The Little Brown Jay: A Tale from India (Folktales from Around the World)

I like this little story overall. It tells of a beautiful princess who has an "ugly voice" and who can't attract the attention of a blind prince (named Prince Rama - that's a little confusing to me, since Prince Rama is from Hindu legend and is not blind). She hears a "little brown jay" singing sweetly, and wishes to have his voice so she can attract the prince. Her wish is unselfishly granted by the bird. She lovingly wraps the bird up in a blue blanket, and the bird notes how beautiful the blue color is. She in turn wishes for the bird to "always wear blue" and so the brown jay is magically transformed into a blue jay. I love the story's message of unselfish giving, and of wishing good for others. On the other hand, as an Indian myself I can say that my culture places way too much emphasis on skin color, and brown is not the preferred color. I may be reading too much into it, but I just wish that the color BROWN wasn't devalued in this story. I think the story would be better told if it were a blue jay that transformed into a brown jay! At any rate, the wishing for superficial things like a transformed appearance makes me a bit uncomfortable. But it can lead to a good discussion for parents and young kids.

This book shows how one person can give unselfishly to another. It is a good lesson for children to learn especially in today's culture of greed. The brown jay gives the princess his voice and doesn't ask for anything in return. We all can learn from this book!

This book has been a favorite of my four-year-old and seems well received when we've given it to her friends as a birthday present. While many folk tales from India require considerable knowledge of the religious and cultural background, this simple tale of generosity should be universally understandable (and will hold special appeal for any little girl in the throes of princess fantasies).