Fairy Tale Journeys

Cap O’ Rushes

We begin with an English Fairy Tale from Joseph Jacobs, because it goes with the Legend of Lier and Shakespeare’s King Lear that we have been reading in co-op this week. Jacobs was one of the people influenced by the Grimm Brothers to collect folktales.

An Introduction to The Grimm Brothers

To start our new year of fairy tales, I want to share this introduction to the Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm. If you would like to learn more about the Grimm Brothers, I recommend The Brothers Grimm by Ann Schmiesing. You can find it as an audiobook on Audible and Hoopla, or purchase a hard copy. This biography is detailed and presents the brothers sensitively and favorably without glossing over some of their weaknesses. There is also a biography written for children by Donald Hettinga called The Brothers Grimm: Two Lives, One Legacy . It is harder to find, but worth getting if you come across it in a used bookshop or online used booksellers. I also highly recommend the House of Humane Letters How to Read Fairy Tales class. Angelina Stanford shares a lot of background and biographical information about the Grimms, and teaches how to understand the symbolism inherent in fairy tales, making the reading of them a very rich experience. I hope you enjoy this year of reading the Grimms Tales together!

The Dragon and The Enchanted Filly

Here is a wonderful Italian Folk Tale that reminds me of Shakespeare’s Cymbeline.

The Princesses Wed to the First Passersby

An Italian Folk Tale

Catherine the Wise

Another Italian folk tale heroine named Catherine.

Catherine, The Sly Country Lass

This is another Italian Folk Tale. One of many with a female heroine named Catherine.

The Canary Prince

This is an Italian tale.

The Foppish King

Welcome to the Summer Season of Fairy Tale Journeys. This is another Italian tale.

The Enchanted Castle

An Italian literary fairy tale

The Golden Ball

An Italian Folk Tale

The Bucket

A story from Italy.

Water in the Basket

A story from Italy.

The Fine Greenbird

A story from Italy.

Fair Brow

This is a story from Italy.

The Tale of the Cats

This is a fairy tale from Italy. Note: In case the children wonder what blood sausage is, it is a sausage like food made by cooking blood (usually of pigs) together with fillers such as meat, bread, suet, oats, etc. It is considered a delicacy in several countries.

The Palace Mouse and the Garden Mouse

A Fable from Italy

Miss North Wind and Mr Zephyr

A fable from Italy.

Dear as Salt

An Italian Folk Tale

March and the Shepherd

A Fable from Italy

The Magic Ring

A Tale from Italy

The Three Castles

Does this folktale from Italy remind you of stories from other countries? Remember our three questions: What does it remind me of? What do I notice? What do I wonder? And enjoy!

The Little Girl and the Pears

We are beginning our survey of Italian Fairytales today! I am reading from the tales as retold by Italo Calvino. Enjoy!

Ivan the Peasant’s Son and the Thumb-Sized Man

This is an exciting tale from Russia.

Vasilisa the Beautiful

Marco the Rich and Vasily the Luckless

Baba Yaga 2

Welcome Back. We are continuing on with our Russian Fairy Tales.

The Just Reward

Baba Yaga 1

Prince Ivan and Princess Martha

The Three Kingdoms

Here is another Russian tale. Do pay attention to some common threads that are in the stories, and also how they are similar and different to tales from other countries.

The Golden Slipper

Welcome back! I hope you had a lovely Christmas break. We are going to spend some time reading Russian fairy tales together. Enjoy!

The Pumpkin Child

The Golden Candelabra

This is a Persian Tale retold by Anne Mehdevi: The Golden Candelabra

The Trusty Tiger

Li Chi Slays the Serpent

Welcome back! This is the first of several tales I plan to read over our Christmas break. Enjoy! Li Chi Slays the Serpent is a fun twist on the dragon slaying stories.

The Magic Cask

A tale from China

The Dragon Princess

The Queen Bee

This story is said to be similar to the Great Flood story we read last time. This is a Grimms tale.

The Dragon After his Winter Sleep

We must read about dragons when reading Chinese stories!

The Great Flood

A Chinese Great Flood story with a twist.

The Cave of the Beasts

A Tale from China

Who Was the Sinner

And so we begin our tour of Chinese folk tales. . .

The Boy Who Drew Cats

This tale is a legend about 15th century Japanese artist, Sesshu Toyo. I am reading from the translation by Lefcardio Hearn and the illustrations are beautiful woodcuts. Take a look! https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47d9-49f8-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99/book#page/1/mode/2up

The Tongue Cut Sparrow

The Tongue Cut Sparrow - A Folk Tale from Japan

The Bamboo-Cutter and the Moon Child

This fairy tale has so many layers, including a legend about Mt Fuji.

