Week 15: Extra Credit Reading: Russian

The Dead Mother..... Sounds sad but okay..... okay wow morbid... weird flex but ok

This pope isn't very forgiving! A pot of gold in a grave? Weird.

I don't know if I like these Russian tales very much.

The Bad Wife is funny! I don't know if it was supposed to be but I found it hilarious.

Ah the Water Snake! A snake trying to marry a young naked girl. Interesting. The mother killed the snake! But what if she loved Osip! I am not sure that I understood the ending... interesting.

Friday is incredibly short. Sucks.

But Wednesday is so long? I hate Hump Day.

Russian Flag







BIB:his story is part of the Russian Folktales unit. Story source: Russian Fairy Tales by W. R. S. Ralston (1887).

Week 15: Reading B

I am always one for gossip and royalty so these were really up my alley! There are so many stories but not enough time.

(Cordelier)
I thought this first story was a good read but I was a little disappointed. I was expecting more. It was also a little long for just one story.

These stories really hurt my eyes for some reason. The long paragraphs made it a little harder to focus on for me.

There were some really nice lines about being strong for women. I did like that!

Some of these have a lot of crime and fun things - secrets and killing! That is so fun!

A second virgin mary... Interesting! That is a story that doesn't get a lot of attention that I have seen. I thought it was a really interesting take.

These were a lot more religious than I previously thought I was going to be reading.

Week 15: Reading A

I wasn't a big fan of the point of view the story was told in. It was more engaging that way though. It made you feel like you were in the story. It was told really well.

The Gate of Hell is really interesting. I loved the title. I thought it was really hard to read but I did enjoy it.

(https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Inferno_Canto_03#mediaviewer/File:Inf._03_caronte,_Priamo_della_Quercia_(c.1403%E2%80%931483).jpg)

The detail on these stories are incredible. I love to read them, but it does take some time.


Bib: This story is part of the Dante's Inferno unit. Story source: Dante's Divine Comedy, translated by Tony Kline (2002).

Week 14 Extra Reading

I think these stories are a lot of fun but seem like a lot to keep up with. There is a lot of characters so that can get confusing.
Taking children from their parents... That just makes me sad.
Ah! This is the Rapunzel story.
For me, this story was kind of confusing but I liked the premise of it. I just wish it would have been done a little better.

Devil Sculpture
This story was one I was excited for - it seemed so interesting!
This story ended better than I thought - I always love when women outsmart men, especially when it is against the Devil. I thought it was incredibly cute - I wish I had time to rewrite it for what I want it to be like.

Another story with three daughters! I wish I had sisters.
Ah drugs - they always make for a good story,
I didn't like this one as much as the last.

We apparently are all about three daughters in these stories.
This one was really cute though,




Bib:
This story is part of the Italian Popular Tales unit. Story source: Italian Popular Tales by Thomas Frederick Crane (1885).

Week 15: Reading B: Europa

For the first reading - I hate hunting! it makes me so sad. I hated that he just took the robe and expected her to stay - they were separated. It did come with a pretty picture though!

The stories in this unit were a little disappointing for me. I liked the ones that I actually knew better which makes me feel bad. I love reading new stories but sometimes reading different versions of ones I already know can be just as fun!

BIB:

This story is part of the Europa unit. Story source: Europa's Fairy Book by Joseph Jacobs and illustrated by John Batten (1916).

Week 14: Reading A: Europa

The first thing I immediately noticed was that it spoke to you in first person point of view. I wasn't sure that I enjoyed that. It was a little weird, but calming that it talks like a conversation. I liked that the bird spoke in rhyme and was the 'fairy godmother' of the story. Cinderella stories always make me sad because they care about her looks but they get to know who they really are - I think that is fun. Honey was also a way to trap her... Not a good way.

Beauty and the Beast is also always a sad story - a story of a daughter beginning to lose her dad to try and get a gift for her. I almost can't read it because of the heartbreak.

I liked for this story that the animals could predict the fall of the kingdom - I think that was really cool - even though people made fun of him.

It seems in these stories the underdog always wins.

Bib:
Story source: Europa's Fairy Book by Joseph Jacobs and illustrated by John Batten (1916).

Week 13: Extra Credit Reading

I love weird, mystical names. Acrasia might be one soon! I really loved that name so I am seeing what I can do to use that name in my next story... Perilous adventures, oh my! Can I use this story as my storytelling week? That would be cool! I like that this wasn't completely fake, it had real places. That is cool!


Knights fighting for love! I love love.

Castle Joyous... I am smiling at the name. A beautiful story with "gold and glittery" details... A story made for a princess!

Magic Mirror.... What does that remind me of? ;)

A little disappointed by the lack of pictures.... 

















BIB:This story is part of the Fairie Queen: Britomart unit. Story source: Stories from the Faerie Queene by Mary Macleod, with drawings by A. G. Walker (1916).

 My face when reading fairytales. 

