Tales of Giants from Brazil

In Short

This collection brings together twelve folk stories from Brazil, where old European fairy-tale patterns meet a vast, tropical landscape. Simple lads outwit towering monsters, youngest sons win true love through patience, and clever animals solve the problems that leave princes helpless. Giant rivers, magic animals, and shape-shifting maidens move through a world where kind speech matters more than gold. Elsie Spicer Eells wrote down these tales after listening to local storytellers, keeping their swift pace, plain style, and light good humor. It survives as a warm, accessible window into traditional South American folklore.

The Story

The book moves across twelve separate tales, each showing how ordinary people and magical creatures interact with the giant forces of the Brazilian wilderness. In the opening story, the Princess of the Springs wanders the world searching for her lost mother, the Giantess of the Great River, who has been carried off and imprisoned by a land giant. With the help of the Giant of the Great Wind—who storms the castle while the princess digs quietly beneath the walls—the mother is freed and restored to her mother-of-pearl palace.

Other tales follow younger brothers who succeed where their elders fail. When a king loses his sight, his three sons set out to fetch water from the fountain of Giantland. The two oldest princes lose their money through gaming and festas, ignore warnings along the way, and end up as slaves to a giant. The youngest prince, a mere boy who watched over a lemon tree at home, travels carefully, rescues his brothers, and cures his father's eyes. Though his jealous brothers throw him overboard on the return journey, he survives by working for a poor fisherman until the truth comes out and he marries the princess he saved.

Courage and cleverness repeatedly overcome brute force. A boy playing a violin makes a sad giant princess laugh for the first time in her life, winning half the giant kingdom and the obedience of its massive inhabitants. A fisherman's son, given away at birth to a river giant, uses keys left in his care to find secret rooms containing lions and horses, eventually outperforming all the king's knights in hunting giant beasts. In another adventure, a young man receives magical gifts—a scale, a piece of wool, a feather—from his brothers-in-law (the Kings of the Fishes, Rams, and Pigeons) to help him destroy a monster whose life is hidden inside an egg, inside a pigeon, inside a stone at the bottom of the sea.

Even when giants act as teachers, their human pupils must stay sharp. The forest lad Manoel learns the secrets of rain, thunder, and wild beasts from a friendly giant, then uses that knowledge to answer riddles at court. Elsewhere, a poor man named Domingo acquires a remarkably clever cat who digs up gold, tricks the king into providing royal clothes, and turns a hostile forest giant into a piece of bacon before eating him. The book ends with the cat slipping away into the jungle to help another poor family, leaving Domingo happily settled in a palace.

How It Unfolds

The lost mother found The Princess of the Springs travels the earth to rescue her mother from a land giant, enlisting the Giant of the Great Wind to batter down the castle walls while she digs a tunnel into the dungeon.

The quest for the fountain Three brothers journey to Giantland for magical water to cure their father's blindness, but only the youngest avoids the traps along the path and remains loyal to his promises.

Music in the land of giants A little boy takes his violin and a group of dancing animals into the high court of the giant king, making the sad giantess laugh for the first time and winning half a kingdom.

Escaping the forest cave A prince following a swift hare finds himself trapped in a giant's cavern, where he must use his wits, a magic boot, and the aid of animal kings to break a princess's enchantment.

Flight of the shape-shifters A young man and a giant's daughter flee across the countryside, constantly altering their forms into rivers, old men, churches, and priests to confuse her pursuing parents.

The cat's final triumph An resourceful cat wins a kingdom for his poor master Domingo by tricking a king, turning a mountain giant into bacon, and disappearing into the jungle to find his next project.

The People

The Youngest Prince A gentle boy who cares for his garden trees and dogs while his older brothers gamble away their fortunes. He meets every danger with steady patience, survives his brothers' treachery by working contentedly in a fisherman's hut, and ultimately wins both his health and his bride through quiet loyalty.

Guimara The clever daughter of a powerful giant who falls in love with the mortal D. João. She possesses deep magic and quick wits, transforming herself and her companion into rivers, old men, churches, and altars to shield them from her father's wrath during their desperate escape.

Domingo's Cat An amazingly capable animal companion who takes charge of a poor man's life. He digs up treasure, invents elaborate excuses to trick the king, and disposes of a dangerous forest giant in a single bite without ever asking for credit or reward.

The Giant of the Great Wind A massive, stormy figure who initial rages through his house after a hard day's work, but shows immediate kindness to the Spring Princess once he settles down, using his swift horses and great strength to help her break into a dungeon.

In Its Own Voice

Before the Giant of the Great Wind agrees to help the search, his old father prepares him by asking how he would treat a visitor:

"O my son, if a wandering princess had come this way on purpose to ask you a question, what would you do to her?"

When the young prince reaches the hidden entrance, he finds an old woman guarding the door who identifies him instantly despite his ragged clothes:

"The princess told me that I would know you by the smile in your eyes," replied the old ama.

After the clever cat disposes of the castle's former owner and settles his master into a grand life, he quietly takes his leave:

He disappeared in the jungle and went to make some other poor man rich.

What It's Really About

Behind the simple plots of monsters, princesses, and magical items, these stories explore how vulnerable people survive in an enormous, unpredictable world. The giants represent the massive, overwhelming forces of nature—floods, dense forests, sweeping winds, and endless rivers—that early settlers and native peoples had to navigate. Victory rarely comes through sheer muscle or military force; instead, it belongs to those who show kindness to small creatures, keep their promises, and pay attention to their surroundings. The tales argue that patience, humor, and humility are far more useful than gold or status.

Why Read It Today

These tales carry a light, swift energy that makes them a pleasure to read aloud or finish in a single sitting. Elsie Spicer Eells writes in clean, direct prose that preserves the rhythm of spoken storytelling without adding literary clutter. Readers who enjoy folklore, classic fairy tales, or South American history will appreciate seeing how familiar European story patterns transformed when planted in the vast tropical landscapes of Brazil.

The collection does reflect the period in which it was collected and published (1918), featuring simple characterizations, traditional gender roles, and straightforward morality where bad brothers are thrown in prison and good sons are instantly rewarded with kingdoms. Modern readers will easily recognize the timeless charm of the stories themselves: the sheer imagination of river palaces made of mother-of-pearl, cats that eat giants turned into bacon, and butterflies that carry princesses away on their wings. It is an uncomplicated, joyful collection that leaves you with a lingering sense of wonder about the vastness of the natural world.