# Recommend some fairy tale inspired lit, movies, etc. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 10, 2006, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-fairy-tale-inspired-lit-movies-etc/356162 "2006-05-10T02:11:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Miss\_Purl\_McKnittington](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9a140/32.png) [@Miss\_Purl\_McKnittington](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Purl_McKnittington)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-fairy-tale-inspired-lit-movies-etc/356162/1 "2006-05-10T02:11:29Z")
I was watching _The Tenth Kingdom_ this weekend while studying for finals, and I realized that I hadn’t really exposed myself to any new fairy tale inspired works for a while–things that draw from the general fairy tale tropes, whether seriously or playfully. I’ve really only been re-reading and re-watching from the same pool for the past few years. Since I’d like to study/analyze this subject some day, I figured I ought to rectify this. These are the books, movies, etc. that I’m aware of/have experienced: Ella Enchanted [Patricia A. McKillip books](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-url/index=books&field-author-exact=Patricia%20A.%20McKillip&rank=-relevance%2C%2Bavailability%2C-daterank/002-1839813-9673610), although I’ve only read a couple, and I misremember the titles The Tenth Kingdom Ever After Shrek The Disney oeuvre [The Glass Slipper](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0048124/) [Cannon Movie Tales: Beauty and the Beast](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092626/) (unspeakably bad) [Beauty and the Beast](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092319/) (TV series that I just barely remember) Fractured Fairy Tales (Rocky & Bullwinkle) [Gregory Maguire](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-url/index=books&field-author-exact=Gregory%20Maguire&rank=-relevance%2C%2Bavailability%2C-daterank/002-1839813-9673610) re-tellings (Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister, Mirror Mirror, etc.) Okay, my brain is failing me now, but I know I’ve read and watched more. There was a YA book that I read a looooong time ago that was loosely based on the Tam Lin story and that story where the hero has to hold on to his lover though she changes into horrible things–fire and a snake, I think. The protagonist in this book was female and I’d set it in about the 16th century. She’s being fostered in a castley-manor-thing away in the wilds of England, and there’s this “deep magic” type cult living in the caves beneath the manor, and she and the castle’s oldest son are spirited away by the cult. I loved that book so much, but I believed I dropped it in the tub. Anyway . . . Can anyone recommend any other books, movies, TV shows, music, or anything else? I’d like it if we could keep it to more concrete examples (i.e., re-tellings and adaptations), but if you know of something with strong parallels to the [Cinderella stories](http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/type0510a.html) or something similar, then by all means, suggest it. As you can see, my list isn’t all that obscure. I’m open to almost any genre–horror, fantasy, children’s, general fiction, whatever. The only thing I’ll say no to is Anne Rice and her Sleeping Beauty trilogy-thingy. And if anyone has any suggestions for critical literature, feel free to share that too. I have _From the Beast to the Blonde_ and I’m aware of Joseph Jacobs. Any suggestions for compilations of folk/fairy tales that aren’t the Grimms, Perrault, Jacobs, or Andrew Lang are also very welcome. ---
**Author:** ![HazelNutCoffee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ac91a4/32.png) [@HazelNutCoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HazelNutCoffee)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-fairy-tale-inspired-lit-movies-etc/356162/2 "2006-05-10T02:29:40Z")
Robin McKinley has a few books based on fairytales - Deerskin, Beauty, and Spindle’s End. I’ve only read the first two, but if you liked McKillip, I think you’ll like her too. My personal favorite is Angela Carter. Her collection of short stories (The Bloody Chamber) has re-tellings of Little Red Riding Hood, Beauty and the Beast, Puss in Boots, The Bloody Chamber, and a few others, I think. She also has a short story called Ashputtle, which is a retelling of Cinderella, but it’s not included in the same collection. I think Margaret Atwood has a few short stories based on fairytales as well. Spells of Enchantment is a collection of both traditional fairytales and modern reinterpretations, edited by Jack Zipes. I highly recommend this book - it’s a fascinating read. If you’re interested in a bit of theory, Jack Zipes and Maria Tatar have both written books that explore fairy tales, their influence on children, and how they’ve been reinterpreted over the years. I read some of their stuff back in college, but it’s written in a way that makes it accessible to the average person (ie, a person without a background in English lit). Bruno Bettelhiem is considered the father of such theory - and though he’s full of shit, it’s interesting shit and also worth a read. ---
