★★★★☆ A real challenge

The Too-Clever Fox

Leigh Bardugo

The Too-Clever Fox is a Ravkan folktale (about 5600 words) mentioned in Siege and Storm as a comparison with Nikolai. I found it here, but it is also included in the collection The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic.

The hero of The Too-Clever Fox is Koja, the runt of a litter of foxes. His mother means to eat him after birth, but he flatters her and lives. There follows a series of very short stories (typically a few paragraphs each) that serve to introduce Koja. You will recognize him. He is Coyote, Anansi, Br'er Rabbit, Puck, the Monkey King, Hikoichi-san, and of course Reynard. He flatters, deceives, makes deals and makes friends, and manages to survive a dangerous world.

The story kicks into a higher gear when Koja faces a real challenge, someone as smart and deceptive as himself. For once he finds himself in real danger, and needs help from a friend, who is not only clever, but wise.

The Too-Clever Fox

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