Week 13: Reading B: Celtic Tales

I really enjoyed that the first story was being told like he was talking to you - I think that is really fun and I don't see that often. It also rhymed. I don't feel as if I would be very good at that... It was a fun read but kind of hard to read. Overall I enjoyed it!

I thought The Challenge was a little weird... I didn't like how he offered up his newborn daughter for marriage. I thought it was weird and didn't much enjoy it at all.

AH!  I love greyhounds. How cute - I haven't put any pet like animals in my stories yet.



Bib:
This story is part of the Celtic Fairy Tales (1) unit. Story source: Celtic Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs with illustrations by John D. Batten (1892).

Week 13: Reading A: Welsh

I enjoyed in the first story there was a sorcerer - it puts a fun twist on it that leaves you on the edge of your seat because you want to know what happens. I like that! "Do not touch the bell or it will be over for all of us" - this reminds me of Aladdin when they are not supposed to touch anything but the lamp. I thought that was funny. I thought this story was really fun.

I really liked that there was a love story - I haven't really done one of those yet that I really love. I think this may be the week I get to do that.

There is a lot of details in these stories - I really appreciate that. More details make it easier to imagine!

These stories were really beautiful and had a lot of different lengths.

I have been writing a lot of longer stories so maybe I should write a shorter one this time.

BIB:
This story is part of the Welsh Fairy Tales unit. Story source: The Welsh Fairy Book by W. Jenkyn Thomas with illustrations by Willy Pogány (1908)

Reading B: Week 12

I loved that the first story in this unit was a poem. I love to read poems but I don't think that it is something I am able to write and write it beautifully, although I might like to try! Maybe I will try for fun and not for an assignment.

In the second story, I thought it was told in such a way that I could read the story as it was the men's voices. It was very clearly written for me to see and know what was going on with the right amount of detail.

The third story, the Rushen Coatie was also a fun version of Cinderella! Except a sweet red calf was the Fairy Godmother. I thought it was very cute and maybe a little bit graphics with the cutting of the feet.

(John D. Batten)




Bib: This story is part of the English Fairy Tales (2) unit. Story source: More English Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs with illustrations by John D. Batten (1894).

Reading A: Week 12

BIB: This story is part of the English Fairy Tales (2) unit. Story source: More English Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs with illustrations by John D. Batten (1894).

For the first story in reading A, I found a lot of enjoyment in the rhyming aspect of it. It also seemed pretty familiar to me like something I had heard before. I thought it was a cute story, maybe with a little bit of a sad ending, but it is what the town deserved. 

I wasn't much of a fan for the second story, it did not entice me like the first story and I did find it a little hard to read. It just didn't catch my attention.

Tattercoats made me unfortunately sad in the beginning until I realized it was a version of Cinderella! I wanted it to have more of a twist but I did enjoy it for what it was. it was super cute. 

(By: John D. Batten) 

Week 11 Reading B

Heroes: Lodge-Boy and Thrown-Away -

I like that this first few stories are short and sweet but interesting enough to keep your attention and on the edge of the street. It is a page turner (scroller). I think these stories were hard to read because of the names of the characters - it kind of threw me off.

I thought these stories started off strong but the more I read I get a little bit bored.

I thought the shortness of them was nice and how there was a lot of little stories within one big one. I want my stories to be a little bit more exciting and make more sense and be an easy read.

(Cree Indian)





Bib:
This story is part of the Native American Hero Tales unitSourcey source: Tales of the North American Indians by Stith Thompson (1929).

Week 11 Reading A: Tejas

When the Storm God Arrives  - I found this a really fun but kind of sad read. I liked that their 'God' wasn't a fictional character but someone that was really there and could save them in their time of need. Kind of like a hero.

When I read these stories, I know that it is not just the humans who are characters but the animals, the earth, the water. It is almost a romantic way of telling a story. It is beautifully written and fun to pay attention to. For this weeks story, I want to step out of my comfort zone of just human and animals and mention things like the wind and the seas. I think it would be a good development for me as a writer.

THE MISTLETOE!!!!!! A CUTE CHARACTER!!!!!!



BIB:
Story source: When the Storm God Rides: Tejas and Other Indian Legends retold by Florence Stratton and illustrated by Berniece Burrough (1936).

Reading B (Extra Credit) Week 10

For this week I was really interested in the readings but just happened to be busier than I expected - so I was pretty excited when I realized I could make up a reading for extra credit.

Reading The Boy Who Snared the Sun was really fun for me. The small details were fun and I really enjoyed the names like Morning Glory and Eagle Feather. I thought it was really nice reading what they would tell their children. It was an easy read! I enjoyed that.

How The Summer Came was a good read. I enjoyed that it was the same characters.  Another thing I enjoyed was how they watched the stars and what it meant to them. I liked that a lot.  I love talking about the stars and what they mean so it was fun for me. I also liked when the animals were included.

