Brer Anancy and Brer Pelican (ePub)

This is the first of a series of books on Anansi (ah-NAHN-see) and Turks and Caicos Islands. Anansi, the spider, is a popular figure in the folklore of parts of West Africa (the stories later came with slaves to the Caribbean Islands such as Turks and Caicos Islands) The many tales throughout the years and the chief character was about a spider god named Anancy. The word Ananse, a spider, is from the Twi language of West Africa; it also means creator because he makes something out of nothing (i.e., his web). His web was often referred as Anancy rope. Sometimes, when old women are sleeping, he would tie up their faces with his rope. Anancy was thought to be witty, wise, crafty, and swift. He was thought to be a mischief-maker who could out-think, out-speak, and even tell lies more than everyone else because he could make up as he goes along. Anancy was always in control of the situations and with everyone. He never got caught because it was believed that he could take many forms, for example men, women, animals, etc. But sometimes, he does get caught up in his web of greed. Stories of Anancy were passed from generation to generation. This is how one of the stories goes . . . Brer Anancy and Brer Pelican Book is about a spider called Brer Anancy, who lives in South Caicos and always wanted to travel to Grand Turk to see the landmarks on the island. He wanted to see the Friendship 7 space shuttle, the replica of the shuttle that John Glen had landed on Grand Turk with, and Waterloo, the governors resident. He thought on ways to get to Grand Turk and decided to trick Brer Pelican. Brer Pelican is the national bird of Turks and Caicos Islands and is always flying around the islands. Brer Anancy knew what Brer Pelican liked to eat and tricked him to take him to Grand Turk.