**Author:** ![Kythereia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e8c25b/32.png) [@Kythereia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kythereia)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-fairy-tale-inspired-lit-movies-etc/356162/3 "2006-05-10T02:30:49Z")
_cough_BillWillingham’s_Fables_!_cough_ ---
**Author:** ![Kythereia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e8c25b/32.png) [@Kythereia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kythereia)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-fairy-tale-inspired-lit-movies-etc/356162/4 "2006-05-10T02:33:02Z")
Also, Donna Jo Napoli writes some very choice retellings of European fairy tales (and Greek legends, and Judeo-Christian mythology). Try _Zel_, _Spinner_, _Sirena_, _Song of the Magdalene_, _Beast_, _Bound_… ---
**Author:** ![adhemar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@adhemar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adhemar)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-fairy-tale-inspired-lit-movies-etc/356162/5 "2006-05-10T02:34:48Z")
If the Tam Lion book is the one I think it is, set at a college in the Northern US, it was a part of a series done by one of the Fantsy genre publishers that took traditional fairy tales and updated them. There was the Tam Lin one. One doen by Orson Scott card I think about Brier Rose that was set in the concentration camps, Jack the giant Killer by Charles DeLint. And some others. I quite liked them but had trouble finding them. Charles DeLint did a whole series of Urban fairy tales. Emma Bull was another and I think Mercedes McCambridge did some as well but they may be getting further away form the traditional. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-fairy-tale-inspired-lit-movies-etc/356162/6 "2006-05-10T02:52:54Z")
Patricia Wrede’s [Enchanted Forest Chronicles](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0152050523/qid=1147228670/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/002-0650895-6316063?s=books&v=glance&n=283155) are the first thing I thought of. They certainly “draw from the general fairy tale tropes” in a playful way. George MacDonald’s fairy tale [The Light Princess](http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/etext96/ltprn10.txt) is available online. For retellings of classic tales, there’s [Shelly Duvall’s Faerie Tale Theatre](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00077BPH8/qid=1147228857/sr=2-1/002-0650895-6316063?s=dvd&v=glance&n=130), and [Jim Henson’s The Storyteller](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000EU1Q5E/qid=1147228959/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/002-0650895-6316063?s=dvd&v=glance&n=130) (and speaking of Henson, ---
**Author:** ![delphica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9a140/32.png) [@delphica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/delphica)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-fairy-tale-inspired-lit-movies-etc/356162/7 "2006-05-10T02:58:26Z")
> [@Miss Purl McKnittington](#): > > There was a YA book that I read a looooong time ago that was loosely based on the Tam Lin story and that story where the hero has to hold on to his lover though she changes into horrible things–fire and a snake, I think. The protagonist in this book was female and I’d set it in about the 16th century. She’s being fostered in a castley-manor-thing away in the wilds of England, and there’s this “deep magic” type cult living in the caves beneath the manor, and she and the castle’s oldest son are spirited away by the cult. I loved that book so much, but I believed I dropped it in the tub. Anyway . . . Was this _The Perilous Gard_ by Elizabeth Pope? I love that book. It is so sad when books meet their ends in tragic tub accidents. The Tam Lin inspired story that **adhemar** is talking about that is set at an American college is _Tam Lin_ by Pamela Dean, which I also love love love and is coming back into print this summer. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-fairy-tale-inspired-lit-movies-etc/356162/8 "2006-05-10T03:01:09Z")
