≫ Libro Free Tales of Wonder and Magic Doherty B Berlie Doherty Juan Wijngaard 9780744581478 Books

Tales of Wonder and Magic Doherty B Berlie Doherty Juan Wijngaard 9780744581478 Books

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Tales of Wonder and Magic Doherty B Berlie Doherty Juan Wijngaard 9780744581478 Books

With stories selected by Berlie Doherty (author of Spellhorn and Granny Was a Buffer Girl), this compilation includes nine fairytales from around the world, including Europe, America, Australia and Africa. Taken from a range of other anthologies (a bibliography is included at the back of the book), each story is radically different in setting, tone and mood, and yet all share some common element. Apart from the wonder and magic that the title obviously suggests, these are all rather bittersweet and melancholy tales.

From Scotland, Wales, Ireland and the Shetland Isles come stories that are haunting and mysterious; two of which end with a magical young woman abandoning her mortal family and returning to the magical realms from whence she came. Hundreds of years old, these stories contain the familiar elements of transformed humans, restrictions that cannot be broken, threefold trials and talking animals.

From Africa comes a love story between a beautiful young woman and a man with a face like a toad, who are parted for many years and reunited through his skill and her instincts; on a more poignant note is a story told what must have been generations later by American slaves who dreamt of flight away from their cruel masters. Also included is a Native American creational myth, which explains weather phenomena though the tale of a foundling boy who glows like copper.

Berlie Doherty herself contributes "The Girl Who Couldn't Walk," a tale about a paraplegic girl whose family squanders the wishes that could have healed her, only for the strange old woman to give the girl herself the chance to change her fortunes.

An old Aboriginal tale tells of an epic hunt between a young man and a giant half-fish, half-lizard, one which takes the two of them across Australia and shapes the landscape as we know it today, whilst across the other side of the world, an old English folktale tells of the moon's adventures when she departs the sky and becomes entangled in the swamplands.

My personal interest lies in the difference between these particular retellings and others that I've read; here the tale of Tamlane is quite different from that in Geraldine McCaughrean's "Never Let Go", in which Janet meets and falls in love with Tamlane during the story rather than being engaged to him prior to the telling. Likewise, her ordeal in holding him throughout the night, in which he turns into an array of wild animals and finally a burning hot brand, is in this version pared down to a snake, a lizard and a deer. Likewise "The Bogles and the Moon" leaves out the detail of "the candle, a coffin and a cross" that the old woman tells the men to search for in the swamp, as is found in The Moon in Swampland.

All fairytales have variations, and "The Black Bull of Norroway" has elements of The Glass Mountain and East of the Sun and West of the Moon. Although most Western audiences will recognize elements in the European stories, the rest are considerably more `exotic' and have their roots in mythology rather than folklore.

The illustrations are done by Juan Wijngaard, who shows amazing range in regards to the various cultures which he is depicting. Along with the delicate pictures, he provides borders that are engraved with stylistic motifs pertaining to each country of origin. The illustrations themselves are delicate and mysterious, rich in detail and color. One of the most effective is a faery-woman holding her long lost seal-skin, the one that could restore her to her true form. Caught between her two worlds, she can only stare at it in grief. Likewise, it is a beautifully designed book, though this is more of a "read-aloud" book for children than something they could read on their own - be warned that several pages are full-text and that the illustrations, though lovely, are used sparingly.

Longing, danger, heartbreak, joy, romance and mystery - this book is full of such things, making this a rewarding collection of tales.


Tags : Tales of Wonder and Magic [Doherty B, Berlie Doherty, Juan Wijngaard] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers.,Doherty B, Berlie Doherty, Juan Wijngaard,Tales of Wonder and Magic,Walker Books,0744581478,Fairy tales, folk tales, fables, magical tales & traditional stories,Fiction anthologies & collections

Tales of Wonder and Magic Doherty B Berlie Doherty Juan Wijngaard 9780744581478 Books Reviews

A fairy tale book for older children - amazing illustrations, long tales, beautiful book to give as a gift. Great read aloud for the whole family. 8th grader loves this book.

Contents
The Girl from Llyn Y Fan Fach (Welsh)
Chura and Marwe (unspecified African)
The Bogles and the Moon (English)
Tamlane (Scotland)
The Boy of the Red Twilight Sky (Canadian Indian)
The People could Fly (American Black)
The Black Bull of Norroway (Irish)
The Girl Who Couldn't Walk
The Woman of the Sea (Shetland Isles)
With stories selected by Berlie Doherty (author of Spellhorn and Granny Was a Buffer Girl), this compilation includes nine fairytales from around the world, including Europe, America, Australia and Africa. Taken from a range of other anthologies (a bibliography is included at the back of the book), each story is radically different in setting, tone and mood, and yet all share some common element. Apart from the wonder and magic that the title obviously suggests, these are all rather bittersweet and melancholy tales.

From Scotland, Wales, Ireland and the Shetland Isles come stories that are haunting and mysterious; two of which end with a magical young woman abandoning her mortal family and returning to the magical realms from whence she came. Hundreds of years old, these stories contain the familiar elements of transformed humans, restrictions that cannot be broken, threefold trials and talking animals.

From Africa comes a love story between a beautiful young woman and a man with a face like a toad, who are parted for many years and reunited through his skill and her instincts; on a more poignant note is a story told what must have been generations later by American slaves who dreamt of flight away from their cruel masters. Also included is a Native American creational myth, which explains weather phenomena though the tale of a foundling boy who glows like copper.

Berlie Doherty herself contributes "The Girl Who Couldn't Walk," a tale about a paraplegic girl whose family squanders the wishes that could have healed her, only for the strange old woman to give the girl herself the chance to change her fortunes.

An old Aboriginal tale tells of an epic hunt between a young man and a giant half-fish, half-lizard, one which takes the two of them across Australia and shapes the landscape as we know it today, whilst across the other side of the world, an old English folktale tells of the moon's adventures when she departs the sky and becomes entangled in the swamplands.

My personal interest lies in the difference between these particular retellings and others that I've read; here the tale of Tamlane is quite different from that in Geraldine McCaughrean's "Never Let Go", in which Janet meets and falls in love with Tamlane during the story rather than being engaged to him prior to the telling. Likewise, her ordeal in holding him throughout the night, in which he turns into an array of wild animals and finally a burning hot brand, is in this version pared down to a snake, a lizard and a deer. Likewise "The Bogles and the Moon" leaves out the detail of "the candle, a coffin and a cross" that the old woman tells the men to search for in the swamp, as is found in The Moon in Swampland.

All fairytales have variations, and "The Black Bull of Norroway" has elements of The Glass Mountain and East of the Sun and West of the Moon. Although most Western audiences will recognize elements in the European stories, the rest are considerably more `exotic' and have their roots in mythology rather than folklore.

The illustrations are done by Juan Wijngaard, who shows amazing range in regards to the various cultures which he is depicting. Along with the delicate pictures, he provides borders that are engraved with stylistic motifs pertaining to each country of origin. The illustrations themselves are delicate and mysterious, rich in detail and color. One of the most effective is a faery-woman holding her long lost seal-skin, the one that could restore her to her true form. Caught between her two worlds, she can only stare at it in grief. Likewise, it is a beautifully designed book, though this is more of a "read-aloud" book for children than something they could read on their own - be warned that several pages are full-text and that the illustrations, though lovely, are used sparingly.

Longing, danger, heartbreak, joy, romance and mystery - this book is full of such things, making this a rewarding collection of tales.