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The fairy tales
I loved fairy tales as a small child, and I continued to read and love them long after my friend outgrew them. My parents had a book on Vietnamese tales, and one with Swedish ones, and later I found Andrew Lang’s Fairy books with tales collected all over the world. I was fascinated that tales like the Cinderella story had many different versions. In the Swedish one, for example, Cinderella went to three balls, dressed first in silver, then gold, then in a bejewelled gown, and though she dropped the shoes, it wasn’t made of glass. She also only had one stepsister, and the story didn’t end with the wedding. No, the stepsister pushed Cinderella into the sea, where she was going to be forced to marry a sea monster, while the stepsister made herself look like Cinderella. Luckily the prince noticed, and managed to save his bride, though not before she was turned into a serpent that he had to dip into three baths, winter, milk and water, to save.
When I was around 10, my mother took a university course on children’s books, and read Bruno Bettelheim’s The Uses of Enchantment, which I picked up and which had a profound impact on my ability to comprehend and analyze my reading. I’se been a long time since I read it, so I’m quoting Wikipedia on it.
Bettelheim analyzed fairy tales in terms of Freudian psychology in “The Uses of Enchantment” (1976). He discussed the emotional and symbolic importance of fairy tales for children, including traditional tales once considered too dark, such as those collected and published by the Brothers Grimm. Bettelheim suggested that traditional fairy tales, with the darkness of abandonment, death, witches, and injuries, allowed children to grapple with their fears in remote, symbolic terms. If they could read and interpret these fairy tales in their own way, he believed, they would get a greater sense of meaning and purpose.
I’ve also realized I missed a book in my list on books which impacted me, namely One Thousand and One Nights. My father’s parents has a lovely edition in a set of 6 books, which I used to read every time I visited. I was very happy when they gifted the set to me when I turned 16. It’s a 1920s edition with gorgeous illustration by Gudmund Hentze. Also abridged- too racy sequences are edited out, though the book helpful points out that even if the edited text is “very amusing,it doesn’t conform to our time’s view on morality”. It’s also not all of the stories, though I’m unsure how many there should be.
Anyway, with loving fairy tales so much, it’s probably not surprising that I also love retellings. The first I remember reading was Robin Mckinley Beauty which I read long before the Disney movie. The Beauty and the Beast was always a favourite. I’ve read several of Mckinleyäs retellings and really liked them all. Even though Deerskin is a very hard read.
Bitter Greens by Kate Forsyth are both a retelling of Rapunzel and a fictionalizing of the life of 17th century author Charlotte-Rose de Caumont de La Force, who wrote the first version of the tale. Forsyth have written several retellings, though I have only read The Wild Girl, which has the same concept as Bitter Greens. It’s both a retelling of All-Kinds-of-Fur as well as about the life of Dortchen Wild, who was one of the fairy-tale sources for the Grimm brothers, and married one of them. I think both books are excellent, though The Wild Girl is as disturbing as Deerskin for the same reasons.
Growing Rich by Fay Weldon is a modern retelling of Faust. Bernard Bellamy has made a deal with the Devil, but what happens when the object of his object of desire, Carmen, says no? The Devil has his work cut out for him, and the book follows Carmen and her best friends Laura and Annie as he threatens and cajoles them to push Carmen to accept her fate. Or perhaps it’s just the usual mix of good and bad that life throws at you, and the Devil is nothing more than Bernard Bellamy’s handsome chauffeur.
It was also made into a mini-series from 1992 which I remember enjoying. You can find it on Youtube, but the quality is so bad I haven’t had the energy to re-watch it.
When I was around 10, my mother took a university course on children’s books, and read Bruno Bettelheim’s The Uses of Enchantment, which I picked up and which had a profound impact on my ability to comprehend and analyze my reading. I’se been a long time since I read it, so I’m quoting Wikipedia on it.
Bettelheim analyzed fairy tales in terms of Freudian psychology in “The Uses of Enchantment” (1976). He discussed the emotional and symbolic importance of fairy tales for children, including traditional tales once considered too dark, such as those collected and published by the Brothers Grimm. Bettelheim suggested that traditional fairy tales, with the darkness of abandonment, death, witches, and injuries, allowed children to grapple with their fears in remote, symbolic terms. If they could read and interpret these fairy tales in their own way, he believed, they would get a greater sense of meaning and purpose.
I’ve also realized I missed a book in my list on books which impacted me, namely One Thousand and One Nights. My father’s parents has a lovely edition in a set of 6 books, which I used to read every time I visited. I was very happy when they gifted the set to me when I turned 16. It’s a 1920s edition with gorgeous illustration by Gudmund Hentze. Also abridged- too racy sequences are edited out, though the book helpful points out that even if the edited text is “very amusing,it doesn’t conform to our time’s view on morality”. It’s also not all of the stories, though I’m unsure how many there should be.
Anyway, with loving fairy tales so much, it’s probably not surprising that I also love retellings. The first I remember reading was Robin Mckinley Beauty which I read long before the Disney movie. The Beauty and the Beast was always a favourite. I’ve read several of Mckinleyäs retellings and really liked them all. Even though Deerskin is a very hard read.
Bitter Greens by Kate Forsyth are both a retelling of Rapunzel and a fictionalizing of the life of 17th century author Charlotte-Rose de Caumont de La Force, who wrote the first version of the tale. Forsyth have written several retellings, though I have only read The Wild Girl, which has the same concept as Bitter Greens. It’s both a retelling of All-Kinds-of-Fur as well as about the life of Dortchen Wild, who was one of the fairy-tale sources for the Grimm brothers, and married one of them. I think both books are excellent, though The Wild Girl is as disturbing as Deerskin for the same reasons.
Growing Rich by Fay Weldon is a modern retelling of Faust. Bernard Bellamy has made a deal with the Devil, but what happens when the object of his object of desire, Carmen, says no? The Devil has his work cut out for him, and the book follows Carmen and her best friends Laura and Annie as he threatens and cajoles them to push Carmen to accept her fate. Or perhaps it’s just the usual mix of good and bad that life throws at you, and the Devil is nothing more than Bernard Bellamy’s handsome chauffeur.
It was also made into a mini-series from 1992 which I remember enjoying. You can find it on Youtube, but the quality is so bad I haven’t had the energy to re-watch it.