The Beggar in the Blanket and Other Vietnamese Tales

retold by Gail B. Graham; illustrated by Brigitte Bryan
(contains “The Jeweled Slipper”)

Book reviews Story Characters Use of Magic Country of origin & printable map Related Books

Because of the age of this book, I was unable to find any book reviews. However, I chose to keep this book in the collection. I think the wickedness of the sister, help from the genie, the jeweled slipper, and other aspects of this story are wonderful for comparisons with the other stories.

A father had two daughters: Cam and Tam. Cam was sweet and beautiful, while Tam was short, fat, and homely. Tam was very jealous of her sister.

The father tells his daughters that he will give a jade necklace to whichever daughter catches more fish. Cam caught more fish. Envious Tam tricked her sister by telling her to wade out in the water and get a lotus flower for their father. When she did, Tam stole all of her fish.

Then a genie appears and tells Cam that she will live in a palace and marry a prince. He tells her to take care of a little blue fish swimming in the bottom of her bucket. So Cam took it home and put it in a glass bowl.

Even though Tam got the necklace, she was still jealous of her sister. So when Cam went out to get wood, she killed the fish and buried the bones beneath a tree.

When Cam came home and discovered that her fish was missing, she cried herself to sleep. A rooster who told her to follow him waked her. When she did, he led her to the tree and told her to dig a hole.

When she found the bones of her fish, she began to cry. Then the genie appeared again. He told her to bury the fish bones under her bed and wait 100 days. She did as she was told and when she went to dig them up, she found a pair of jeweled slippers instead.

One day when working in the rice paddies, a black crow snatched one of her slippers and carried it away. When he gets tired of carrying it, he drops it in the middle of the royal gardens.

When the king’s son discovers it, he decides he wants to marry its owner. Messengers are sent to try it on every girl in the kingdom. When he tried it on Cam, it fit perfectly. The prince wants to marry Cam immediately.

Tam became very jealous of her sister. She asks Cam to go with her into the forest to look for the bridal garland. When in the forest, Tam hit Cam on the head with a stick. When Cam fell to the ground, Tam ran away.

An old woman found Cam and nursed her back to health. Although she recovered physically, she could not remember who she was or what had happened.

The Prince never stopped searching for his bride. One day he came to the hut of the old woman. He saw Cam and pulled out the jeweled slipper. As soon as Cam saw it, her memory came back. The prince rewarded the old woman for her kindness.

Tam hoped for special favors now that her sister was married to the Prince. When Tam asked Cam why her skin is so soft and smooth, Cam tells her that she bathes in boiling water. Tam then, ran and leapt in a vat of boiling water. That was the last that anyone saw of her. Cam and the Prince lived in the palace happily ever after.

Ong Ba - He is the father of Cam and Tam. He has his daughters compete for a necklace. After the necklace is given, he is not mentioned again.

Cam - She is sweet and beautiful. She marries the Prince.

Tam - She is short, fat, and homely. She is dishonest and jealous of her sister. She essentially tries to kill her sister. In the end, she leaps into boiling water and is never seen again.

Genie - He gives Cam a fish to make her feel better. He also gives her a pair of jeweled slippers. He promises Cam that she will be married to a Prince.

Prince - After finding Cam’s slipper, he decides he must marry its owner.

Old Woman - She takes care of Cam and nurses her back to health.

A genie appears in the beginning and gives Cam a fish. When Tam kills the fish, the genie tells Cam to bury the bones and dig them up in one hundred days. When she dug them up, the bones had vanished and lovely jeweled slippers were in their place.

Also, there is mention of a talking animal. When Cam could not find her fish, a rooster crowed that if she would give him some grain, he would show her the fish. When she gave him the grain, he took her to the tree, and told her to dig. There were the bones of her fish.

According to Condra-Peters, “children are expected to obey and honor their parents at all times”. (22). We see this in the beginning of the story when Ong Ba tells his daughters to run and find their buckets and fishing nets because he wants a platter of fried fish for supper. Neither of them questions their father. They do as they are told. “Parents look to their children to care for them as they grow old” (Condra-Peters 22).

“Most people in Vietnam live near the Red River in the North or the Mekong River in the South” (O’Connor 6). Thus, fish and vegetables can be traditional Vietnamese meals (Merrick 25). This is why the father probably was expecting a fish dinner.

“Most Vietnamese farmers grow rice on their wide, wet rice paddies” (O’Connor 16). This would explain why Cam was working in the rice paddies when a crow carried away one of her slippers. Finally, Vietnam is covered in green fields, tropical rain forests, and leafy jungles (O’Connor 8). This would explain the setting at the end of the story when Tam leaves her sister for dead in the forest.

Condra-Peters, Amy. Countries of the World: Vietnam. Milwaukee. Gareth Stevens, 2002.

Merrick, Patrick. Vietnam. The Child’s World, 2001.

O’Connor, Karen. A Ticket to Vietnam. Minneapolis: Carolrhoda Books, 1999.