The Fairy Bride was cute. I have not read stories like these enough so every time I do they make me happy. Talking about how they are dreamers and frolick by themselves. I enjoyed that there was a poem she sang in the story. I don't like to write poems that are very long so I think a short one would be perfect for me.

(Illustrated by John Rae (1921) 

BIB: Story source: American Indian Fairy Tales by W.T. Larned, with illustrations by John Rae (1921). 

Reading A: Week 10

The Raven Myth: Raven's Creation

Eskimo (Bering Straits): 

For this story, I was truly fascinated. It caught my eye at the beginning and made me want to keep reading. A man coming out of an egg? Wild. I had never really thought about that much before.  

This story reminded me of Genesis from the Bible. Raven would be the 'God' in this story and the Man would be Adam. I think that is a super interesting take on it. It is just how I perceived it. 

In the second story - it tells how the man told the mosquitos to eat people. First of all - how rude. I HATE mosquito bites. That's a little frustrating. 

It definitely reminds me of the bible except more gruesome. More blood and graphic violence. 

I think these were all very interesting stories or legends. They are all captivating in a way I didn't really know could happen. These are what I want my stories to be like. 

(Raven) 

Reading Notes: Japan

I went through a  few different sections of stories to find one I really enjoyed but My Lord Bag of Rice was the first to catch my attention. I liked the idea of all the different types of characters. It was different than animals and humans but it was like a fairy tale with dragons and giant centipedes, supernatural creatures that may not actually be real. I like that the story is also based under water - it does not have to be a 'real' setting. This story used dancing fish and all types of colors to make your imagination go wild. I loved the ending when the presents he accepted were very useful and not just all rags and riches. He was still a common working man but became prosperous. It has been one of my favorites to date.

Illustration from book

Bibliography - Japanese Fairy Tales By Yei Theodora Ozaki (1908).

Reading A - Week 7

Izanagi and Izanami - I really liked this story, the poetry was beautiful but for me, it was really hard to follow along and read because of the English used. Although I found it hard to read, I found it really enjoyable when saying it out loud to myself. 

Another thing I loved about the story was the many characters, the Gods of the Sky and love and heavens. I thought this was a really inspiring idea to talk about 'life' before the Earth was created. 

The Miraculous Mirror - Reading out loud was so fun! This is a story I had a lot of fun with and I want to convey something like this to the people who read my stories. I think it would be a lot of fun to write something like this. The character Uzume was one I really liked - as someone who loves to laugh I really related. The details were also really nice (I really liked the word shimmering) 

Painted by Kunisada

Bibliography: 

Romance of Old Japan, Part I: Mythology and Legend by E. W. Champney and F. Champney (1917).

Reading B: Persian Tales

For this weeks reading, I have chosen Persian Tales because I was very inclined to read stories about fairy tales. I wanted a wide variety of different stories so i didn't get bored and this is exactly what is gave me!

The Hemp-Smokers Dream was quite a fun one for me. It made me laugh at the end when he proclaimed he was intoxicated. It is the first story I have read about anything like this so I had a really good giggle with it.

Tortoise Bowl-on-the-Back and the Fox  was a fun one. I did like how there was a message at the end - I thought it was a good idea and it really told you what the story was about.

These were my favorite readings of the week. I wasn't a fan of this chapter, it just wasn't what I wanted it to be but I am glad I did read it.

(Untextbook) 

BIB: 

http://mythfolklore.blogspot.com/2014/04/persian-tales-hemp-smokers-dream.html 

Reading B: Week 5 - Aladdin

These stories were filled with beautiful details of princes and princesses, jewels and castles. It was fascinating to read and be able to visualize all the gorgeous things they were talking about. 

I really enjoyed how it wasn't just like the movie, I would like to see this version in theatres though. It could be really much better than the Disney version. 

I thought there was the right amount of characters, it was really fun to read. 

Overall, these have been my favorite to read so far. 

Bib

This story is part of the Arabian Nights unit. Story source: The Arabian Nights' Entertainments by Andrew Lang and illustrated by H. J. Ford (1898). (From Laura Gibbs :)) 

((illustration by Walter Crane)

Reading A, Week 5

For this week, I have chosen the readings about Aladdin. These were my favorite stories growing up so I am really excited to dive in and see what it was really all about. 

The first few stories have left complete cliffhangers every time. It is exciting to read and much different than anything I was expecting. I thought the character Scheherazade is a great character. I love strong, smart, empowering women so to see her as the star is really exciting to me. 

I really like how the story is set up into shorter paragraphs so it is much easier to read. I also really dislike the Sultan as a character ( and maybe as a human) because he is just a jealous man who has more power than he knows what to do with. 

I wish there was more detail in these stories, I want to know more about the setting and where they are living, I bet it would be gorgeous if it was actually told. 

(Arabian Nights) 

Bib:

This story is part of the Arabian Nights unit. Story Source: The Arabian Nights' Entertainments by Andrew Lang and illustrated by H. J. Ford (1898).