The Princess As Role Model
I’ve always been attracted to fairytales. I knew I was a storyteller long before I knew I’d be a writer: I took on my father’s mantle, and told epic bedtime stories to my brother and sister, at an early age, and my father’s stories (also epic, endless episodes from the same saga, about the same characters) were all based on a traditional tale, the one about a girl who finds out that she once had seven brothers, who were banished and turned into crows when she was born. It has many variants, but from internal evidence the original must be the Moroccan one (The Girl Who Banished Seven). Naturally, she sets off to find them and rescue them from the enchantment. That’s typical of a fairytale princess (she’s one of those who becomes a princess by marriage, but it’s all the same to me). They do the right thing. They stand up to evil step-mothers, and no task is impossible...
Turn again, Whittington, Lord Mayor of London!
Turn again, Whittington, thrice Mayor of London!
Is ‘Dick Whittington and his Cat’ really a fairytale? I’m going to call it one. Even though there is no actual magic (but see below), most of the ingredients are there: the poor and naive youth, the quest, the hardship, and at least a semi-supernatural element in the prophecy of the Bow Bells, calling the young Whittington back from Highgate Hill. I would argue that ‘Dick Whittington’ is not just a fairytale, but a particularly interesting one, being the only one (to my knowledge) that features a real person.
The historical Richard Whittington, of course, was Lord Mayor a total of four times (but legend ignores that as it doesn’t scan). Also, he was never particularly poor, and no-one knows if he really kept a cat. According to my diligent academic research (Wikipedia), the story’s origins lie further back, in a Persian folktale of a youth and his cat, onto which the legend of Whittington was later grafted. We can only guess the reason for this, but by all accounts Richard W was an all-round good egg and probably deserved it.
starts with nine articles about mermaids and such and several of them reference the logs of sea captains who recorded encounters with mermaids. Henry Hudson and Christopher Columbus are the most frequently quoted due to their fame. Here is one of the excerpts about Hudson:A remarkable reference to these fabulous creatures is contained in the following passage in the “Second Voyage or Employment of Master Henry Hudson, for finding a passage to the East Indies by the North-East,” written by himself.—“June 15, 1608, lat. North, 75° 7’. This morning one of the companie looking overboard saw a mermaid, and calling up some of the companie to see her, one more came up, and by that time she was come close to the ship’s side, looking earnestly on the men; a little after a sea came and overturned her; from the navill upward her back and breasts were like a woman’s, (as they say that saw her,) her body as big as one of us, her skin verie white, and long haire and hanging downe behind, of colour blacke; in her going downe they saw her tayle, which was like the tayle of a porposs, and speckled like a macrell. Their names that saw her were Thomas Hilles and Robert Rayner.”
is now available for ordering through Amazon. It will begin appearing in other outlets soon.
by Ari Berk is great if you are looking for a mermaid book for middle readers and up. Not that adults can't enjoy it but the information is offered in bits and pieces similar to Wizardology
and Dragonology. The children in my life adore these books and most adults have affection for them. The Secret History of Mermaids has enough information to spark a search for the full stories as well as a nice diversity of mermaids beyond the standard. Since ancient times, seafarers and coast-dwellers the world over have reported encounters with merpeople. Variously known as Finfolk, Dinny Mara, Nereids, Blue Men, and Merrymaids, merfolk have been the source of both gifts and disasters for humankind. Now a lavishly illustrated resource offers insight into the lives, origins, language, and magic of these elusive peoples. Like a siren’s song, this fascinating tome is sure to enthrall all who fall under its spell. Special features include:Here's Ari Berk's bio:
— paper novelties — including sundry flaps, booklets, and gatefolds
— a lavish cover with foil, embossing, and glittery jewels
— an elegant tassel dangling from the spine
Ari Berk is a writer, visual artist, and scholar of literature, folklore, and myth. He has written everything from academic works on ancient cultures to popular books about myths for children and adults. A professor at Central Michigan University in Mount Pleasant, Michigan, Ari Berk has traveled widely and made friends (aquatic and otherwise) in many parts of the world.Which means he brings a depth and knowledge that is often missing in similar books. He grounds his work in scholarly research which brings authenticity to this one and its companion, The Secret History of Giants
.
Okay, so I just became a lot more interested in Snow White and the Huntsman which starts filming in August if all goes well.
From Ray Winstone Rounds Out Cast of Dwarfs in 'Snow White and the Huntsman' (Exclusive) by Borys Kit at The Hollywood Reporter:
Ray Winstone is in negotiations to round out the casting of the warrior dwarfs in Universal’s Snow White and the Huntsman, the action adventure take on the classic fairy tale being directed by Rupert Sanders.The only concern is that they will all disappear into this large ensemble, but they could also make the movie very much worth the price of admission...
