The Places You Will Go: Fairytales

Wednesday, June 01, 2011

Old Tales Made New

From Tots to Teens, 15^th May 2011

By DAPHNE LEE

I’M in the midst of editing a collection of stories based on traditional tales from the region (Malaysia and Singapore).

When I first thought of collecting stories for this anthology, I imagined it would be for children. I didn’t grow up with Malaysian fairytales, myths and legends. Like many Malaysian children from English-speaking families, I was raised on the stories of Hans Christian Andersen and the Brothers Grimm. I was baptised in the Catholic church and so Christian mythology was part of my life.

As an adult I felt something was missing. Why did I know European fairytales, myths and legends and not the fairytales, myths and legends of the country in which I lived and belonged? The obvious reason was because my parents never told me any of the latter. My mother would occasionally relate bizarre stories, of Chinese origin, about a filial son who went to incredible lengths to prove his love for his aged mother, but for most part she (and my sisters) read me stories which included fairytale staples like Snow White, Cinderella, The Goose Girl, The Bremen Town Musicians (my favourite) and Rumplestiltskin.

We had a few lovely hardbound copies of fairytales by Andersen and the Grimms. We did not own any collections of Malaysian traditional tales. This was why I thought of compiling one. However, this was several years ago and since then a few anthologies, including two fully-illustrated ones, have been published for children.

Continue reading "Old Tales Made New" »

1 Jun 2011 12:20:00 | Fairytales, Tots to Teens

Saturday, May 15, 2010

Germaine Greer on the Literary Worth of Old Wives' Tales | Books | The Guardian

Detail from Snow White Playing with her Father's Trophies (1995) by Paula Rego. Photograph: Courtesy of Marlborough Fine Art, London.

via guardian.co.uk

Posted via web from daphnelee's posterous
In the 1980s, when I had my little house in the Montanare di Cortona, friends with small children often came to stay. If the nippers hadn't had a rest, the glimmering evenings and long suppers on the terrace were apt to collapse in screaming cacophony. We had no TV and the radio was in Italian, so I had no way of keeping the children still and quiet during the siesta other than to tell them a story. Therefore, after lunch, when the day was at its hottest, I would pile them on to my big bed and, propping myself up with pillows in the middle, I would tell them the story of the most beautiful frog in the world, as, one by one, they fell asleep.

Continue reading "Germaine Greer on the Literary Worth of Old Wives' Tales | Books | The Guardian" »

15 May 2010 10:37:24 | Fairytales

Sunday, March 08, 2009

Janet Saves the Day

I’VE been fascinated by the story of Tam Lin ever since I heard English folk band Fairport Convention’s rendition of the old Scottish ballad.

Tam Lin is a knight who becomes the Queen of Elfland’s lover for seven years. The queen has to pay a tithe to hell every seven years and plans to sacrifice Tam at the end his time with her. Fortunately for him, he meets Janet.

Janet is the heir of an old estate named Carter Hall. Maidens are warned to avoid the hall’s grounds as a strange young man lurks there, claiming the virginity of any young women he happens upon. Janet, being more headstrong than the average medieval teenager, rushes off to Carter Hall and meets Tam. He is obviously a very comely young man as he manages to get to third base with Janet on their very first date....

Of course, this is just what it sounds like in the ballad. It’s very likely that many details have been left out and Tam and Janet actually go steady for some time before their hormones get the better of them.

Continue reading "Janet Saves the Day" »

8 Mar 2009 11:22:05 | Fairytales, Fantasy, Mythology, Tots to Teens