Snakes have never been a favorite of mine. They seriously give me the creeps especially when I think about them in water. But I will say I was the only brave enough seven year old at zoo camp to let the instructor wrap a snake around my neck on a small stage in front of a crowd of people. Pretty tough back then.. what happened? Anyway, this beautiful book is all about stories of snakes. It’s fables and tales of snakes from Hindu and Buddhist folklore. There’s stories about snake princesses and goddesses, and about how snakes guarded the earth when it was just water. The illustrations are very simply created. Often just a single swirling brush stroke represents the snake, a splash of bright blue represents the water. The book is all silkscreened, another creation of the lovely Tara Publishing who I’ve mentioned here and here and here before. You can tell I’m a fan! Get a copy here.

© Julia Rothman 2007