LLAMA AND THE GREAT FLOOD: A Folktale from Peru

Surviving from pre-Columbian times, a stow originally told in Quechua--a language that is still spoken by native Andeans. A certain llama dreams that the world will be flooded. In despair, he grows thin until his exasperated master asks why he refuses to eat, Suddenly able to speak, the llama gives his warning, in time for his master's family to join the wild creatures gathering on the snowy peak of Willka Qutu, so that--though the sea covers the other peaks for five days--they are saved to become the ancestors of all future living things. This flood--in contrast to Noah's--is not described as a consequence of evil; it simply occurs, like a natural event, though it is foretold. Alexander includes commendably careful notes on the story's origins. Her handsome illustrations--panoramic spreads in pen and watercolor--well convey the splendid Andean scenery, including a delightful variety of indigenous beasts. A fine addition to folklore collections.