The Peach Boy

Here is a very fun Japanese fairy tale! Enjoy!

The Lucky Tea-Kettle

The Lucky Tea-Kettle is a story from Japan.

The Old Man Who Made the Trees Bloom

This is a Japanese folk tale with many Bible story connections. Enjoy the story for its own sake and pay attention to what you notice, what you wonder, and what you are reminded of. Can you find Japan on the map? It is a country in Asia. * For sensitive listeners, be aware that a dog dies in this story. Also Mochi is pronounced MŌ-CHEE - I misprounounced it in the story.

Habermany the Serpent Prince - Pt 3

Part 3 of Habermany the Serpent Prince

Habermany the Serpent Prince - Pt 2

Part two of Haberman the Serpent Prince

Habermany the Serpent Prince - Pt 1

This is a tale from Armenia. Notice how it is similar and different to Yasmin and the Serpent Prince. What else do you notice? What do you wonder? And what are you reminded of?

Yasmin and the Serpent Prince pt 2

This is part 2 of Yasmin and the Serpent Prince. I would love to hear about all the connections to other stories you make! 10.3.24 I am so sorry - somehow I had uploaded part 1 again instead of part 2. I have corrected the file now so enjoy part 2!

Yasmin and the Serpent Prince pt 1

This is part 1 of Yasmin and the Serpent Prince, as told in Folk Tales of Ancient Persia. This tale will probably remind you of many Bible stories, fairy tales, and literary fairy tales, so pay attention to what you notice, what you wonder, and what it reminds you of!

The Wishes of Savitri

The Wishes of Savitri is a fairy tale and trickster tale from India. Enjoy!

The Adventures of Little Pea

The Adventures of Little Pea is a story from Persia as retold in Folk Tales of Ancient Persia. It is a fairy tale with a parent and child separation and restoration with a feast at the end, and the defeat of the bad characters. It is also a trickster tale. Sometimes we think of tricksters as the bad character in a story, and sometimes they are! But other times the trickster is someone with cunning who uses their wits to outsmart the wicked characters. As you listen to this story, and the next story called The Wishes of Savitri, you can think about other stories they remind you of. Are there good tricksters in the Bible?

King Solomon's Ring

Aladdin of the Wonderful Lamp

This story is from the Arabian Nights, retold in The Blue Fairy Book. This retelling combines several stories about Aladdin. What are some of the things you have noticed about the Persian stories we have been reading? Are you seeing repeated things? Do they remind you of other stories?

The Prince and the Flowery Meadow part 2

This is the second part of the frame story for 1001 Days, as retold by Willi Fehse. This one is quite long because it has stories within stories - pay attention when you are listening to any story and the story teller tells a new story within his story! It is always important!

Abdullah the Ungrateful

This Persian story comes from the 1001 Days as retold by Willi Fehse.

The Prince of the Flowery Meadow Part One

Have you ever heard of the 1001 Days? It is another collection of stories from Persia. Like the 1001 Nights, it has a frame story that begins and ends the collection, with many delightful tales between. The Prince and the Flowery Meadow is the frame story and today we are going to read part one. This is from the retelling by Willi Fehse. Enjoy!

The Peasant's Son and the Forty Robbers

Our last tale for this week is The Peasant's Son and the Forty Robbers, from Armenia. This one reminded me of SO many stories. Pay attention to how this one is similar and also really different from the other tales we read this week. You might like to draw a picture of your favorite story.

The Thirteen Bandits

The Thirteen Bandits is a story from Italy.

The Wise Maiden and the Seven Robbers

This tale is from Russia. Notice how it is similar to Ali Baba, and how it is different. What else does it remind you of. Do you have any questions about the story?

Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves

This week I am sharing four tales that are all in the same family. We begin with Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves. This is a Persian tale from the Arabian Nights, retold in The Blue Fairy Book. Keep thinking about the things you notice, what the story reminds you of, and questions you wonder about.

The Prince and the Large and Lonely Tortoise

The Prince and the Large and Lonely Tortoise from the 1001 Arabian Nights. What does this story remind you of? What do you notice about this story? What do you wonder? Those are great things to think about when you're reading stories. You might also like to draw a picture of the story or tell the story to a friend. Enjoy!

The Prince Who Married a Frog

This story is from Italian Folktales as told by Italio Calvino. What does this story remind you of? What do you notice about this story? What do you wonder? Those are great things to think about when you're reading stories. You might also like to draw a picture of the story or tell the story to a friend. Enjoy!

The Frog Princess

This is The Frog Princess from Russian Fairy Tales as collected by Aleksandr Afanas'ev. What does this story remind you of? What do you notice about this story? What do you wonder? Those are great things to think about when you're reading stories. You might also like to draw a picture of the story or tell the story to a friend. Enjoy!