Heidi Anne Heiner's Blog, page 160

Bargain Book: Twice Upon a Time #1: Rapunzel, The One With All the Hair by Wendy Mass

Twice Upon a Time #1: Rapunzel, The One With All the Hair by Wendy Mass is bargain priced in ebook format right now. The price is $2.51. This is one of three books in a series (not bargain priced) that also includes Twice Upon a Time #2: Sleeping Beauty, The One Who Took the Really Long Nap and Twice Upon a Time #3: Beauty and the Beast, the Only One Who Didn't Run Away.

Book description:

The girl's stuck in a tower. The boy's stuck in a castle. There are two sides to every story....Rapunzel is having the ultimate bad day. She's been stolen by a witch, may have a ghost for a roommate, and doesn't even have a decent brush for her hair.Prince Benjamin's got it pretty tough, too. His father wants him to be more kingly, his mother wants him to never leave her sight, and his cousin wants to get him into as much trouble as possible (possibly with a troll).Both Rapunzel and Prince Benjamin are trapped--in very different ways. Once their paths cross, well, that's when things get really strange.Journey back to the days when fairy tales were true with this fun and fresh spin on a timeless tale!

 

Around the World: Folktales of the Amazon by Juan Carlos Galeano

Folktales of the Amazon by Juan Carlos Galeano is today's selection for Around the World folktales.

Book description:

Here are forty-one tales gathered from Amazonian fishermen, hunters, lodgers, small plot farm gardeners, and villagers in Venezuela, Guyana, Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Colombia and Ecuador. Organized thematically, these tales for mature readers convey messages of kinship bonds and reciprocity, capturing the socialized relationships between peoples, animals, plants, places and a variety of shape-shifting supernatural entities. Often shocking or hair-raising, some of these tales even range into illicit topics, such as cannibalism and psychotropic plants.

JUAN CARLOS GALEANO is a poet, translator and filmmaker who has worked extensively in the Amazon basin. He grew up in the Amazon region of Colombia and is a professor at Florida State University.

Table of Contents:

Chapter 1: Tales of Origin
Chapter 2: Tales about Anacondas and Boas
Chapter 3: Tales about Dolphins and Other Aquatic Seducers
Chapter 4: Tales of Beasts and Forest Defenders
Chapter 5: Tales of Dark and Malevolent Shamans
Chapter 6: Tales of Punishment for Ill Behavior
Chapter 7: Tales of Special Places, Plants, and Birds

Around the World: Brazilian Folktales (World Folklore Series) byLivia Maria M de Almeida, Ana Maria Portella (Editor), Margaret Read MacDonald (Editor)

Brazilian Folktales (World Folklore Series) by Livia Maria M de Almeida, Ana Maria Portella (Editor), Margaret Read MacDonald (Editor) is today's featured collection of folktales from Around the World.

Book description:

Brazil, the largest country in South America, covers a vast terrain that ranges from the tropical rain forests of the Amazon basin and upland farms, to towering mountains and sandy beaches; from highly populated urban centers to virtually inaccessible interior jungle regions. Its population is composed of indigenous peoples (e.g., Tupy, Kaxinawa, Taulipang), people of African descent, those of European (mostly Portuguese) descent, and mixtures of these groups. Drawing on the varied cultural traditions and ethnic diversity of the country, this collection offers readers a rich brew of traditional Brazilian tales--from creation stories and stories of enchantment to animal and trickster tales. More than 40 stories are included, along with background information, color photographs, recipes, and games. There are very few collections of Brazilian folktales currently available in English, and none with this depth and range. This is a wonderful treasury for storytellers, folklorists, and educators. Also a great resource for educators planning units on the Amazon rain forest! All levels.

Table of Contents:

Introduction to Brazil and Brazilian storytelling
The creation of the Amazon River 3
Star fate of the bororo boys 5
How the night came to be 7
The wandering head : how the moon came to be 9
The story of Mani 11
The snake eater 13
The story of the Vitoria Regia, the Amazon water lily 15
The hawk husband 19
The story of Guarana 23
Turtle and Onca, the Jaguar 27
How Agouti (Cotia) fooled Onca 29
Jaguar and goat 31
How turtle tricked Onca 35
Crab with the flying eyes 37
Curupira and the hunter 41
A party in heaven 45
The cockroach's wedding 47
The bald chick 49
Monkey and the corn cake 53
The Louse-skin chair 59
The three sisters and the children with golden stars on their brows 65
Princess Toad 69
The singing grasses 73
The golden jars 75
The old lady in the woods 79
The princess with the seven pairs of shoes 81
The fish mother 85
Pedro Malasartes in the bag 91
Pedro Malasartes and the doll murderer 93
Pedro Malasartes herds pigs 95
Pedro Malasartes sells rabbits 97
The skull takes revenge 101
The devil in a bottle 103
The headless mule 107
Creature of the night 109
The old lady and the monkey 111
The creature of fire 113
The beetle man 115
The girl and the Kibungo 119
The Kibungo and the boy with the sack full of feathers 121
How the blacksmith fooled death 127
The good minister and death 131
Aunt misery's pear tree 133
Brazilian festivals 137
Festival recipes 140

