And still I persist. I really generally don’t like stories based on myth and fairy tales, unless! there is a full rendering of the ins and outs of the stories. I think The King Must Die is one of my favorite novels and just does such a satisfying retelling of the Theseus myth. It’s a very satisfying novel. And I read The Robber Bride earlier this year and it was great! And this one has satisfying stories: “The Bloody Chamber” and “The Company of Wolves” are both […]
A bird in a gilded cage
Oh, man. I really feel like I’ve been to the circus. A crazy, trippy sci-fi circus, but still. Enough to go around. I’ve heard Angela Carter’s name bandied about the contemporary British field/feminist literature field, and this work in particular, so I thought it would be good to know my field even better. The novel takes place in three parts, for the three major “stages” of the circus’s trip: London, St. Petersburg, and Siberia. In London, we become acquainted with Sophie Fevvers through journalist Jack […]
Fractured Fairy Tales: The Robber Bridegroom
This short novel is a delightful mix of fairy tale and tall tale, with a healthy sprinkling of both humor and the macabre in it. The cast of characters includes a doting father, a wicked stepmother, a lovely daughter, a dashing but deceitful suitor, Mike Fink, a band of thieves and a hick named Goat. If you enjoyed Helen Oyeyemi’s Boy, Snow, Bird or Angela Carter’s The Bloody Chamber, The Robber Bridegroom should be on your reading list. The tale begins in antebellum Louisiana with […]