Mercedes Lackey has written some books that are a spin on classic fairytales: _Firebird_ _The Fairy Godmother_ _Fire Rose_ _The Gates of Sleep_ _The Black Swan_ ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Purl\_McKnittington](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9a140/32.png) [@Miss\_Purl\_McKnittington](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Purl_McKnittington)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-fairy-tale-inspired-lit-movies-etc/356162/9 "2006-05-10T03:10:27Z")
Yes, **delphica** , that was precisely it! I’ll have to order it off Amazon when my penny jar is full. And keep it away from the tub. There are so many that I’d forgotten about–Faerie Tale Theatre, McKinley, Bettelheim. How on earth did I forget Bettelheim? Thank you all so much for your suggestions. I’m making a long list. ---
**Author:** ![Civil\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d78d45/32.png) [@Civil\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Civil_Guy)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-fairy-tale-inspired-lit-movies-etc/356162/10 "2006-05-10T03:13:56Z")
Um, Terry Pratchett does send-ups of fairy tale story-lines, a lot of them in Witches Abroad. For instance, Little Red Riding Hood and Cinderella are told from Pratchett’s unique angle. Quite funny, if you get into Pratchett’s world (Discworld, that is). ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Purl\_McKnittington](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9a140/32.png) [@Miss\_Purl\_McKnittington](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Purl_McKnittington)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-fairy-tale-inspired-lit-movies-etc/356162/11 "2006-05-10T03:23:16Z")
I am filled with shame. I love Pratchett, but I’ve only read the Guard books. Because I like Carrot. A lot. And Vimes. A lot a lot. So I guess that means _Witches Abroad_ is up next in my Pratchet queue. ---
**Author:** ![Dijon\_Warlock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a9a28c/32.png) [@Dijon\_Warlock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dijon_Warlock)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-fairy-tale-inspired-lit-movies-etc/356162/12 "2006-05-10T03:29:27Z")
Well, there’s [**Faerie Tale** by William Feist](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0553277839/002-8691521-5100839?v=glance&n=283155). There is [Brian Froud’s website](http://www.worldoffroud.com/index.html), which has loads of faeries (as well as Amazon, if you search for him there). He is the co-author/artist of the Ballantine book “Faeries” that came out in the late '70s, as well as several things after that (the pseudo-tarot “Faerie Oracle” deck of cards included). There’s also a novel by John Crowley entitled [“Little, Big”](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0060937939/sr=1-1/qid=1147231682/ref=sr_1_1/002-8691521-5100839?%5Fencoding=UTF8) which is my favorite novel in all the world. Oh, and it’s got faeries in it. Trust me. ---
**Author:** ![kalex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/dfb087/32.png) [@kalex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kalex)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-fairy-tale-inspired-lit-movies-etc/356162/13 "2006-05-10T03:36:49Z")
You might try a new one - Keith Donohue’s The Stolen Child. It’s a spin on the changeling story and follows the human boy and the fairy ‘changeling’ as they grow up (or don’t) in their respective bodies. Very nicely written. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-fairy-tale-inspired-lit-movies-etc/356162/14 "2006-05-10T03:52:34Z")
For movies, the recent Shrek-like take on Little Red Riding Hood, [Hoodwinked!](http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0443536/), sounds like something you’d like. ---
**Author:** ![Balance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ccd318/32.png) [@Balance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balance)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-fairy-tale-inspired-lit-movies-etc/356162/15 "2006-05-10T03:53:55Z")
To expand on the books **Guinastasia** mentioned, Lackey has written two novels in a setting called the “Five Hundred Kingdoms”, where the magic system mostly revolves around recurring fairy tales. _The Fairy Godmother_ and _One Good Knight_ present some interesting twists on fairy tale tropes. As to the other fairy-tale related novels she’s written: _Firebird_ and _The Black Swan_ seem to mostly stand alone as retellings. _The Serpent’s Shadow_ (think about it, **Guin** ), _The Gates of Sleep_, and _Phoenix and Ashes_ are part of her “Elemental Masters” series, set in the late 19th and early 20th Centuries. _The Fire Rose_ has many elements in common with the “Elemental Masters” books, but doesn’t seem connected to them–the magic system seems slightly different, and it’s set near San Francisco, while the others are set in various parts of England. ---
