Book picks similar to
The Fantasy Stories of George MacDonald by George MacDonald
fantasy
church-as-family
short-stories
christian
Uncle Remus: His Songs and His Sayings
Joel Chandler Harris - 1881
Harris was a journalist in post-Reconstruction Atlanta, and he produced seven Uncle Remus books. He wrote these stories to represent the struggle in the Southern United States, and more specifically in the plantations. He did so by introducing tales that he had heard and framing them in the plantation context. He wrote his stories in a dialect which represented the voice of the narrators and their subculture. For this choice of framing, his collection has encountered controversy.
Politically Correct Bedtime Stories
James Finn Garner - 1994
Problem was, these stories, many of which found their way into the general social consciousness, reflected the way in which these men lived and saw their world: that is, the stories were sexist, discriminatory, unfair, culturally biased, and in general, demeaning to witches, animals, goblins, and fairies everywhere.Finally, after centuries of these abusive tales, which have been handed down--unknowingly--from one male-biased generation to the next, James Finn Garner has taken it upon himself (that's right, yet another man) to enlighten and liberate these classic bedtime stories and retell them in a way that is much more in keeping with the society in which we live today.Politically Correct Bedtime Stories, then is the fruit of Garner's labors. We'd like to think that future generations of fairy-tale fans will see this as a worthy attempt to develop meaningful literature that is totally free from bias and purged from the influences of a flawed cultural past.
Red Spikes
Margo Lanagan - 2006
They are stories of yearning for more, and learning to live with what you have. Stories that show the imprint love leaves on us all.If you think you don't like short fiction, that a story can't have the depth or impact of a novel, then you haven't read Margo Lanagan. A writer this startling and this original doesn't come along very often. So for anyone who likes to be surprised, touched, unsettled, intrigued, or scared senseless, prepare to be dazzled by what a master storyteller can do in a few short pages.
The Real Mother Goose
Blanche Fisher Wright - 1916
Heralded as the "standard" Mother Goose by parents, grandparents, teachers, and librarians, this wonderful book with Blanche Fisher Wright's lively, colorful pictures makes an enchanting introduction for the very young.Mother Goose rhymes are a vital part of childhood. And this collection of essential rhymes have been reproduced exactly as they have been repeated from generation to generation.
The Merry Spinster: Tales of Everyday Horror
Mallory Ortberg - 2018
Lavery comes a collection of darkly mischievous stories based on classic fairy tales. Adapted from his beloved "Children's Stories Made Horrific" series, The Merry Spinster takes up the trademark wit that endeared Lavery to readers of both The Toast and his best-selling debut Texts from Jane Eyre. The feature become among the most popular on the site, with each entry bringing in tens of thousands of views, as the stories proved a perfect vehicle for Lavery’s eye for deconstruction and destabilization. Sinister and inviting, familiar and alien all at the same time, The Merry Spinster updates traditional children's stories and fairy tales with elements of psychological horror, emotional clarity, and a keen sense of feminist mischief.Readers of The Toast will instantly recognize Lavery's boisterous good humor and uber-nerd swagger: those new to Lavery's oeuvre will delight in his unique spin on fiction, where something a bit mischievous and unsettling is always at work just beneath the surface.Unfalteringly faithful to its beloved source material, The Merry Spinster also illuminates the unsuspected, and frequently, alarming emotional complexities at play in the stories we tell ourselves, and each other, as we tuck ourselves in for the night.Bedtime will never be the same.The daughter cells --The thankless child --Fear not: an incident log --The six boy-coffins --The rabbit --The merry spinster --The wedding party --Some of us had been threatening our friend Mr.Toad --Cast your bread upon the waters --The frog's princess --Good fences make good neighbors
The Definitive H.P. Lovecraft
H.P. Lovecraft - 2009
Lovecraft's best works central to his 'Cthulhu mythos.' Although Lovecraft's (1890-1937) readership was limited during his life, his reputation has grown over the decades, and he is now regarded as one of the most influential horror writers of the 20th century. This book is DRM free and includes at active table of contents for easy navigation.• The Nameless City• The Festival• The Colour out of Space• The Call of Cthulhu• The Dunwich Horror• The Whisperer in Darkness• Dreams in the Witch-house• The Haunter of the Dark• The Shadow over Innsmouth• The Shadow out of Time• At the Mountain of Madness• The Case of Charles Dexter Ward• Azathoth• Beyond the Wall of Sleep• Celephais• Cool Air• Dagon• Dream House• Ex Oblivione• Facts Concerning the Late Arthur Jermyn and His Family• From Beyond• He• Herbert West: Reanimator• Hypnos• Imprisoned with the Pharaohs• In the Vault• Medusa's Coil• Memory• Nyarlathotep• Pickman's Model• Poetry of the Gods• The Alchemist• The Beast in the Cave• The Book• The Cats of Ulthar• The Crawling Chaos• The Descendant• The Doom That Came to Sarnath• The Dream Quest of Unknown Kadath• The Evil Clergyman• The Horror at Martin's Beach• The Horror at Red Hook• The Hound• The Lurking Fear• The Moon Bog• The Music of Erich Zann• The Other Gods• The Outsider• The Picture in the House• The Quest of Iranon• The Rats in the Walls• The Shunned House• The Silver Key• The Statement of Randolph Carter• The Strange High House in the Mist• The Street• The Temple• The Terrible Old Man• The Thing on the Doorstep• The Tomb• The Transition of Juan Romero• The Tree• The Unnamable• The White Ship• Through the Gates of the Silver Key• What the Moon Brings• Polaris• The Very Old Folk• DarknessThis unexpurgated edition contains the complete text with errors and omissions corrected.
