Never Grow Up's Fairy Tale Blog Party!

I love a good fairy tale, so I couldn't pass up Beast'sbelle's invitation to do her Fairy Tale Blog Party at Never Grow Up! So, behind the jump, my answers to a set of fairy-tale themed questions...



1. What is your favorite fairy tale and why?
My very favorite fairy tale is "The Wild Swans" by Hans Christian Andersen. The heroine is strong (though it's a quiet, resilient strength), and the crux of the story is familial rather than romantic love.

2. List your 4 favorite fairy tale heroes or heroines and why you like them.
- I can't very well praise the heroine of "The Wild Swans" above and not here. Elise (sometimes Elisa or Eliza, but the version I had as a kid was Elise) goes through torments both physical and emotional, and never abandons her quest, even at the threat of imminent death. Girl is hardcore. (Unlike The Little Mermaid, another voiceless Andersen heroine, Elise chooses her physical and mental anguish. The Mermaid was physically altered to pursue her quest; Elise had the option to turn back at any time.)

-Second place has to go to the heroine of a rather unconventional fairy tale. Princess Amethyst Alexandra Augusta Araminta Adelaide Aurelia Anne (or simply "Amy"), of M.M. Kaye's delightful book "The Ordinary Princess". If you ever wanted a princess to relate to, here she is.

-While I scorned the poor Little Mermaid before, I have to give her third place. Please note, I'm not referring to Ariel of the Disney adaptation, but to the original Andersen work. Like Elise, she willingly gives herself to physical and mental anguish - and, when she has the choice to undo her transformation and escape death by killing her unfaithful prince, she is overcome by compassion for him and chooses death.

- While it's not really a fairy tale - it's a pixie tale, or more accurately, a "pictsie" tale, Miss Tiffany Aching of Terry Pratchett's "The Wee Free Men" (and it's sequels) deserves a place on this list. She's flatly practical, often flawed, and while she has magical help, it's always her ironwilled determination that sees her through. I wish I'd had these books around as a child, they're a great remedy for the "believe in yourself and wish on stars and everything will be okay" fairytale mentaility.

3. Who in your opinion is the most threatening fairy tale villain?
I'm always most impressed by a fairy tale villain who seems plausible, and in that vein (though I fear I'm getting repetitive) the archbishop of "The Wild Swans" is my choice. His motive is understandable (when your king decides to marry some strange girl he found in the forest, who refuses to speak and spends her days hard at some mysterious task, it's understandable to want to save him from himself)...and his methods are, well, based in history.

4. If applicable, share something about a favorite fairy tale book you had as a child. What made it so special?
My parents, in their loving wisdom, bought me a copy of Mercer Mayer's retelling of The Sleeping Beauty. It's such a beautiful retelling, and the illustrations are breathtaking.

5. In your opinion, what makes a good fairy tale?
I've already listed a lot of the qualities I like in a fairy tale - characters who are strong, resilient, loyal, compassionate, and not so perfect that they can't be related to.

6. Who is your favorite fairy tale illustrator?
MERCER MAYER. Forget the Little Critter books and go look up his versions of The Sleeping Beauty, Beauty and the Beast, and East of the Sun, West of the Moon. Ohhh, to have the money to afford that last one - why do they all have to be out of print?!?

7. What is your favorite re-telling of a classic fairy tale and why?
This is a rather unconventional choice, but "Snow, Glass, Apples" by Neil Gaiman wins here. It takes Snow White, and turns her into - well, what modern pop culture generally pictures when we are given "hair black as ebon, skin white as snow, lips red as blood" - a vampire. Needless to say, this is a horror story, and please let me emphasize that is was written for an adult audience and contains many themes/scenes inappropriate for younger readers.

8. Which fairy tale character is the most like you?
There are very few who are actually like me, but if I had to choose, it'd be ordinary Princess Amy. :D

9. If you could choose to be any fairy tale character, who would you be and why?
I know it is a long shot, but if one day I could be as unflinchingly hardcore as Granny Weatherwax, my life would seem well spent. Sadly, I fear I'm just the sort of namby-pamby uselessness that Granny spends all her time trying to fight.

10. If you could have one wish, what would it be?
a. that a fairy godmother would come along, give you a dazzling outfit and shoes, and whisk you away to a royal ball 
b. that you could fly 
c. that you would discover an enchanted world outside of our own 
d. that you would be able to go on a grand adventure
Erm, none of the above? Flying is the best choice, but I much prefer teleportation (less showy). As for balls - gowns are uncomfortable and I can't dance, and enchanted worlds and grand adventures are generally full of dangers best avoided when you have a husband and child who depend on you.

11. If you could find out anything about your favorite fairy tale character outside of the pages of his/her story, what would you want to know?
I want an in-depth look at what leads up to the marriage of Elise and the King in "The Wild Swans". If we look no further than the text, the King finds Elise in the forest, takes her back to his palace against her will, and soon afterward, they're married. Which is incredibly disturbing when you think about it. He can't have been all bad - she stays with him at the end - but I'd like to have seen one scene where she willingly consents to the situation.

BONUS QUESTION:
12. Share a picture of one of your dolls dressed as a fairy tale character. :)
It's not really a doll dressed as a character, more like a doll that IS a character - but Pullip Rapunzel's blond wig arrived this week, and she wants to show it off:



I do have more goodies to share, so hopefully there will be another post soon!