Listen here, children. And remember what happens to children who don’t behave. The same thing that happened to the lambs. Only worse. She ate the baby lambs,… Read more “Black Annis: What’s For Supper?”
Category: Folktales
Hunger: a Hawaiian Shark Tale
Imagine hunger. Not midnight snack hunger. Not I-had-to-skip-lunch-for-an-office-meeting hunger. Not I’m-on-hunger-strike to save the penguins hunger. Insatiable hunger. Hunger for flesh, hunger for blood. Hunger for human… Read more “Hunger: a Hawaiian Shark Tale”
The Lady Smeared in Lard, or how to Ward Off Death
Coldbath Square Fields, London, early 19th century, a place known for its opulence and its proportionally severe prison system (the poets Coleridge and Southney expressed their dismay… Read more “The Lady Smeared in Lard, or how to Ward Off Death”
Waltzing Matilda: An Australian Bush Ballad
Waltzing Matilda, written by Banjo Patterson in 1895, is one of Australia’s most endearing bush ballads, considered by many as an unofficial national anthem. It has been… Read more “Waltzing Matilda: An Australian Bush Ballad”
Beira, the Scottish Queen of the Winter
What of Beira, the Queen of the Winter? If you’ve visited Scotland, you know that it’s cold. And therefore, a Goddess of the Winter makes perfect sense:… Read more “Beira, the Scottish Queen of the Winter”
The Fur Bearing Trout
One look at the fur bearing trout has most scoff at the poorly constructed attempt at a crypto-zoological hoax, and it is no wonder because the fur… Read more “The Fur Bearing Trout”
The Fable of Aesop
While his work has stood the test of time, very little is known about the man for whom Aesop’s fables were named. Was he a singular historical… Read more “The Fable of Aesop”
Baba Yaga and Vasilisa the Beautiful
If you wander through the forests of Slavic speaking lands, you may come across a most curious hut. For one thing, outside the hut, you may find… Read more “Baba Yaga and Vasilisa the Beautiful”
Pan Twardowski and the Devil, or the Art of the Deal
Dr. Faust was not the only alchemist to sell his soul to the Devil. While the character etched out by Marlowe and Goethe is among the most… Read more “Pan Twardowski and the Devil, or the Art of the Deal”
The Angry Queen of the Southern Sea
Beware, attractive young men: an enchantress awaits you on the southern coastline of Java. She may appear as a mermaid, or she may appear as a beautiful… Read more “The Angry Queen of the Southern Sea”