Porch Lies

Porch Lies : tales of slicksters, tricksters, and other wily characters
Author: Patricia McKissack
An unabridged Production; Listening Library
4 compact discs; 4 hours, 22 minutes.
Read by; Patricia McKissack, Pamela D'Pells, Adenrelle Ojo, and Mirron Willis.
ISBN: 9780739361672
Dewey: Fiction
Classification: Story collection
Interest level: 3rd-6th grade
Contents: When Pete Bruce comes to town -- Change -- The devil's guitar -- Aunt Gran and the outlaws -- By the weight of a feather -- A grave situation -- The best lie ever told -- The earth bone and the King of the Ghosts -- Cake Norris lives on part one -- Cake Norris lives on, part two.

Plot Summary

Pat McKissack had put together a collection of tales that are at times humorous and at other times scary. All of the tales are drawn from the oral story telling tradition of the African American culture. Each tale is told from the point of view of a child listening to visitors on her grandparents porch. The introduction draws the listener into a setting of summer leisure evenings. The characters are tricksters and are introduced prior to the beginning of the telling.

Critical Analysis

Traveling to multiple libraries after checking their on-line catalogs I was unable to get a copy of the written text. It seems that catalogs are not always accurate. One librarian just said. " that happens-catalog says its in and book cant be located." At first I was disappointed as I am a visual learner and I wanted to compare the two forms.. As it turns out listening to these discs was a a very moving experience. The introduction draws the listener into a a much simpler time with the first words, "Whipporwills, lightning bugs, and peach ice cream..." I found myself listening to each tale several times. The three readers have voices that are deep and smooth almost musical. Each trickster is able to get what they want using charm and wit. When they do the listener finds themselves smiling at the antics of the trickster. The individual introductions were very helpful in giving background information. This helps the listener to understand the main characters.

Aunt Gran has a line that it particularly relevant to all the tales, You decide for yourself." It is up to the listener to determine just how believable is the character of the trickster. The reading does not use dialect which makes it easy for all to understand. Dialect can add to the story but for children not familiar with it the story can be incomprehensible. The tone of the voices are enough to give this recording the feel of that time on the porch in Nashville.

Review Excerpts

Kirkus Review (August 1, 2006) "... these tales all lend themselves to telling or reading aloud, and carry the common theme that even the worst rascals have saving graces."

Horn Book (September/October, 2006) " It's a clever idea: McKissack presents ten original trickster stories tailord for children with a child narrator in each one, for immediate and lasting identification."

Publishers Weekly (July 19, 2996) " ... where her grandfather and other visitors would share spellbinding, "porch lies," comically exaggerated stories that often centered on rogues and rascals."

Connections

These stories would make good material for creating reader's theater productions. They are simple and follow a pattern of basic story with a trickster adding the humor or drama to the tale. Few props would be necessary to distinguish the characters which is true to the concept of a readers theater production This will support student learning of sequence as the tales will make little sense if the lines are read out or order..

As examples of culture these stories are a good way to introduce social studies units on the different cultures. Trickster tales can be found in most parts of the world but there are two areas where they are most often attributed to: North America and Africa. Native Americans have many trickster tales and Venn Diagrams can be created to compare similar tales from both cultures.

The tale with Aunt Gran and the outlaws tells of a time when outlaws roamed the west and can be used during a history unit. There are many tales about the James brothers from many of the people who lived in the area they traveled. It would be an interesting research study for students to look at how different people perceived these two. Students could create a display of how they are portrayed and set it up in the library in an area where books about the old west are shelved.

Just listening to the tales and discussing them will provide excellent practice for students .Listening is a very necessary skill for children and this recording is one that is easy to engage students in and get them to be active listeners.