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Denise Gallagher: Insights on Seasonal Tales
Denise Gallagher on “How to Calm a Rain Bull” Author and Illustrator Denise Gallagher joins us to talk all about folklore, magic in the everyday, kidlit and her upcoming book, “How to Calm a Rain Bull.” The collection features 24 different seasonal and nature tales from all around the world. Welcome back, dear Travellers! Today we have the absolute pleasure of sharing our interview with author and illustrator, Denise Gallagher. We received an advanced reader copy of her upcoming book, “How to Calm a Rain Bull” and we loved it so much that we just had to reach out and…
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The Lad, the Magic Hat and the Trolls: A Sámi Folktale
A poor boy discovers a magic hat that transports him anywhere. He embarks on a quest for golden birds guarded by trolls to win a princess’s hand. After several misadventures and following dubious advice, he successfully retrieves a singing bird and a glowing horse, ultimately marrying the princess and becoming king.
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The Cleaning Pooka of Kildare
Irish Fairies are a hot topic in the folklore world, so whether you are looking for a romanceable one or just a lovable sidekick, there are plenty of fair folk to choose from. A personal favourite of mine is the cleaning variety, but I might be biased since I’ve just finished the Emily Wilde series about Professor Wilde’s scholarly adventures as a dryadologist. This story isn’t about the aloof and haughty fair folk, though we will hopefully cover them in detail later. Today, we have the trickster phantom fairy called the Puca or Pooka. These solitary creatures can take on…
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The Crystal Casket
The Crystal Casket Italian, 16 minute read Enjoy Giuseppe Pitrè’s Tuscan tale with us as we dive into the Eagle revenge story of the century. This story has fairies, a Witch who is frankly bad at her job, an evil stepmother, a casket obsessed King and his bewildered mother! Oh and our Snow White character, Ermellina! Who may or may not be twelve years old. This Tuscan tale comes to us from the 1883 book Italian Popular Tales. The collector, Thomas Fredrick Cane, was an American academic and lawyer who was passionate about languages, medieval history and folklore. While working…
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The Eagle and the Whale
Greenland, 8 minute read What happens when a brother mocks his unmarried sisters? Well, they get carried off by animal bridegrooms and must be rescued! Today’s story comes from the book, Eskimo Folktales, collected by Knud Rasmussen and translated by W. Wooster. Knud Rasmussen was an anthropologist and polar explorer in the early 20th century. His native name was “Kunúnguaq” and he collected tales from all over Greenland with a deep understanding of the role of the Eskimo storyteller. Some stories, like that of “The Eagle and the Whale,” are full of similar tropes that sprouted from ancient storytelling traditions…
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The Little Girl and the Whirlwinds
Bulgaria, 7 minute read A wicked Winter Witch decides to prolong winter forever and casts a spell to hide the sun from the Earth. No one volunteers to go seek help from the Frost Wizard- no one except a brave little girl with a warm heart. The Bulgarian tale of the “Little Girl and the Whirlwinds” or “The Little Girl and the Forever Winter” is hard to pinpoint. Our research led us to various retellings and other Bulgarian folktales, but no clear link to where this tale came from. Other versions are closely tied to the Russian story of the…
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Festive Folklore Figures
Festive Folklore Figures Various, 10 minute read Folklore Figures in January? Have we missed the memo or are we just recovering from the bliss of Folklore Festivities? No! It’s January 6th which marks Perchtatag and the end of the “Rauhnächten” (the time between the solstice and Epiphany). So in the spirit of Frau Perchta, here is our list of some monstrous creatures of Yuletide! We have previously covered many different types of Christmas tales so look at the list below if you are searching for something specific: If you are interested in Christmas ghosts and the Victorian obsession with them,…
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The Flower Queen’s Daughter: A Fairy Tale Retelling
Welcome back Travellers to another tale that will remind you just how fun some fairy tales can be and fall in line with the current trend of myth retellings. The Romanian tale of “The Flower Queen’s Daughter” is definitely a version of the seasonal Persephone story, however, this one includes lots of mysterious old people, flirty Dragon mothers, runaway mares and a Flower Queen (plus her daughter). Stick around till the end for our Five Fantastic Finds on: Images from Andrew Lang’s Yellow Fairy Book with illustrations by H.J. Ford. The Flower Queen’s Daughter A young Prince was out for…
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Caledonian Boar Hunt: Atalanta
The Greek Myths are an interesting web woven from characters with intermingled fates, recurring archetypes and motifs. Find out how the Caledonian Boar Hunt relates to not just Atalanta but Heracles, the Argonauts and Prince Meleager.
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Grimm Tale: Death’s Messenger
Enjoy this lesser known Brothers Grimm story about a deal with the devil. Is helping Death worth the reward or is it more of a curse? Find out on our episode of “Death’s Messenger.”
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The Young Man Who Would Have His Eyes Opened
In an age where there is so much easily accessible information, it is easy to get caught up in all the details that we can no longer see the forest in the trees. Today’s Estonian story comes from Andrew Lang’s The Violet Fairy Book, first published in 1901. As stated in previous episodes, Nora and Andrew Lang have collected many well-known fairy tales in their books, but their sourcing is not always adequate. While this will not stop us from enjoying this tale, this knowledge is good to keep in mind when analyzing it. After all, knowledge is power. The…
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The Glass Mountain: A Polish Tale
The Polish Tale of the Glass Mountain is a variant of the Princess on the Glass Hill archetype! Come join us as we meet Cinderlad/Ashlad, catch some golden apples and watch the Golden Knight fail!
Tales from the Enchanted Forest 