No hero or villian in this one aside the stepmother, but she's more of a side character, the heroine (if she can be(Included in the Violet Fairy Book)
No hero or villian in this one aside the stepmother, but she's more of a side character, the heroine (if she can be called that) lives a nice life after she's rescued from her stepmother. A relatively mild tale aside the doll/doppelganger....more
Two brothers are assholes to their younger brother so the poor lad runs away. It's a silly tale as the lad acquires (Included in the Green Fairy Book)
Two brothers are assholes to their younger brother so the poor lad runs away. It's a silly tale as the lad acquires a magical swan with unintended consequences for those who might steal it....more
Actually, you know what, that IS a pretty cunning shoemaker. He did pretty all right for himself in the end and got b(Included in the Pink Fairy Book)
Actually, you know what, that IS a pretty cunning shoemaker. He did pretty all right for himself in the end and got better of a band of robbers/murderers. Yay!...more
This is a silly story, and I found it a somewhat refreshing change after reading so many stories about princesses. (Included in the Yellow Fairy Book)
This is a silly story, and I found it a somewhat refreshing change after reading so many stories about princesses. It's fairly entertaining, almost like it's a parody of an actual fairy tale because of the garbage Hans gets along the way (instead of the usual fine treasures a hero would obtain in a traditional fairy tale)...more
Boy, is that Darning-needle a delusional bitch. But it's an entertaining children's tale about a darning-needle who(Included in the Yellow Fairy Book)
Boy, is that Darning-needle a delusional bitch. But it's an entertaining children's tale about a darning-needle who has a very, very, very high opinion of herself but ends up in the gutter nonetheless. One could see this as a cautionary tale of thinking too highly of oneself. 3.5/5 stars....more
This is one of my favorite tales because even though it's dark and twisted, damn it's bloody clever! I mean, seriou(Included in the Yellow Fairy Book)
This is one of my favorite tales because even though it's dark and twisted, damn it's bloody clever! I mean, seriously, the cheeky bastard manages to turn every misfortune to considerable personal gain.
Yes... this personal gain does cause misfortune for a few other people. In the cheeky bastard's defense though, he doesn't force people to do anything. He just tries to spin the best out of his misfortunes and when other people try to exploit that and it hurts them, whose fault is it really?...more
As far as fairy tales go, this one is pretty middle of the pack. I'm trying not to sound too jaded, but after readi(Included in the Yellow Fairy Book)
As far as fairy tales go, this one is pretty middle of the pack. I'm trying not to sound too jaded, but after reading several of Andrew Lang's Fairy books, plenty of plot elements are quite repetitive. This is not a bad story, it's just not particularly unique in terms of the hero getting a princess and treasure (or HOW he got them)...more
Quite a weird story, about a chick that is, as the title says, a half-chick. Despite the severity of his physical di(Included in the Green Fairy Book)
Quite a weird story, about a chick that is, as the title says, a half-chick. Despite the severity of his physical disabilities, he gets up to mischief, and pays the price for being a little asshole....more
The hero of the story really would not have been a hero if not for the IMMENSE amount of help that he got along the(Included in the Yellow Fairy Book)
The hero of the story really would not have been a hero if not for the IMMENSE amount of help that he got along the journey, although I don't blame the witch-maid for being pissed off at him....more
Overall a fun book of various tales from around the world where the female protagonists don't just sit back and wait to be rescued. Some of them are sOverall a fun book of various tales from around the world where the female protagonists don't just sit back and wait to be rescued. Some of them are strong, others are clever, etc....more
I feel kind of bad for not giving this book a higher rating, but this story just did not resonate to me. Yes, I know the author was just a child, and I feel kind of bad for not giving this book a higher rating, but this story just did not resonate to me. Yes, I know the author was just a child, and she wrote about this three decades after it happened, but there was something about the narrative/writing style that just... didn't work for me.
