Friday, August 10, 2012
I need to read more folk and fairy stories
Over at DNDKids, Uri has a great story about the origin of magic. I don't know if this is an actual Russian folk tale or not, but it certainly sounds like one. This is great and reminds me that I need to read a lot more folk and fairy stories. There is a different rationality in fairy stories that doesn't appear in most modern fantasies. As much as naturalism can help draw us into a fantasy story, too much rationality makes the magical appear mundane.
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I would start with Andrew Lang's Fairy Books.
ReplyDeleteIf you haven't read much Dunsany, he's kind of a bridge between fairy tales and modern fantasy, with all the irrationality and wonder but also more modern themes.
Neil Gaiman,my favorite author, seems to do a good job of blending fairy tales and folk tales with fantasy fiction.
ReplyDelete@ Mike - I love the Lang books! I just haven't read them in a long time. I know they're all online, so I think I may have to add them to the Nook list.
ReplyDelete@ Drew - I love the way that Gaiman mixes styles and tropes to create his versions of fantasy. He definitely draws on the British fairy and fantasy traditions to create some unique stuff!