Around the World: Latin American Folktales: Stories from Hispanic and Indian Traditions by John Bierhorst

Latin American Folktales: Stories from Hispanic and Indian Traditions (Pantheon Fairy Tale & Folklore Library) by John Bierhorst is one of the best collections of Latin American folktales and is still available in print and also in ebook format. This one also has a Register of Tale Types and Selected Motifs in its appendices which is a boon to those looking for similar tale types.

Book description from the publisher:

The wisdom and artistry of Latin America's storytellers preserve one of the world's richest folktale traditions--combining the lore of medieval Europe, the ancient Near East, and pre-Columbian America. Among the essential characters are the quiet man's wife who knew the Devil's secrets, the tree daughters who robbed their father's grave, and the wife in disguise who married her own husband--not to mention the Bear's son, the tricksters Fox and Monkey, the two compadres, and the classic rogue Pedro de Urdemalas.

Gathered from twenty countries, including the United States, the stories are here brought together in a core collection of one hundred tales arranged in the form of a velorio, or wake, the most frequent occasion for public storytelling. The tales are preceded by a selection of early Colonial legends foreshadowing the themes of Latino folklore and are followed by a carefully chosen group of modern Indian myths that replay the basic stories in a contrasting key. Riddles, chain riddles, and folk prayers, part and parcel of the velorio along with folktales, are introduced at appropriate junctures.

The collection is unprecedented in size and scope, and most of the tales have not been translated into English before. The result is the first panoramic anthology of Hispano-American folk narratives in any language--meant to be dipped into at random or read straight through from "Once and twice makes thrice upon a time" to "They were happy as the dickens and ate chickens."

About the Author

John Bierhorst's books on Latin American lore include The Mythology of South America and The Mythology of Mexico and Central America. A specialist in the language and literature of the Aztecs, he is the translator of the Cantares Mexicanos and the author of a Nahuatl-English dictionary. He currently serves as an editor of The Norton Anthology of World Literature an has received grants and fellowships from the Americas Society, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Table of Contents

