Horse Hooves and Chicken Feet: Mexican Folktales by Neil Philip

Philip, Neil. Horse Hooves and Chicken Feet: Mexican Folktales. New York: Clarion Books, 2003.


Illustrator – Jacqueline Mair

Neil Philip does an incredible job of picking out folktales and retelling them in simple versions that are about an average of five pages long. The stories are entertaining and fun to read that all will quite enjoy. This is a great book to read all at once or in sections. For example, a teacher or parent could pick one story a day or week to read out loud. The illustrations created by Jacqueline Mair are done in bright colors like red and orange, and each illustration gives a drawing of the person they are talking about. For example, the story called Horse Hooves and Chicken Feet about the prettiest girl whose feet were of a chicken. The illustration shows a couple dancing, but the girl actually has chicken feet. A red pepper can be found on almost every page which adds to the creativity of the book. The book has an interesting collection and ends with detailed notes of each story to give more of a background.