"I Bought Me A Dog A Dozen Authentic Folktales From The Southern Mountains" Collected by Leonard Roberts--Book Review

Dr. Leonard Roberts--Photo by Lynneda Stansbury

Dr. Leonard Ward Roberts, Ph. D., was the premier folklorist and collector of both folk tales and folk songs during his tragically abbreviated career which ended on April 26, 1988, at the age of 71 when he was involved in a fatal wreck with a coal truck as he was pulling onto US 23 at the mouth of Mare Creek near Betsy Layne in Floyd County Kentucky where he had lived most of his life. He published a total of 8 books during his career, all of which were collections of folktales or folksongs from Central and Southern Appalachia except for "The McCoys: Their Story" which was about the famous McCoy family of the notorious feud along the Kentucky/West Virginia border.  This little book we are discussing was the first of his published books and is actually more a pamphlet than a full fledged book; but, it is well worth reading if you can locate a copy.  It was published in 1954 by the Council of The Southern Mountains in Berea, Kentucky, and was reprinted in at least 20 printings until at least 1982.  But, I suspect that most of those printings were small and the book is difficult to find.  At the time of its publication, this book was apparently popular enough with lovers of folklore and Appalachian Studies that it did sell several hundred to a few thousand copies.  Good luck if you try to find a copy! 

The book is a pamphlet of 48 unnumbered pages and contains 12 Appalachian folktales and 13 Appalachian riddles.  It is a fun read whether or not you have ever been exposed to the folktale format which traveled with the early settlers from the British Isles to the colonies in America, and thence across the Cumberland Gap into the heart of Appalachia where the social isolation of the mountains can be credited with at least part of their ability to survive into the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. These kinds of oral folktales exist in many forms in nearly all areas and cultures of the world.  In a way, what it boils down to is that after a long day as a hunter gatherer, it was comforting and pleasurable around the family fire to tell or listen to fantastic stories being told by anyone who was willing to stand up and speak out in the folktale form.  Thousands, if not millions, of these folktales arose and were preserved by both tellers and listeners, some of whom went on to either become or rear future court jesters, bards, balladeers, and strolling minstrels. Roberts devoted his life to teaching in several Kentucky colleges, (Berea College, Morehead State University, Union College, and Pikeville College) collecting folktales and folk songs, and to publishing as the driving force of what became the Pikeville College Press.  The tales in this little book represent several types of the genre and include one, "The Candy Doll", which Roberts says, in the brief introduction, is the only version he has ever seen of it in America.  It is a witch story which Roberts says he collected from a 12 year old girl in Leslie County Kentucky. Actually, another of the stories was also provided to Roberts by a different young girl in Eastern Kentucky. The "Candy Doll" contains what Roberts calls the element of "Murder by Sympathetic Magic".  There are also folktales in the collection which represent giant tales; hunting tales; wise fox tales; and another which is sometimes referred to as his most well known, "Raglif, Jaglif, Tetarlif, Pole", which is about a man attempting to escape from the clutches of a giant.  

This is a fine little book to utilize to introduce yourself both to the work of Leonard Roberts and to the field of Appalachian Folklore.  If you cannot locate a copy of this book, you can generally always find copies of "Up Cutshin & Down Greasy" or "South From Hell-Fer-Sartin".  Reading any of Leonard Roberts' books will also serve as a wonderful introduction to that ever growing group of Big Sandy River Valley natives such as Dr. Roberts, The Judds, Crystal Gayle, Chris Stapleton, Molly O'Day, Loretta Lynn, Cratis Williams, and US Supreme Court Chief Justice Fred Vinson who have, over the last century plus, wielded such a powerful cultural influence on the entire nation in roles as varied as academic scholar, supreme court justice, Bluegrass singer, country singer college basketball coach, and ballet dancer.