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ASIA
Bodkin, Odds. The Crane Wife. Harcourt Brace. 1998. A poor sail-maker finds happiness with a lovely wife who mysteriously appears at his door after he helps a wounded red-crowned crane. (Grade 1-5)
Chen, Kerstin. Lord of the Cranes: A Chinese Tale. North South Books. 2000. In this traditional Chinese story, the Lord of the Cranes is
aided by a poor innkeeper, who is later rewarded for his kindness by the Lord. (Grade 1-5)
Ching, Emily and Ko-Shee Ching. "The Crane-Riding Immortal." In Chinese Children's Stories. Series No. 47. 1991. This story recounts one of the many tales of Lye Dungbin, one of the eight immortals of Chinese legend. Lye Dungbin's birth is associated with the appearance of a crane, whose image he uses as an adult to reward a virtuous tavern owner. This story is one of two legends involving Lye Dungbin in the bilingual volume that is written in both Chinese and English. (Grade 3-5)
"The Cruel Crane Outwitted." In Indian Folk and Fairy Tales. Edited by Joseph Jacobs. G.P. Putnam's Sons, New York. 1968. In this Indian story, a Siberian crane develops a plan to trick several fish in a small pond so that he may eat them. Unfortunately, the crane is outwitted in the end when he attempts to trick a crafty crab into becoming his meal. (Grade 3-5)
"The Lion and the Crane." In Indian Folk and Fairy Tales. Edited by Joseph Jacobs. G.P. Putnam's Sons, New York. 1968. This Hindu story describes an encounter between a Siberian crane and a lion in India. The crane frees a bone that has become stuck in the lion's mouth and learns to be wary of the "King of the Beasts" after the experience.(Grade 3-5)
Matsutani, Miyoko. The Crane Maiden. Parents' Magazine Press, New York. 1968. The story is also retold in The Crane's Gift: A Japanese Folktale, by Steve and Megumi Biddle. Shambhala/Banefort Books. 1994. After rescuing a red-crowned crane from a trap in the mountains of northern Japan, an old man and his wife are visited by a beautiful and
mysterious young woman, who lives with them until they discover her true identity. (Grade 1-5)
AFRICA
Harman, Humphrey. "Arap Sang and the Cranes." In Tales Told Near a Crocodile. The Viking Press, Inc., New York. 1967. The great chief Arap Sang rewards a flock of crowned cranes for helping him cross the hot African plain near Lake Victoria by granting the cranes golden crowns. Unfortunately, the cranes are pursued for their precious crowns, and Arap Sang must rethink the meaning of his gift to the cranes. This story is also available in the Junior Great Books Curriculum, Series 2, published by The Great Books Foundation. 1992. (Grade 3-8)
AUSTRALIA
Clement, Rod. Olga the Brolga. Pymble NSW: Angus and Robertson, Australia. 2002. A delightful children's book about Olga the Brolga, who simply wants to dance. (Grade K-2)
Leach, Maria. "How Crane Got His Long Beak." In How the People Sang the Mountains Up. Viking Press, New York. 1967. An Aboriginal story from the Gumaitj Tribe describes how Emu's spear became Crane's long beak. (Grade 1-5)
Meeks, Arone Raymond. Enora and the Black Crane: An Aboriginal Story. Scholastic Inc., New York. 1991. Enora, a young Aboriginal child, discovers a rainbow of colors in the rainforest and is transformed after he kills a crane while trying to learn the meaning of his discovery. (Grade 1-5)
Roberts, Ainslie. "Brolga, the Dancing Girl." In The Dawn of Time: Australian Aboriginal Myths in Paintings. Rigby Limited, Adelaide, Australia. 1969. This Aboriginal story describes the transformation of a young girl who loved to dance into a crane by an evil magician who was spurned by the girl and her Tribe. (Grade 3-12)
EUROPE
"The Fox and the Crane," "The Peacock and the Crane," and "The Wolf and the Crane" are from the popular collection of stories known as Aesop's Fables. The collection is traditionally attributed to Aesop, a man who is believed to have been a Greek slave. Through the interaction of the main characters -- birds and animals that talk and behave like humans -- the stories teach important morals and values. The three stories that feature a crane depict the tall bird as clever, kind, and noble in his encounters with other animals. Aesop's Fables have been translated into many different languages and have been retold for centuries. The stories are available in a variety of edited volumes and can also be found in online collections. A recommended online collection of over 600 fables may be found at www.aesopfables.com.
