Uncle Remus


Read by Mark F. Smith

(4.6 stars; 144 reviews)

Many readers will already be familiar with Uncle Remus’ favorite animal characters – Br’er Rabbit and Br’er Fox among them – and some of the popular tales concerning them. (To this day, “tar baby” as an expression for a particularly sticky situation that is almost impossible to solve, has passed into the English language and common use.) Even people who have never read any of these tales will know exactly why you don’t throw a rabbit into a briar patch, mainly because Walt Disney produced his first movie ever to use professional actors with animation, called “Song of the South”, based on the Uncle Remus tales.

Joel Chandler Harris, a newsman in Georgia, grew up listening to folktales told by the local black population. Later, he published his version of these tales in a series of stories printed in the “Atlanta Constitution.” The tales of, and by, Harris’ chief character Uncle Remus, an old black man scrabbling to make his living in the post-Civil War South, were extremely popular and widely read. Harris’ use of innovative spelling to give the reader a sense of the black dialect was considered novel.

While this is not a book that will pass a current political correctness test, due to its use of labels for black folks which have gone out of polite conversation, Uncle Remus is a largely sympathetic look at post-war plantation life. Uncle Remus himself is a warm, folksy man of good humor and dry wit, and after finishing his animal stories, the remaining sayings and tales are a moment of history frozen in amber. (Summary by Mark) (6 hr 12 min)

Chapters

1 - 01 - Uncle Remus initiates the Little Boy 6:45 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 02 - The Wonderful Tar-Baby Story 5:48 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 03 - Why Mr. Possum loves Peace 6:46 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 04 - How Mr. Rabbit was too sharp for Mr. Fox 5:26 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 05 - The Story of the Deluge, and how it came about 6:06 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 06 - Mr. Rabbit grossly deceives Mr. Fox 9:26 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 07 - Mr. Fox is again victimized 8:51 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 08 - Mr. Fox is outdone by Mr. Buzzard 6:11 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 09 - Miss Cow falls a Victim to Mr. Rabbit 9:04 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 10 - Mr. Terrapin appears upon the Scene 8:44 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 11 - Mr. Wolf makes a Failure 7:34 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 12 - Mr. Fox tackles Old Man Tarrypin 5:26 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 13 - The Awful Fate of Mr. Wolf 7:40 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 14 - Mr. Fox and the Deceitful Frogs 4:17 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 15 - Mr. Fox goes a-hunting, but Mr. Rabbit bags the Game 4:34 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 16 - Old Mr. Rabbit, he's a Good Fisherman 6:35 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 17 - Mr. Rabbit nibbles up the Butter 9:04 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 18 - Mr. Rabbit finds his Match at last 8:22 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 19 - The Fate of Mr. Jack Sparrow 9:13 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 20 - How Mr. Rabbit saved his Meat 9:00 Read by Mark F. Smith
# 1 - 21 - Mr. Rabbit meets his Match again 5:16 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 22 - A Story about the Little Rabbits 6:09 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 23 - Mr. Rabbit and Mr. Bear 6:02 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 24 - Mr. Bear catches Old Mr. Bull-Frog 7:20 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 25 - How Mr. Rabbit lost his Fine Bushy Tail 6:08 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 26 - Mr. Terrapin shows his Strength 7:47 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 27 - Why Mr. Possum has no Hair on his Tail 8:50 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 28 - The End of Mr. Bear 8:04 Read by Mark F. Smith
# 1 - 29 - Mr. Fox gets into Serious Business 8:03 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 30 - How Mr. Rabbit succeeded in raising a Dust 7:28 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 31 - A Plantation Witch 9:55 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 32 - Jacky-my-Lantern 9:09 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 33 - Why the Negro is Black 4:01 Read by Mark F. Smith
# 1 - 34 - The Sad Fate of Mr. Fox 10:06 Read by Mark F. Smith
1 - 35 - Plantation Proverbs 8:07 Read by Mark F. Smith
2 - 1 - Revival Hymn, Camp-Meeting Song, Corn-Shucking Song 9:19 Read by Mark F. Smith
2 - 2 - The Plough-hands Song, Christmas Play-Song, Plantation Play-Song, A Pla… 9:31 Read by Mark F. Smith
2 - 3 - De Big Bethel Church, Time goes by Turns 3:33 Read by Mark F. Smith
3 - A Story of the War 19:53 Read by Mark F. Smith
# 4 - 1 - Jeems Rober'son's Last Illness, Uncle Remus's Church Experience, Uncl… 11:37 Read by Mark F. Smith
4 - 2 - Turnip Salad as a Text, A Confession, Uncle Remus with the Toothache 9:20 Read by Mark F. Smith
4 - 3 - The Phonograph, Race Improvement, In the Role of a Tartar 9:00 Read by Mark F. Smith
4 - 4 - A Case of Measles, The Emigrants, As a Murderer 9:42 Read by Mark F. Smith
# 4 - 5 - His Practical View of Things, That Deceitful Jug, The Florida Waterme… 14:51 Read by Mark F. Smith
# 4 - 6 - Uncle Remus preaches to a Convert, As to Education, A Temperance Refo… 7:21 Read by Mark F. Smith
4 - 7 - As a Weather Prophet, The Old Man's Troubles, The Fourth of July 11:20 Read by Mark F. Smith

Reviews

Uncle Remus: a most beloved story teller


(5 stars)

Well done, Mark! Thank you for a great reading! My Dad used to read Uncle Remus to us. He could do the accent so well. Then he got Parkinsons disease and lost his facial expressions and story telling ability. I have played your recording for him as we traveled to therapy. He has enjoyed it very much.

very good


(5 stars)

A well-done recording of a very entertaining group of stories.

Excellent Uncle Remus!


(5 stars)

I am most impressed with the reading by Mr. Mark Smith. His 'southern negro' voice is wonderful. It is as though I were sitting there with the boy, listening to the old gentleman tell the tales. Thank you for doing the reading, Mr. Smith.

Fond Memories!


(5 stars)

Mr. Smith has a wonderful reading voice. These Uncle Remus stories were read to me as a child at bed time. So nice to discover them again as an adult. It's a little bit of Southern history.


(5 stars)

Thank you so much Mark! Me and my little daughter listen to these stories at bed time. We both love them.


(5 stars)

Glad to have found this book! Now l'd like to find. Song of the South!

Uncle Remus


(5 stars)

Loved the Beer Rabbit stories. Mark Smith is an excellent narrator.

Interesting


(4 stars)

Another tour de force performance by Mark Smith. I found these stories entertaining. Uncle Remus is a wise old benevolent former slave still living on or close to the plantation. He uses the n-word repeatedly and that is uncomfortable and inappropriate in today's society still struggling to come to grips with racial inequality. The stories do give an impression of what the post-war South must havebeen like in some situations. Over all the stories are interesting and entertaining but the whole book should be approached from a careful historical perspective.