. Preface. .
. Introduction. 3.
. Prologue: Early Colonial Legends. 19.
1. Montezuma / Nahua (Mexico). 22.
I. The Talking Stone. 22.
II. Montezuma's Wound. 25.
III. Eight Omens. 26.
IV. The Return of Quetzalcoatl. 28.
V. Is It You?. 32.
2. Legends of the Inca Kings / Quechua (Peru). 34.
I. Mayta Capac. 34.
II. The Storm. 36.
III. The Vanishing Bride. 38.
IV. A Messenger in Black. 40.
V. The Oracle at Huamachuco. 41.
3. Bringing Out the Holy Word / Mexico (Nahua). 42.
. Folktales: A Twentieth-Century Wake. 45.
4. In the City of Benjamin / Ecuador. 49.
5. Antuco's Luck / Chile. 51.
6. Don Dinero and Dona Fortuna / Dominican Republic. 56.
7. Mistress Lucia / Mexico. 57.
8. St. Peter's Wishes / Cuba. 63.
9. The Coyote Teodora / Honduras. 64.
10. Buried Alive / California. 65.
11. The Three Gowns / Puerto Rico. 67.
12. The Horse of Seven Colors / Venezuela. 72.
13. The Cow / New Mexico. 78.
14. Death and the Doctor / Dominican Republic. 81.
15. What the Owls Said / Mexico (Mazatec). 82.
16. Aunt Misery / Puerto Rico. 84.
17. Palm-tree Story / Colombia. 85.
18. Pedro de Urdemalas. 88.
I. The Letter Carrier from the Other World / Chile. 88.
II. The King's Pigs / Guatemala. 89.
III. The Sack / Chile. 89.
IV. Pedro Goes to Heaven / Argentina. 92.
19. A Voyage to Eternity / Bolivia. 94.
20. Mother and Daughter / Colombia. 98.
21. The Bird Sweet Magic / Costa Rica. 98.
22. Death Comes as a Rooster / Cuba. 103.
23. The Twelve Truths of the World / New Mexico. 104.
. Folk Prayers. 107.
24. The Mouse and the Dung Beetle / Colorado. 111.
25. The Canon and the King's False Friend / New Mexico. 113.
26. The Story That Became a Dream / Chile. 115.
27. St. Theresa and the Lord / Mexico. 118.
28. Rice from Ashes / Argentina. 120.
29. Juan Maria and Juana Maria / Guatemala. 124.
30. The Witch Wife / Colombia. 126.
31. O Wicked World / Argentina. 129.
32. The Three Sisters / Colombia. 130.
33. The Count and the Queen / Colorado. 134.
34. Crystal the Wise / Chile. 137.
35. Love Like Salt / Mexico. 141.
36. The Pongo's Dream / Peru (Quechua). 144.
37. The Fox and the Monkey / Bolivia (Aymara). 147.
38. The Miser's Jar / Guatemala (Kekchi Maya). 149.
39. Tup and the Ants / Mexico (Yucatec Maya). 152.
40. A Master and His Pupil / Guatemala. 155.
41. The Louse-Drum / Panama. 157.
42. The Three Dreams / Guatemala. 159.
43. The Clump of Basil / Puerto Rico. 161.
. Riddles. 164.
44. The Charcoal Peddler's Chicken / Puerto Rico. 173.
45. The Three Counsels / New Mexico. 174.
46. Seven Blind Queens / Chile. 176.
47. The Mad King / Florida. 181.
48. A Mother's Curse / Puerto Rico. 183.
49. The Hermit and the Drunkard / Ecuador. 184.
50. The Noblewoman's Daughter and the Charcoal Woman's Son / Cuba. 185.
51. The Enchanted Cow / Chile. 188.
52. Judas's Ear / New Mexico. 192.
53. Good Is Repaid with Evil / Venezuela. 195.
54. The Fisherman's Daughter / Colombia. 196.
55. In the Beginning / Mexico (Mazatec). 201.
56. How the First People Were Made / Mexico (Zapotec). 202.
57. Adam's Rib / Mexico (Popoluca). 203.
58. Adam and Eve and Their Children / New Mexico (Isleta). 203.
59. God's Letter to Noeh / Mexico (Zapotec). 204.
60. God Chooses Noah / Mexico (Mixe). 205.
61. The Flood / Mixe (Mexico). 207.
62. A Prophetic Dream / Mexico (Mazatec). 208.
63. The White Lily / Ecuador (Quichua). 209.
64. The Night in the Stable / Guatemala (Quiche Maya). 209.
65. When Morning Came. 210.
I. Why Did It Dawn? / Mexico (Nahua). 210.
II. That Was the Principal Day / Mexico (Tzotzil Maya). 211.
66. Three Kings / New Mexico (Isleta). 211.
67. The Christ Child as Trickster / Ecuador (Quichua). 212.
68. Christ Saved by the Firefly / Cakchiquel Maya (Guatemala). 213.
69. Christ Betrayed by Snails / Belize (Kekchi Maya). 214.
70. Christ Betrayed by the Magpie-jay / Mexico (Tzotzil Maya). 214.
71. The Blind Man at the Cross / Mexico (Mazatec). 214.
72. The Cricket, the Mole, and the Mouse / Mexico (Mazatec). 216.
73. As If with Wings / Mexico (Mazatec). 218.
74. Slowpoke Slaughtered Four / Puerto Rico. 219.
75. The Price of Heaven and the Rain of Caramels / Mexico. 221.
76. Pine Cone the Astrologer / Panama. 224.
77. The Dragon Slayer / Mexico. 225.
78. Johnny-boy / Nicaragua. 229.
79. The Rarest Thing / Guatemala. 230.
80. Prince Simpleheart / Costa Rica. 232.
81. The Flower of Lily-Lo / Mexico. 236.
82. My Garden Is Better Than Ever / Mexico (Popoluca). 238.
83. Juan Bobo and the Pig / Puerto Rico. 239.
84. The Parrot Prince / Chile. 240.
. Chain Riddles. 245.
85. A Dead Man Speaks / Texas. 251.
86. The Bear's Son / Honduras (Lenca). 252.
87. Charity / Argentina. 259.
88. Riches Without Working / Mexico (Nahua). 260.
89. Let Somebody Buy You Who Doesn't Know You / Guatemala. 262.
90. The Mouse King / Bolivia. 264.
91. Mariquita Grim and Mariquita Fair / Cuba. 266.
92. The Compadre's Dinner / Dominican Republic. 270.
93. The Hog / Colorado. 272.
94. Two Sisters / Puerto Rico. 272.
95. The Ghosts' Reales / Dominican Republic. 274.
96. The Bad Compadre / Guatemala (Cakchiquel Maya). 277.
97. Black Chickens / Mexico (Tepecano). 283.
98. Doublehead / El Salvador (Pipil). 286.
99. Littlebit / Chile. 288.
100. Rosalie / Mexico (Yucatec Maya). 293.
101. A Day Laborer Goes to Work / Mexico (Otomi). 297.
102. The Moth / Peru (Quechua). 303.
103. The Earth Ate Them / Argentina. 304.
. Epilogue: Twentieth-Century Myths. 307.
104. Why Tobacco Grows Close to Houses / Kogi (Colombia). 310.
105. The Buzzard Husband / Tzotzil Maya (Mexico). 310.
106. The Dead Wife / Miskito (Nicaragua). 314.
107. Romi Kumu Makes the World / Barasana (Colombia). 315.
108. She Was Thought and Memory / Kogi (Colombia). 316.
109. Was It Not an Illusion? / Witoto (Colombia). 317.
110. The Beginning Life of the Hummingbird / Mbya Guarani (Paraguay). 318.
111. Ibis Story / Yamana (Chile). 319.
112. The Condor Seeks a Wife / Quechua (Bolivia). 320.
113. The Priest's Son Becomes an Eagle / Zuni (New Mexico). 322.
114. The Revolt of the Utensils / Tacana (Bolivia). 325.
115. The Origin of Permanent Death / Shuar (Ecuador). 326.
. Notes. 329.
. Register of Tale Types and Selected Motifs. 363.
. Glossary of Native Cultures. 369.
. Bibliography. 373.
. Permissions Acknowledgments. 385