There's also a lot of detail missing, so even though the narrator and her sister spent over two years in the titular Upstairs Room, it was hard to get a feel of the place, I would have liked some more detail on their life, if they ever observed Hanukah and other Jewish holidays in hiding, etc....more
Yet another good/bad stepsister story, where the good girl is rewarded for her kindness with gold coming from her hair(Included in the Red Fairy Book)
Yet another good/bad stepsister story, where the good girl is rewarded for her kindness with gold coming from her hair if she brushes it, and more gold coming from her mouth if she speaks, and the badly-behaving girl is rewarded with unpleasant things including a bush that grows from her forehead and ashes coming from her mouth when she speaks. (this is like, the 4th or 5th time I have come across this sort of thing as I make my way through Andrew Lang's Fairy books)
At least this time the good girl has a brother, who the stepmother drove away from home due to her cruelty, but who is reunited with his sister in the end and they live happily ever after (and the sister marries the king, too)...more
An overall entertaining fairy tale about a peasant girl who is bullied by an asshole lord of the estate. Fortunately, (Included in the Red Fairy Book)
An overall entertaining fairy tale about a peasant girl who is bullied by an asshole lord of the estate. Fortunately, the lord's wife is as kind as her husband is mean, so when she knows her husband has bullied someone, she will secretly go and try to make things better. Which was quite refreshing to see as I've been working my way through the fairy tales that Andrew Lang collected.
In the end, the asshole lord gets his comeuppance (as so many of these villains do) but for this story the method of punishment was especially fitting given how he bullied the peasant girl....more
WHAT THE GOD DAMN FUCK, DAPPLEGRIM. Three times (three years in a row) Dapplegrim tells his owner to kill all the othe(Included in the Red Fairy Book)
WHAT THE GOD DAMN FUCK, DAPPLEGRIM. Three times (three years in a row) Dapplegrim tells his owner to kill all the other foals so that he can have all the milk from all the mares so he can grow big and strong. Not once, not twice,. but THRICE does he do this - twelve foals per year from the twelve mares the lad is in charge of.
That's one fucked-up horse. But he did help the lad get himself some swag, including a princess.
Many people will recognize this tale under a different title - The Pied Piper (of Hamelin) This story illustrates how (Included in the Red Fairy Book)
Many people will recognize this tale under a different title - The Pied Piper (of Hamelin) This story illustrates how absolutely fucking important it is to make payment for services rendered - do not welch on paying someone who has provided you a service, especially a dear and invaluable one such as the Pied Piper rendered unto the people of Hamelin by driving the rats out.
Given the socioeconomic climate of 2023 (as of this review) and rich people screwing over their workers and etc, this tale feels particularly relevant at this time....more
So the premise of this story is that a drakestail bird (Google results show this is a duck, apparently) has saved up a(Included in the Red Fairy Book)
So the premise of this story is that a drakestail bird (Google results show this is a duck, apparently) has saved up a good amount of money, to the point where the king has taken notice of him, and borrowed this money from him. (in another version, the drakestail finds a coin, and then is asked to donate it to the king, with the promise of repayment) Either way, the king is a spendthrift who just blows through the tax money that has been collected. What an asshole.
Anyway, one has to question how a duck has been able to amass this much money, but whatever. However, when the time to repay the loan comes, the king refuses. So the drakestail goes to claim it, and makes friends along the way by helping them, so these friends repay his assistance by helping him to get his money back from the king.
In the end, the drakestail is elected by the people to become the new king, and he is a much better king than the old one....more
It's not great, nor is it bad, as far as fairy tales go. You have a hero lad, three princesses, and some evil trolls. (Included in the Red Fairy Book)
It's not great, nor is it bad, as far as fairy tales go. You have a hero lad, three princesses, and some evil trolls. The lad forgets the warning he has been given by his new wife and gets himself in trouble, but all's right in the end....more
Graciosa is a sweet and lovely princess who becomes burdened with an evil stepmother after her father marries a ugly w(Included in the Red Fairy Book)
Graciosa is a sweet and lovely princess who becomes burdened with an evil stepmother after her father marries a ugly woman for her wealth and the new wife demands complete control over her new stepdaughter. The King agrees to this. Red flag ahoy!
Seriously, that stupid asshole lets his new wife mistreat and abuse his daughter and literally does nothing about it. Fortunately, Graciosa has a champion in the form of Percinet, a handsome young prince with magical abilities who helps to protect her every time the stepmother comes up with a new way to mistreat the poor girl.
Fortunately, the story ends happily for poor Graciosa, but it doesn't excuse her father's negligence....more
I have come across several versions of this tale, including a Disney animated short, in the graphic novel series Fable(Included in the Red Fairy Book)
I have come across several versions of this tale, including a Disney animated short, in the graphic novel series Fables, and in reference in several other works or dialogue. The one included in the Red Fairy Book had a couple of elements I had not seen before, such as the giant being married and there being a giantess, or that Jack's father had been the former (and well-loved) lord of the castle that the giant had taken over. Overall an entertaining tale....more
M.M. Strawberry
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