Therefore, he ran around under the tree in search of any missile. Once when he took his eyes off Anansi, the frightened spider jumped off the tree and bolted for his home.
As he neared his house Anansi shouted out to his wife.
"Aso! Grab the children and climb up into the ceiling! Death is after me!"
"What did you say, Anansi?" His wife asked.
"I SAID... GRAB THE CHILDREN AND CLIMB UP TO THE CEILING!" Anansi cried.
“You said do what with the potato peelings?” His wife asked.
“I said… Oh, Never mind!” Anansi cried in frustration.
He quickly rushed into his house, grabbed his wife and children, and climbed up into the ceiling with them.
“Grab hold of a wooden beam and hold on tight!” He shouted.
As Brother Death rushed in the door, Anansi and his family were safely clinging to a beam in the ceiling. Brother Death calmly picked up a burlap bag, pulled up a chair, sat down under the dangling spider family and crossed his legs.
Half an hour passed and Anansi's youngest son said to his father.
"Oh, Puppa, my hands are hurting me. I can't hold on any longer."
"Hold on son, for if you fall Death is going to get you," Anansi said to his child. However, the boy could not hold on any longer. Therefore, he fell.
Death caught the boy and opened the burlap bag. "It is your father I want… not you.” Then he placed the child into the burlap bag.
Soon, another of Anansi's daughters cried out to her father.
"Puppa, please…my hands are tired. I am going to fall".
"Fall and Death is going to get you!" Anansi answered.
His daughter fell and Death placed her in the burlap bag with her brother.
"I don't want you. I want your father,” said Death.
Soon Anansi's other daughter and son fell. So did his wife, Aso. Finally, Anansi's own hands became tired. First, the left hand froze and lost its grip. However, Anansi held on tight with only his right hand. He exercised the frozen left hand in the hope of using it to relieve the right hand. Anansi’s mind began to race.
"Brother Death.” He called. “I am so fat from eating all your food that if I fall I will just splatter into pieces. There will not be enough of me left to put in that bag. You will only have enough meat to make spider-burgers. However, if you go into the kitchen you will find a barrel of flour. Get the barrel and set it under me so that the flour will cushion the fall. I won’t splatter. I will just be battered.”
“Mmmhh…” Death exhaled, rubbed his chin and smiled, showing all his 37-and-a-half teeth. “Fried Spider for dinner, heh? Or, maybe I can make delicious, spicy Jerk Spider from Anansi and his family!”
Anansi figured that the flour barrel was so heavy that it would take four men to lift it. This would give him time to escape. As Brother Death went into the kitchen Anansi was about to let go and drop from the ceiling. However, in a flash Death was back under Anansi with the flour barrel. Anansi had underestimated Brother Death’s strength. As Brother Death wobbled the barrel from side to side, he bent over the barrel to make sure that it was exactly under Anansi. The cunning spider dropped on top of the old man’s head, dunking his face into the flour. The flour bath temporarily blinded Death.
Anansi jumped off Death’s head, released his family and they ran for their lives. Death has never caught Anansi the Spider. That is why there are Anansi Stories to this day. When you see spider webs on the ceiling it belongs to Anansi. He is still trying to get away from Death.
* Author's note: This story illustrates how Anansi, like his father Nyame the Great Sky God, also overcame death. In Nyame's case he had created both life and death and was overcome by the latter's venom. Where Nyame survived death by using an antidote, his son, Anansi, used his web to accomplish the same feat.
Once in a before time, Anansi was walking far into the bush. Soon he came to a house with a very, very, VERY old man sitting inside the mouth of the front door. The old man looked like skin and dry bones. Anansi gathered up his courage and said.
"Good day sir! I have been walking all morning and would love to have a cool drink of ice water."
However, the old man said nothing. Anansi, who thought that the old man might have been deaf, walked closer to the seated figure and repeated in a loud voice.
"I said... GOOD MORNING SIR! MAY I HAVE A DRINK OF WATER?”
Nevertheless, the old man said nothing.
Anansi scratched his head and said, "Oh, you said to go inside the house and help myself?"
The old man still said nothing to Anansi.
Anansi walked past the old man and went into his house and not only helped himself to ice cold water but to as much food as he could eat. When he had finished eating, Anansi went outside to see the old man who was sitting in the same spot by the door. Anansi thanked him for his hospitality and returned home.
The next day Anansi went to the house of the old man and again ate his fill. Still, the old man said nothing to Anansi.
On the third day, Anansi the spider brought his eldest daughter to the old man’s house. "Good morning sir,” Anansi greeted. “Since you have been so kind to me I have brought my beautiful daughter who wants to be a cook. I will give her to you as your wife," said Anansi. Then he turned to his daughter. "Here is a wedding ring. Now go into the house and fix your father a nice plate of food." The old man still said nothing.
The next day Anansi got up early. He headed for the old man's house. The old man had not moved and was still sitting by his door. Anansi said his good morning and entered the house. He called for his daughter but she did not answer. He knew that she liked Hide-and-Seek so he looked in every closet. He then checked under the bed. Although he knew that it was a dangerous hiding place, he looked into the icebox, but he could not find her. Anansi searched all over the house but he was not able to find his daughter. He thought of one place that he had not looked.
