|
The Golden Log by Mody C. Boatright, Wilson M. Hudson, and Allen Maxwell, eds. |
The nameless settlement deep in the East Texas forest was truly paradise—until a young bride took a forbidden sliver from the gold log that spanned a near-by creek; whereupon the log disappeared into the water, bride and groom were banished, and hard times fell upon all. And thus, the story goes, was paradise lost in East Texas.
Like the more than a dozen other contributions in this volume, "The Golden Log," by F. E. Abernethy, typifies the combined universality and fresh and authentic regional flavor of southwestern lore and legend.
Here are tales of early Texas days, told as they were told of old: "Thirteen Tales from Houston County" by Theodore B. Bryunner, tales of magic, fantasy, and terror; "Homemade Tales" by Richard M. Rivers, accounts of some early Texas storytellers and examples of their stories; "Cuentos de Susto" by Baldemar A. Jimenez, being "fright" tales, once told only after dark; and many others, including "Don Juan Zurumbete" by Riley Aiken, a version of "The Brave Little Tailor" from Texas' neighbor to the South.
And for a fine example of contemporary legend making there is "The Petroleum Geologist: A Folk Image" by Mody C. Boatright, which examines the negative role assigned by legend to the oil geologist in the discovery of some famous Texas oil fields. Also dealing with the contemporary scene, Roger Abrahams in "The Changing Concept of the Negro Hero" explores the psychological significance of Negro narratives of trickster and badman. Present-day legend is also the theme of "The Mystery of the Five Graves" by John C. Myers, that seeks to account for a group of unidentified roadside graves.
In a lighter vein is "From Flygap to Whybark: Some Unusual Texas Place Names" by John Q. Anderson. "Cowboy Comedians and Horseback Humorists" by Paul Patterson and "Joe Sap, Wit and Storyteller" by A. L. Bennett are rollicking samples of native southwestern humor at its natural best.
Along with these many tales, legends, and anecdotes are contributions in the fields of "unnatural natural history," superstition, and reminiscence—all serving to round out this volume's rich folklore offering.
The Golden Log
+ ISBN 0-87074-015-6. cloth $29.95. + ISBN 1-57441-110-1. paper $15.95s
LC 61-17184. Folklore #31. 168 pp. Index.
Publication Date: 2000.
This title may be obtained through your local bookseller, who will place special orders for them through Ingram Book Company's on-demand division.