One Potato, Two Potato: The Folklore of American Children

by Herbert Knapp and Mary Knapp

Book Overview

The purpose of this book is to show how children use their traditional lore to cope with the stresses of their lives and to learn what it means to be a member of a human society. The subjects' ages ranged from grade-school children through college freshman, located in forty-three states, the Virgin Islands, the Canal Zone, and American military bases abroad. The materials in this collection were drawn from a random sample.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0393090396
• ISBN13: 9780393090390
• Release Date: March 1978
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.3" x 8.2"
• Age Range: 9 to 12 years
• Grade Range: Grades 4 to 7

Customer Reviews

A very interesting collection of material.

I actually read this book when I was in 6th or 7th grade. I could tell it was "for adults" and yet I found many good stories and rhymes in it suitable for my own uses (especially that story about the dog!) -- and I remember reading about some of the dark meanings behind the clapping games and jumprope songs I played as a kid. It was interesting to read it at that age and recognize both the things "kids" didn't "get" about the games, rhymes etc. but also the things that "adults" didn't "get" about our use of these things.

Great book, but not for preschoolers

Oops! Whoever assigned the reading level to this book was confused. This is a book for adults on the history and meaning of children's folklore. I first read it for a class I took on multicultural education, and now use it sometimes in a college course I teach on play. It's fascinating and brings back a lot of childhood memories. It has words to rhymes I had forgotten and directions for making the fortune tellers we used when I was in grade school. It's a wonderful book, but parents who order it for their young children will be disappointed!

Games children play - and where the games came from....

One Potato, Two Potato is the story of children's games, chants, jump-rope rhymes, and school yard folklore. I first encountered this book when I was in college (about 20 years ago), and was enchanted with the amount of research done for this work. I was also amazed at the memories it brought back, and the sheer amount of "stuff" I have forgotten over the years. Reading it again brings back memories of both times, college and childhood.