Week 12 Reading Notes: English Tales Part A

Tom Tit Tot is nearly the same story as Rumplestiltskin, with a few differences. I like that the King was the one who overheard Tom Tit Tot sing his name, and he accidentally revealed it to his wife. It is interesting that she had two different plot lines to follow, one with the King, and another with Tom Tit Tot. It ended happily enough.
The Rose Tree is a good story of jealousy and revenge. It shows how the family is torn apart, and jealousy makes people do crazy things. Luckily, some sort of magic turns the dead girl into a tree and dove, and that dove has immense strength. How strong she must have been to carry a millstone and drop it on her murderer.
The Old Woman and Her Pig gave me some anxiety. I thought that old woman was never going to get home. I guess all of the extra characters just needed a little motivation. Thanks to the cat and the cow for working with the old woman to help set off the chain.
Binnorie is a wild tale of two sisters trapped in a love triangle. Jealousy gets the better of them, and one kills the other. Love is a powerful emotion, and it can lead people to do crazy things to the important people in their lives. In the end, they are reminded of her existence, but everything else goes on as normal.
Mouse and Mouser was a little confusing. I guess the cat just played along to be the mouse's friend, but really he just wanted to eat the mouse all along. Look out for people that are sneaky liars. I could use this as a character inspiration for part two of Aaron Discovers the World. Someone could lead Aaron to the Mind of the Six, only to have guards waiting for him.
Cap O' Rushes was a long-winded story about loving your family and misunderstanding. At least it had a happy ending.


Photo of Tom Tit Tot, illustrated by John D. Batton, found on Wikimedia, here.


Bibliography: English Tales Part A by Joseph Jacobs, found here.