The Conan Chronicles 2
Robert Jordan - 1999
An omnibus edition of the last three Conan novels by Robert Jordan, author of the bestselling Wheel of Time series
The Little Prince
Antoine de Saint-Exupéry - 1943
"Please," asks the stranger, "draw me a sheep." And the pilot realizes that when life's events are too difficult to understand, there is no choice but to succumb to their mysteries. He pulls out pencil and paper... And thus begins this wise and enchanting fable that, in teaching the secret of what is really important in life, has changed forever the world for its readers.Few stories are as widely read and as universally cherished by children and adults alike as The Little Prince, presented here in a stunning new translation with carefully restored artwork. The definitive edition of a worldwide classic, it will capture the hearts of readers of all ages.
Classic Tales and Fables for Children
Leo Tolstoy - 1905
At the age of twenty-one, he started a school for peasant children on his family's estate, and after returning from a stint in the military, he founded another, experimental school with the motto, "Come when you like, leave when you like."Fascinated by the simple charm and the fresh innocence with which the children of his schools told stories, several years later, when Tolstoy began writing about his own childhood, he emulated the uncomplicated narrative style and disarming directness of the tales told by the children of his acquaintance. After completing War and Peace, he incorporated these stories in a series of easy readers, and continued to work on them even while writing Anna Karenina. Known as The ABC Book (Azbuka) and subsequently The New ABC Book (Novy Azbuka), these marvelous readers were widely adopted in Russia and were still in use in the Soviet era.The tales and fables in this volume come mainly from these two well-loved primers. Part I consists of stories about his own childhood, all told with beautiful simplicity. Part II contains Tolstoy's free adaptations of fables from Aesop and from Hindu tradition. Part III is devoted solely to his longest and most famous children's work, the fairy tale "Ivan the Fool and His Two Brothers."Never patronizing and often humorous, these small gems reveal Tolstoy's deep appreciation for and understanding of children's artistic and moral sensibilities.
Bluebeard's Egg
Margaret Atwood - 1983
Here is the familiar outer world of family summers at remote lakes, winters of political activism, and seasons of exotic friends, mundane lives, and unexpected loves. But here too is the inner world of hidden places and all that emerges from them-the intimately personal, the fantastic, the shockingly real...whether it's what lives in a mysterious locked room or the secret feelings we all conceal. In this dramatic and far-ranging collection, Margaret Atwood proves why she is a true master of the genre.
There Once Lived a Woman Who Tried to Kill Her Neighbor's Baby: Scary Fairy Tales
Ludmilla Petrushevskaya - 2009
Blending the miraculous with the macabre, and leavened by a mischievous gallows humor, these bewitching tales are like nothing being written in Russia-or anywhere else in the world-today.
The Adventures of Baron Münchausen
Rudolf Erich Raspe - 1785
Baron Munchausen's astounding feats included riding cannonballs, traveling to the Moon, and pulling himself out of a bog by his own hair. Listeners delighted in hearing about these unlikely adventures, and in 1785, the stories were collected and published as Baron Munchausen's Narrative of his Marvellous Travels and Campaigns in Russia. By the nineteenth century, the tales had undergone expansions and transformations by several notable authors and had been translated into many languages.A figure as colorful as the Baron naturally appeals to the artistic imagination, and he has been depicted in numerous works of art. His definitive visual image, however, belongs to Gustave Doré. Famed for his engravings of scenes from the Bible, the Divine Comedy, Don Quixote, and other literary classics, Doré created theatrical illustrations of the Baron's escapades that perfectly re-create the stories' picaresque humor.
Princesses Behaving Badly: Real Stories from History—Without the Fairy-Tale Endings
Linda Rodríguez McRobbie - 2013
You've read the Brothers Grimm, you've watched the Disney cartoons, and you cheered as these virtuous women lived happily ever after. But real princesses didn't always get happy endings. Sure, plenty were graceful and benevolent leaders, but just as many were ruthless in their quest for power and all of them had skeletons rattling in their royal closets. Princess Stephanie von Hohenlohe was a Nazi spy. Empress Elisabeth of the Austro-Hungarian empire slept wearing a mask of raw veal. Princess Olga of Kiev slaughtered her way to sainthood while Princess Lakshmibai waged war on the battlefield, charging into combat with her toddler son strapped to her back. Princesses Behaving Badly offers true tales of all these princesses and dozens more in a fascinating read that's perfect for history buffs, feminists, and anyone seeking a different kind of bedtime story.
What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours
Helen Oyeyemi - 2016
In “Books and Roses” one special key opens a library, a garden, and clues to at least two lovers’ fates. In “Is Your Blood as Red as This?” an unlikely key opens the heart of a student at a puppeteering school. “‘Sorry’ Doesn’t Sweeten Her Tea” involves a “house of locks,” where doors can be closed only with a key—with surprising, unobservable developments. And in “If a Book Is Locked There’s Probably a Good Reason for That Don't You Think,” a key keeps a mystical diary locked (for good reason). Oyeyemi’s tales span multiple times and landscapes as they tease boundaries between coexisting realities. Is a key a gate, a gift, or an invitation?
The Hounds of the Mórrígan
Pat O'Shea - 1985
Only Pidge and Brigit can stop her, and their task seems impossible as they're constantly trailed by the queen's hounds. But they're aided in their quest by a host of willing helpers - a glorious array of unforgettable characters.