Asian Tales and Tellers

More than thirty stories from the rich Asian cultural panorama

In this abundant and kaleidoscopic collection, Spagnoli includes stories from Spagnoli includes stories from Japan, India, Korea, Vietnam, Cambodia, the Philippines, Bangladesh, Laos, Tibet, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, China, Indonesia, Taiwan, Burma, and Nepal. After offering a brief look at modern Asian storytellers practicing traditional storytelling styles, she arranges the stories around dominant Asian themes such as harmony and friendship.

Cathy Spagnoli often heard storytelling in her Italian-German home, but discovered it as a life path later in Asia. In her search for stories, she has slid through Indian rice fields, sipped sake with Japanese epic singers, met with monks in Thailand and Korea, and hiked the Himalayas with Tibetan dancers. Spagnoli first visited Asia in 1970 and has lived in, or traveled to, that part of the world frequently. Her cross-cultural storytelling work has been funded by The Japan Foundation, The Korea Society, the United States Information Agency, UNESCO, and other cultural institutions.