Graham Joyce's Top 10 Fairy Fictions

     
So what do all of these titles have in common? They are on Graham Joyce's top 10 fairy fictions. Well, I'm missing one for which I couldn't find a good image and link.
 
From the article:

I'm very careful to avoid the "F" word. They don't like it. And anyway, I've stepped away from the obvious "retelling of fairytale" candidates. Recasting fairytales has become a publishing sub-genre in itself, and has been done both well and to the point of entropy. More interesting are those works where the structures of fairytales are abandoned but the world of "fairy" is imported as a delicate spice. In these fictions, magical and impossible content tends to be offered in a more naturalistic mode of storytelling. The effect for the reader is that of riding a shuttle between natural scepticism and open credulity. If there were a film paradigm it would start with Pan's Labyrinth. All of these authors are rule-breakers. I'd call them "fantasists" except that it's a word with an unstable currency; but a sense of awe and dislocation is upheld here, and a new way of knowing is always the prize.

You'll have to click through to read about each title. I can't copy the entire article! But here are US covers and links--and I was happy to see that I already owned several of these. My wishlist is thankful.

And I like that he breaks his own rules. No retellings, he says? But then we are offered Briar Rose. What titles about fairy/faerie would you put on the list? My first thought was Pamela Dean's Tam Lin. Then Diana Wynne Jones' Fire and Hemlock and Elizabeth Marie Pope's The Perilous Gard and Franny Billingsley's The Folk Keeper and MOST DEFINITELY War for the Oaks by Emma Bull and The Grey Horse by R. A. MacAvoy. And probably about 20 others I will remember when I walk away from my computer. Because my brain does that... (And, yes, I have already noticed my list is dominated by Tam Lin. I'm not surprised. Are you?)

Okay, I should do my own post with my titles--and yours--so comment away and we'll try to make a nice, long list! Why should we stop with 10?

   

Fiat Bravo and Snow White and the Huntsman

Okay, so it's been a year for fairy tales and car commercials, too, apparently.

I have to admit I prefer the "Little Red" Volvo Commercial.

Bargain Book: Mythology by Edith Hamilton

Mythology by Edith Hamilton had a price drop this week in ebook format--it may only be temporary as many of these are--and so I myself snatched up a copy. Of course, I own it in paper, but an edition for traveling is always nice!

Book description:

The world-renowned classic that has enthralled and delighted millions of readers with its timeless tales of gods and heroes.

Edith Hamilton's MYTHOLOGY succeeds like no other book in bringing to life for the modern reader the Greek, Roman, and Norse myths that are the keystone of Western culture--the stories of gods and heroes that have inspired human creativity from antiquity to the present.

And off topic, but any fans of Patrick O'Brian have the opportunity to pick up many of his titles for $3.99 right now, too. That's more than half off their previous list price and for some reason about one or two of his titles drop each day, but I imagine these will go up again sooner than later.

