Reading Diary Week 14: Lang's Fairy Tales II

READING A:

11.  Half-Chick

This was such a cute, if morbid, story. I love the name Medio Polito. It reminded me of Puss in Boots and The Little Red Hen at the same time. I also like how it explained the appearance of weather vanes. I also appreciate that there is a moral to the story and all the small details fit together nicely.

22. Clever Maria

This story was a bit strange for me. I like the idea that the obedient daughter was rewarded but I don’t understand how she was obedient. She ran away, perhaps saving her virginity, but abandoned her sisters. She also stole from the King. When the king is remorseful for striking off the doll/fake Maria’s head, she falls into his arms. It doesn’t make much sense to me.

33. Blue Beard

I like this story quite a bit. The villain finally got his due and the curious wife won the day.

44. Toads and Diamonds

The idea of gems coming out of her mouth with every word seems awkward. It’s symbolic in a way though. The virtuous daughter’s words should be valued like gems while the unkind daughter spews foul words/creatures.

(Illustration by Gustave Doré, Source: Wikipedia)

S5.  Seven-Headed Serpent

This story is one of the reasons I read this unit. I am looking for more inspiration for my sea monster story.  I like the idea of the streams of precious metal. I think Jamie will find many treasures as he delves deeper into the Kelpie’s cave but he should not take any of them.

The boy and his horse

This story reminds me of Hercules and the hydra.

Story source: The Green Fairy Book by Andrew Lang, illustrated by H. J. Ford (1892).

Reading Diary B: Czech Folktales

Reading Diary B



1. The Man Who Met Misery

2. Nine At A Blow

3. A Clever Lass

4. The Soldier and the Devil

5. Old Nick and Kitty

6. The Knight Bambus

7. Francis and Martin

8. Three Supernatural Stories


I think “The Man Who Met Misery,” has a lot of interesting details in it. Francis finally learned what sacrifice meant when he gave up his finger to save his life. One of the Kelpie tales I read described how to escape a kelpie, the victim may have to cut off a finger magically attached to the creature’s mane. I was surprised to see a similar scenario in a Czech Fairy Tale.

I found a lot of inspiration in “Nine at a Blow.” In this story, a tailor outsmarts a giant and is ultimately rewarded by the king. I like the way the challenges are presented and I may use a similar format when Jamie meets the giant in my final story.

“The Clever Lass” has been one of my favorite stories this semester. I love to see intelligent heroines in folklore.

(Vodyanoy, similar to a waternick. Source:Wikipedia)

I was glad to see another mention of Waternicks in the last story. It seems like these creatures are relatively benign. The waternicks in the first unit stole souls but treated the children they captured fairly well. The waternick is this story seems a bit rude but the bear took care of him nicely.

Story source: The Key of Gold by Josef Baudis (1922).

Reading Diary A: Czech Folklore

Reading Diary A

1. Sleepy John
2. Silly Jura
3. The Bear, the Eagle, and the Fish
4. Kojata
5. The Three Roses
6. The Twin Brothers
7. The Waternick

I wanted to read something a little different this week and I chose the Czech fairy tales because I read “The Clever Lass” earlier in the semester and really enjoyed it. This unit is also available on Librivox and I like to listen to the stories during my long commute to campus. 

I enjoyed Sleepy John but I had a lot of questions during the story. Why did the farmers decide to drop him in the woods? Why wasn’t he sleepy at any other time during the story? I was also enchanted by the idea of the Leaden, Tin, and Silver forest.

(Russian Winter or Silver Forest? Source: Flickr)

Silly Jura was also an interesting tale. I like the idea of the cat who turns into a princess. It seems to be a common theme in the Czech unit that once transformed, the animal form must be destroyed to free the ensorcelled individual. Although this didn’t happen with the princes in The Bear, the Eagle, and the Fish.

Kojata was a fun story as well. I like that the youngest daughter fell in love with the doomed prince. During the escape scene, I was reminded of one of my favorite books that I read to my son: The Runaway Bunny. She became a church and the prince, a monk. It’s a little like that story where the mother bunny becomes something else to be with her son.

I read the Waternick to search for details for my upcoming Kelpie story. Although the creatures are very different, I hoped to use some characteristics from the Czech water monster for my Irish one. I like the idea of trapped human souls but I’m not sure if I want to make my monster that evil.

Story source: The Key of Gold by Josef Baudis (1922).