The debut of the first two volumes captures the immediate interest of the
general public from North to South Vietnam and abroad[10]. Volume Three
(released in 1960) has established the undeniable position of the author in
the ranks of those involved in the study of folklore in Vietnam, Volumes I,
II and III were reprinted several times before the publication of the Volume
IV in 1975.
Nguyen Dong Chi has established his authority in the collection,
identification and narration of folk stories. Both Le Van Hao and Ta Phong
Chau, though living far apart in Hanoi and Paris respectively, have more or
less unanimous view on the high standards of scholarship of Nguyen Dong
Chi’s works. This is a high representative collection of folk tales from
North to South after long, elaborated and extensive field work, an excellent
comparative study of folk tales from the world in terms of time, space,
typology and motifs in order to arrive at a keen observation of the unique
features of Vietnamese folk tales, Nguyen Dong Chi’s works are also
highly acclaimed for their simple and yet charming narrative style "in
which poetical inspiration is well blended with reality"[11]. Vu Ngoc
Khanh[12] also comments on Nguyen Dong Chi’s unmistakable style such
that readers can easily recognize some of the works of other authors who
"borrow" from his publications for use under different titles or, in some
cases, under the very same tittles. It was not until the full publication of his
works in 1982 that Nguyen Dong Chi’s authority on folklore study and
their classification was solidly confirmed.
Part one of Volume I deals with "the characteristics", "origins" and
"historical development" of Vietnamese folklore. In Part two of Volume V,