New Book: Fairytale Food: Enchanting Recipes to Bring a Little Magic to your Cooking by Lucie Cash

Fairytale Food: Enchanting Recipes to Bring a Little Magic to your Cooking by Lucie Cash was released earlier this year in the UK--here's the Amazon UK link--but can be bought through independent sellers on the US Amazon site. I have several preview pages below so you can see the style of the recipes as well as the table of contents which is always one of the most important elements for evaluating a book like this, of course.

I am not sure if this will get a US edition--it would definitely be edited for US cooking measurements if it were--so this will be unique either way if you enjoy collecting fairy tale inspired cookbooks. (Yes, there have been a few! And there will hopefully be more in the future!) The recipes are not for the kiddie cooking set without lots of assistance from a grown-up--I've included an image of one below.

Book description from the publisher:

If you fancy tucking into a steaming hot bowl of Princess & the Pea Soup, curling up by the fire with a cup of tea and a slab of Hansel & Gretel's House Gingerbread or tickling your taste-buds with a dollop of Tinkerbell's Trifle, then Fairytale Food is for you ...

... Once upon a time, a young(-ish) maiden decided she was fed up with cooking the same old beans on toast and pasta bakes every night; she longed for some magic in her cooking. So she left her cosy cottage (flat in West London), pen and paper in hand and set off to find inspiration in the land of fairytales. For months and months she toiled visiting our best-loved characters; some were wonderfully sweet and generous, others were a bit grumpy and a little scary, but they all gave her ideas, tips and the confidence to create her very own delicious recipes.

Put a bit of magic into your cooking with these recipes inspired by some of our most-loved fairytales.

Preview for CW's Beauty and the Beast

Oh, yes, I am behind on this. Other bloggers have already covered this on their blogs. And I don't have much to say about it. So I've kept putting it off. But I don't want to any longer and I did want it here on the blog.

It has been so long since I've watched the "inspiration" series for this series and I admit the preview inspired me to want to watch the pilot to that series more than this one.

Then there's the poster. Which really disappoints me--and I think misses the mark on the Beast--since I know for a fact that many fan of the original series adored the makeup and beastliness the makeup chair gave Ron Perlman. (And also have affection for his times as Hellboy, too.) This new beast is not a beast! It is rather laughable, actually. Someone has forgotten that a good actor with a great character to play will appeal more to the women viewers than a pretty face that is a dime a dozen on police dramas.

Is anyone else interested in an online viewing party of the original Hamilton/Perlman pilot episode sometime before this new one premieres?


Now I am even more curious about the ABC iteration we will also be treated to. The only recent news on it is that the star, Ruth Bradley, has been retained with ABC on a holding contract--if the series doesn't get picked up or renewed, she can be hired by them for another series, so they are hopeful at that studio.

A Treasury of American Folklore by B. A. Botkin: A Book That Shaped America

The Library of Congress recently released a list of Books That Shaped America.

The Library of Congress, the world’s largest repository of knowledge and information, began a multiyear “Celebration of the Book” with an exhibition on “Books That Shaped America.” The initial books in the exhibition are displayed below.

“This list is a starting point,” said Librarian of Congress James H. Billington. “It is not a register of the ‘best’ American books – although many of them fit that description. Rather, the list is intended to spark a national conversation on books written by Americans that have influenced our lives, whether they appear on this initial list or not.”

Well, imagine my surprise to find a folklore book on the list! That was unexpected. Folklore titles are so often overlooked on lists like these. It is A Treasury of American Folklore by B. A. Botkin. The book is currently out of print--although it has been reprinted a few times since its original 1944 publication.

From the Library of Congress:

Benjamin Botkin headed the Library of Congress’s Archive of American Folksong (now the American Folklife Center) between 1943 and 1945 and previously served as national folklore editor of the Federal Writers’ Project (1938–39), a program of President Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal during the Depression. Botkin was one of the New Deal folklorists who persuasively argued that folklore was relevant in the present and that it was not something that should be studied merely for its historical value. This book features illustrations by Andrew Wyeth, one of America’s foremost realist painters.

So is anyone here familiar with this title and do you think it belongs on the list? I have to admit my personal library doesn't have this particular title, although I own a few American folklore titles. I have ordered a copy so I can explore it since it certainly sounds like an excellent addition to my collection. With 500 tales and 100 songs, it is an excellent resource although I am sure most of the material is repeated in other books I own.

Someday I will focus a little more on American folklore beyond my somewhat cursory knowledge. Although it is much wider than the average person on the street, I couldn't necessarily teach an hour long class off the cuff--yes, that's rather my own litmus test for how well I know a subject. Nevermind a whole semester--could I stand up in front of a group of people and teach an hour long class with little or no preparation? And be accurate and entertaining?