"The Fox and the Crane" and "The Wolf and the Crane" can also be found in Aesop's Fables Coloring Book published by Dover Publications Inc. (Grade 1-12)
EDITED COLLECTIONS
Hayward Scott, Dorothea. A Flight of Cranes: Stories and Poems from Around the World. The Denvil Press. 1990. This excellent collection of stories and poems about cranes underscores the influence of cranes on cultures from throughout the world. Included in the collection are the stories "Arap Sang and the Cranes" and "Brolga, the Dancing Girl." Grade 3-12)
NORTH AMERICA
Belting, Natalia. "Why Crane's Feathers Are Brown and Otter Doesn't Feel the Cold." In The Long-Tailed Bear and Other Indian Legends. The Bobbs-Merrill Company, Inc., Indianapolis. 1961. An Assiniboin story tells why the sandhill crane has brown feathers and a dark bill. (Grade 3-8)
Bruchac, Joseph. The Great Ball Game: A Muskogee Story. Dial Books for Young Readers, New York. 1994. This traditional story from the Muskogee, or Creek, Indian Nation recounts the story of a ball game between the birds, who are lead by Crane, and the animals to settle a
dispute between the two groups. The conclusion of the story also explains why birds migrate south in the winter. (K-Grade 3)
"The Frogs and the Crane." In Wigwam Evenings: Sioux Folk Tales. Retold
by Charles and Elaine Goodale Eastman. University of Nebraska Press. 1990. Several frogs learn a valuable lesson about pride after they are frightened by a hungry crane in this Sioux story. (Grade 3-8)
Mooney, James. "The Race Between the Crane and the Hummingbird." In History, Myths, and Sacred Formulas of the Cherokees. Historical
Images, Asheville, North Carolina. 1992. Crane challenges Hummingbird to a race around the world to win the affections of a beautiful woman in this Cherokee story. Unfortunately, both suitors loose in the end when the young woman decides to remain single after she learns who won the race. (Grade 3-12)
Wood, Douglas. Rabbit and the Moon. Simon & Schuster. 1998. A Cree story tells how the whooping crane was rewarded with a red patch on the top of its head after carrying Rabbit to the moon. This story is also retold in Belting, Natalia. "How Crane Got His Long Legs." In The Long-Tailed Bear and Other Indian Legends. The Bobbs-Merrill Company, Inc., Indianapolis. 1961. (K-Grade 2)
FICTION
Bang, Molly Garrett. The Paper Crane. Greenwillow. 1985. A mysterious man pays for his meal with a paper crane and brings prosperity to the restaurant. (K-Grade 2)*
Byars, Betsy. The House of Wings. Viking Press, New York. 1993. In this perceptive novel, a young boy left with his grandfather learns to deal with the physical needs of a bird and gains a trusting relationship with both the whooping crane and his grandparent. (Grade 3-5)*
Coerr, Eleanor. Sadako. Putnam. 1993. Backed by Ed Young's soft, gentle illustrations, Coerr retells the story of Sadako and her battle against leukemia. (Grade 3-5)*
Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes. Putnam. 1999. Coerr's classic story combines with Ronald Himler's soft artwork to tell of Sadako's determination to fold a thousand paper cranes as she struggles with leukemia. (Grade 3-8)*
Hamanaka, Sheila. Peace Crane. Morrow. 1995. After learning about Sadako and the Peace Crane statue, a young African American girl wishes a crane would carry her away from the violence of her own world. (Grade 1-5)*
Keller, Holly. Grandfather's Dream. Greenwillow Books, New York. 1994. After the Vietnam War, Nam shares his grandfather's dream of bringing back the sarus crane to his village and learns the importance of making the land safe for their return. (K-Grade 3)*
Laurin, Anne. Perfect Crane. Harper Collins. 1981. A lonely Japanese
magician gains friends through the paper crane that he brings to life, and through kindness, is rewarded by the loyalty of the crane. (K-Grade 3)*
LeBox, Annette. The Princess Who Danced with Cranes. Second Story Press, Toronto, Canada. 1997. Princess Vivian learns the value of the beautiful marsh near her home after it is drained and the whooping cranes that formerly visited the area no longer return. (Grade 1-5)
Martenova, Charles and Veronika. The Crane Girl. Orchard. 1993. Yoshiko
goes to live among the cranes, whose magic transforms her into one of their young until she is ready to return to her family. (Grade 2-4)*
Owens, Mary Beth. Counting Cranes. 1992. A poetic counting book that introduces readers to the whooping crane as the endangered bird's numbers grow from 1 to 15. (K-Grade 2)
Say, Allen. Tree of Cranes. Houghton. 1991. A story of a Japanese mother who melds her early life in America with Japanese tradition as she shows her young son the meaning of an American Christmas. (K-Grade2)*
Schrack, Ward. Shimingo: The Rites of Passage. Morris Press, Kearney, Nebraska. 1993. Set in central Nebraska in the mid-1980s, this story relates the experiences of a Pawnee boy as he cares for an injured sandhill crane and makes the difficult journey into adulthood. (Grade 3-8)
Spinelli, Eileen. Song of the Whooping Crane. Eudmans Books for Young Readers, Grand Rapids, Michigan. 2000. Delicate watercolor illustrations complement this poetic story of the seasonal migration of the whooping crane. (K-Grade 2)
*Citations from Flying with the Cranes in Booklinks March 1996 by Carolyn Wiseman. Permission to use granted from Book Links: Connecting Books, Libraries, and Classrooms, the American Library Association.
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