"I know where she is. She is hiding in the oven! " He said as he opened the door to the stove's oven. Anansi jumped back. For in the oven lay his daughter's wedding ring. Anansi rushed outside the house and grabbed the old man by the collar.
“Where is my daughter?" he shouted.
Finally, the old man spoke in a deep raspy voice. “Do… you …know… who… I… am?” He said slowly, chewing on every word that escaped his throat.
“Yes.” Anansi said. “You are my son-in-law.”
"Hah! Your son-in-law!” The old man rasped. “My name is Death and you came looking for me. I did not invite you into my house. To add insult to injury, you brought me your ugly daughter... so I ate her. Now I am going to have you for lunch," Brother Death said as he grabbed Anansi by the shirt.
Anansi tore the buttons from his shirt, slipped out of it and ran for his life. He ran as fast as he could in the belief that he could easily outdistance an old man like Brother Death. However, wherever Anansi turned, Death was right behind him. Finally, out of desperation, Anansi lunged for a tree limb and climbed as high as he could. To his surprise, Brother Death did not follow Anansi up the tree. Death could not climb!
Brother Death picked up a rock, an old shoe, anything that he could find, and threw them at Anansi. They all missed. Death could not throw either. He soon ran out of things to throw. Therefore, he ran around under the tree in search of any missile. Once when he took his eyes off Anansi, the frightened spider jumped off the tree and bolted for his home.
As he neared his house Anansi shouted out to his wife.
"Aso! Grab the children and climb up into the ceiling! Death is after me!"
"What did you say, Anansi?" His wife asked.
"I SAID... GRAB THE CHILDREN AND CLIMB UP TO THE CEILING!" Anansi cried.
“You said do what with the potato peelings?” His wife asked.
“I said… Oh, Never mind!” Anansi cried in frustration.
He quickly rushed into his house, grabbed his wife and children, and climbed up into the ceiling with them.
“Grab hold of a wooden beam and hold on tight!” He shouted.
As Brother Death rushed in the door, Anansi and his family were safely clinging to a beam in the ceiling. Brother Death calmly picked up a burlap bag, pulled up a chair, sat down under the dangling spider family and crossed his legs.
Half an hour passed and Anansi's youngest son said to his father.
"Oh, Puppa, my hands are hurting me. I can't hold on any longer."
"Hold on son, for if you fall Death is going to get you," Anansi said to his child. However, the boy could not hold on any longer. Therefore, he fell.
Death caught the boy and opened the burlap bag. "It is your father I want… not you.” Then he placed the child into the burlap bag.
Soon, another of Anansi's daughters cried out to her father.
"Puppa, please…my hands are tired. I am going to fall".
"Fall and Death is going to get you!" Anansi answered.
His daughter fell and Death placed her in the burlap bag with her brother.
"I don't want you. I want your father,” said Death.
Soon Anansi's other daughter and son fell. So did his wife, Aso. Finally, Anansi's own hands became tired. First, the left hand froze and lost its grip. However, Anansi held on tight with only his right hand. He exercised the frozen left hand in the hope of using it to relieve the right hand. Anansi’s mind began to race.
"Brother Death.” He called. “I am so fat from eating all your food that if I fall I will just splatter into pieces. There will not be enough of me left to put in that bag. You will only have enough meat to make spider-burgers. However, if you go into the kitchen you will find a barrel of flour. Get the barrel and set it under me so that the flour will cushion the fall. I won’t splatter. I will just be battered.”
“Mmmhh…” Death exhaled, rubbed his chin and smiled, showing all his 37-and-a-half teeth. “Fried Spider for dinner, heh? Or, maybe I can make delicious, spicy Jerk Spider from Anansi and his family!”
Anansi figured that the flour barrel was so heavy that it would take four men to lift it. This would give him time to escape. As Brother Death went into the kitchen Anansi was about to let go and drop from the ceiling. However, in a flash Death was back under Anansi with the flour barrel. Anansi had underestimated Brother Death’s strength. As Brother Death wobbled the barrel from side to side, he bent over the barrel to make sure that it was exactly under Anansi. The cunning spider dropped on top of the old man’s head, dunking his face into the flour. The flour bath temporarily blinded Death.
Anansi jumped off Death’s head, released his family and they ran for their lives. Death has never caught Anansi the Spider. That is why there are Anansi Stories to this day. When you see spider webs on the ceiling it belongs to Anansi. He is still trying to get away from Death.
* Author's note: This story illustrates how Anansi, like his father Nyame the Great Sky God, also overcame death. In Nyame's case he had created both life and death and was overcome by the latter's venom. Where Nyame survived death by using an antidote, his son, Anansi, used his web to accomplish the same feat.
Teens: Find another story about Anansi and tell me how he tricked others in that story. Do you think this Trickster is a protagonist or Antagonist?
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