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78 reviews for:
The Turnip Princess and Other Newly Discovered Fairy Tales
Franz Xaver von Schönwerth
3.54 AVERAGE
78 reviews for:
The Turnip Princess and Other Newly Discovered Fairy Tales
Franz Xaver von Schönwerth
3.54 AVERAGE
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
Newly discovered fairy tales? Yes please. These did not disappoint. Many have elements of more familiar tales, but they are definitely something new. I'm so glad these tales are finally seeing the light! I enjoyed reading them a handful at a time before bed each night.
This book was pretty boring. Most of the stories were just three pages, and sometimes they felt pretty random. There wasn't really anything inspiring in over 100 pages, so I stopped reading.
adventurous
dark
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
A bawdy, expectation-overturning collection of German fairy tales.
The brothers Grimm, it turns out, took out a *lot* of things from their fairy tales. The Schonwerth-collected tales feature:
--Extramarital sex.
--Defectation.
--Gender-reversing tales.
--Tales about adult situation, that is, themes that kids and teen wouldn't care about, like quality of life in old age and how to die happy.
I liked it a lot and recommend it for general readers.
The brothers Grimm, it turns out, took out a *lot* of things from their fairy tales. The Schonwerth-collected tales feature:
--Extramarital sex.
--Defectation.
--Gender-reversing tales.
--Tales about adult situation, that is, themes that kids and teen wouldn't care about, like quality of life in old age and how to die happy.
I liked it a lot and recommend it for general readers.
Disclaimer: ARC via Netgalley. (However, I pre-ordered a kindle edition of the book prior to ARC approval).
I had heard of Von Schonwerth before the discovery of his trove by Erika Eichenseer, so I was looking forward to this book. The blurb likens von Schonwerth to Perrault, the Grimms, and Andersen – making the “trio” a quartet (we can discuss the leaving out of the women salon writers ourselves). This isn’t quite the case.
This isn’t because the stories aren’t grand; they are. But considering today’s squeamish about children’s stories, I can’t see many parents reading these stories to their children.
This is a shame really.
In many ways, von Schonwerth is better than the Grimms simply because he didn’t adjust (clean, scour, sanitize – chose the preferred term) the stories the same way the Grimms did. Hence the tales collected her tend to be on the earthy side. In fact, unlike the Grimm stories, several of the tales in this collection lend themselves quite readily to being recited at the local bar, properly over a nice dark beer.
Another aspect of the stories that set them apart not only from the Grimms, but also from Perrault and Andersen are the women in the stories. The girls and women are far stronger, more determined, and resourceful than the pretty princesses of the Grimms, the silly girls of Perrault, or the suffering or damned women of Andersen. There is Ashfeathers who is not a normal Cinderella, there is a variation of Rumpelstilken with far better women, and there is a mother who stops at nothing to protect her son. Even though she has been turned into a horse. The father in this strange family? Well, it’s his fault.
Several of the stories are types (in otherwise, they have basic plots) that most readers of fairy tales will be familiar with, the surprise and charm lies in the twists (or the earthiness) of the stories. Honestly, Thumbnickel is both the grossest and the best version of Tom Thumb I have ever read. It involves a cow and poop. There is absolutely no moral, and it is fabulous!
Another favorite is a story about a girl who saves a weasel. In many ways, this short and sweet play upon Beauty and the Beast is far more beautiful in terms of religion than the Grimms’ fables with the religious elements are heavily stressed. The mermaid stories are also far more beautiful and stunning than any Andersen short story.
This collection also includes two introductions, one by Eichenseer who discusses the finding of the tales; the other by Maria Tatar that places the stories in content. Of more interest are the notes at the end of the book, detailing not only the tale type but making comparisons and other general remarks.
adventurous
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Fairy tales are far from my favorite type of mythology due to their often inconsequential nature, and this one also has too much repetition of certain plot structure and themes, while also having some that have endings that are opposite of what you would rationalize. Still, there were a few stories that were interesting enough and gave that enchanted fairy tale feel that I don't regret reading it.
Utterly fascinating collection of stories that range from downright horror to something that Disney could adapt right off the page. Really appreciated the fact they weren't polished up like the Grimm tales and had a certain earthiness to them.
Highly recommended for the mashups of the much more familiar tales previously collected alone.
Highly recommended for the mashups of the much more familiar tales previously collected alone.