**Author:** ![Alistair\_McCello](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/58956e/32.png) [@Alistair\_McCello](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alistair_McCello)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-fairy-tale-inspired-lit-movies-etc/356162/16 "2006-05-10T06:39:07Z")
Orson Scott Card’s book _Enchantment_ draws heavily from quite a few different folktales and fairy tales. Everything from Sleeping Beauty to Baba Jaga to some more obscure Slavic mythology. I’m going to second _Jim Henson’s Storyteller_, life can hardly get better than when you have John Hurt telling folktales. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 11:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-fairy-tale-inspired-lit-movies-etc/356162/17 "2006-05-10T11:56:23Z")
> [@HazelNutCoffee](#): > > My personal favorite is Angela Carter. Her collection of short stories (The Bloody Chamber) has re-tellings of Little Red Riding Hood, Beauty and the Beast, Puss in Boots, The Bloody Chamber, and a few others, I think. She also has a short story called Ashputtle, which is a retelling of Cinderella, but it’s not included in the same collection. I think Margaret Atwood has a few short stories based on fairytales as well. Also be sure to check out [Company of Wolves](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0087075/) , the Carter-written Neil Jordan movie. Creepy Angela Landsbury… Has anyone mentioned Neil Gaiman’s _Snow, Glass, Apples_ short story? ISTR it’s in _Smoke & Mirrors_. ---
**Author:** ![Eureka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/74df32/32.png) [@Eureka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eureka)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 12:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-fairy-tale-inspired-lit-movies-etc/356162/18 "2006-05-10T12:11:43Z")
Gail Carson Levine (I hope that’s her name) wrote a series of fairy tales for children that are slight twists on classic tales. I found them delightful when I read them a couple years ago. She also wrote Enchanted Ella, which got turned into a movie. It was a light, enjoyable twist on Cinderella. ---
**Author:** ![SkeptiJess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea666f/32.png) [@SkeptiJess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SkeptiJess)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-fairy-tale-inspired-lit-movies-etc/356162/19 "2006-05-10T13:35:34Z")
> [@](#): > > There was the Tam Lin one. One doen by Orson Scott card I think about Brier Rose that was set in the concentration camps, Jack the giant Killer by Charles DeLint. And some others. I liked this series, but it’s hard to track because all the books had different authors. The _Briar Rose_ book was excellent – by Jane Yolen, who’s done lots of other fairy tale things, too. Another of the titles in this series was _Snow White & Rose Red_. Some others that havn’t been mentioned: _Beauty_ by Sheri Tepper. Great book! Lots of different fairy tales woven together. A huge book, and not a light read. Ellen Datlow & Terri Wilding have edited a series of retold fairy tales. _Snow White, Blood Red_ was the first, I believe (I’m too lazy to take it off my shelf and double check), but there are lots of others. Has anyone mentioned Tanith Lee? ---
**Author:** ![SkeptiJess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea666f/32.png) [@SkeptiJess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SkeptiJess)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2006, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-fairy-tale-inspired-lit-movies-etc/356162/20 "2006-05-10T13:48:32Z")
Oh, I forgot to mention the movie _The Slipper and the Rose_. Nice musical version of Cinderella (with Richard Chamberlain as Prince Charming). Also, my favorite novelization of Cinderella is the children’s novel _The Glass Slipper_ by Eleanor Farjean. It’s an old book and appears to be out of print. Well worth a look, though, if you can find a copy. It’s one of my favorite books from childhood. Farjeon also wrote a book of original short stories for chidren (_The Little Bookroom_) some of which were fairy tales. Very good book, too, and another of my childhood favorites. She also wrote a retelling of Rumplestilskin (_The Silver Curlew_), but I’ve never read it. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-fairy-tale-inspired-lit-movies-etc/356162.md?page=2)