The studio went whole hog with its dwarf casting this week, entering dealmaking with Ian McShane, Eddie Izzard, Bob Hoskins and Toby Jones as well as Eddie Marsan and Stephen Graham.
Kristen Stewart, Charlize Theron and Chris Hemsworth star in the project, about a princess who escapes her evil stepmother with the help of a huntsman who was to have killed her but now trains the princess to survive and fight back.
In the script, the dwarfs are named after Roman emperors with McShane playing the group’s leader, Caesar, Jones as a timid dwarf named Claudius and Izzard playing Tiberius, described as the biggest and burliest of the crew. Hoskins will play Constantine, a blind dwarf, Graham an angry-looking dwarf named Nero.
Winstone is playing Trajan, the twin brother of Hadrian (Marsan).
, and some perceptions of it as a horror genre book. Her thoughts are interesting and I am on her side. I don't consider Deerskin a horror novel as horrific as a few elements are. Here is an excerpt with her thoughts on fairy tales in the midst of the discussion:The line between fairy tales and horror for me—and for a number of you who have posted or commented or tweeted to this effect—is that fairy tales tend to be about working through your traumas, your horrors, your fears, your great big insurmountable obstacles. Horror tends to plonk them down and say yup, there they are. Trauma, horror, fear and insurmountable obstacles. Have fun. People die in fairy tales and the happy endings may be a little crinkly around the edges but generally some kind of something worth having is won through to. In horror . . . at best you learn coping mechanisms, you build your enclaves. The zombies and the vampires don’t go away. I believe that Lissar is going to be okay. She’s won. She’ll always have the scars—but she’s won.I read Deerskin when it was first released years ago and was young and not expecting what dwelt between the covers. I shy away from the horror genre, too, with very few exceptions. Deerskin is not for the faint of heart but it is a powerful, wonderful book and has had a lasting impact on fairy tale novelizations. I know that many of my horror adoring friends would shy away from this book because it is all too real, not fantastical or horrific enough. Yes, perception is personal. Too bad we need genre to help us narrow down the thousands of choices at times. I read more and more across genres so I value them but also agonize over them and the prejudices inherent against them. And I am not anti-horror any more than I am anti other genres. It just isn't my personal taste.
by Gwen Benwell and Sir Arthur Waugh. A second edition was issued a few years later. I haven't seen that one but I haven't seen any description stating it is expanded. Used copies of either edition are rare and expensive and I acquired one during the process of compiling my own Mermaid and Other Water Spirit Tales From Around the World. . In Sea Enchantress the focus is on European lore as well as lore from "New World," in other words, the Americas. Africa and Asia are mostly neglected.. (The table of contents for Mermaid and Other Water Spirit Tales From Around the World is available here.)This weekend I was in Odense - H.C. Andersen's hometown - and mine ;O) I was at Hotel H.C. Andersen...and saw these beautiful cobber sculpture groups consisting of three large pillars by the artist Jens Galschiøt. The ornamentations are inspired by the fairy tales of H.C. Andersen.She shared about a dozen pictures, close-ups and studies mostly, so I wanted to share a few here and encourage you to look at all of them on her blog. She shares many beautiful images on her blog and I enjoy visiting it regularly.
by Mercedes Lackey (also availabe as ebook
) was released earlier this month. (I don't know why I thought it was a July release.) I enjoyed the early Elemental Masters books, such as The Fire Rose
and The Serpent's Shadow
, but the more recent ones fell flat for me so I haven't rushed to read them. Also, there used to be many less fairy tale inspired novels each year and that has changed, too. I have a hard time keeping up.
was released. But that's far enough off topic now, back to the book at hand.
:A brand-new Elemental Masters novel from the national bestselling author Mercedes Lackey.Anyone else plan to read this one?
Richard Whitestone is an Elemental Earth Master. Blaming himself for the death of his beloved wife in childbirth, he has sworn never to set eyes on his daughter, Suzanne. But when he finally sees her, a dark plan takes shape in his twisted mind-to use his daughter's body to bring back the spirit of his long-dead wife.
, Have His Carcase
, Gaudy Night
and Busman's Honeymoon
, I envy you and your future joy in reading them. Not that I don't experience it every time I reread them and even when I watch the wonderful series that lamentably is missing Busman's Honeymoon
, but it's never the same as the first time. My husband doesn't read voraciously like me, but all the Lord Peter DVDs are in his regular rotation. I knew I chose the right man when he adored Peter and Harriet almost as much as I do.
