F is for Fairy Tale

Another Kay Nielsen: Hansel and Gretel

A fairy tale is a tale of grace: an unexpected blessing. In fairy tales, something magical intervenes to transform an individual’s social/emotional state as when a broken home is healed (Hansel and Gretel), a marriage created (Marya Morevna), a lost relationship recovered (Rapunzel and her prince), or a vocation empowered (The Shoemaker and the Elves). By hearing of others overcoming obstacles to reach a state of joy, our own spirits are lifted vicariously. “Once upon a time” opens the door for the tale to be our own, and when “happily ever after” befalls the protagonists, it also falls upon us.

Find meaningful fairy tales for each stage of life in these volumes:

Andersen, Hans Christian and Maria Tatar, The Annotated Hans Christian Andersen. W. W. Norton & Company, 2007.

Chinen, Allen B., In the Ever After Fairy Tales and the Second Half of Life. Chiron Publications, 1989.

Pearson, Carol S., The Hero Within. HarperOne, 2013.

Drop by my booth 2511 at the Texas Library Conference this week!

17 responses

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- mary grace ketner on May 13, 2014 at 8:34 am said:
  
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Cathy Rosenthal on April 8, 2014 at 12:12 pm said:

I shared this on Facebook. It was a beautiful explanation of the power of story in our lives.
- mary grace ketner on April 8, 2014 at 1:23 pm said:
  
  Aw, thanks, Cathy!
Julie on April 7, 2014 at 9:54 pm said:

Thank you for your short list of books.
- mary grace ketner on April 8, 2014 at 1:23 pm said:
  
  🙂
megan hicks on April 7, 2014 at 2:45 pm said:

“…a vocation empowered.” I’m swooning. Thank you for that phrase, that concept, that possibility.
- mary grace ketner on April 8, 2014 at 1:25 pm said:
  
  Of course, I thought of you at the same moment I thought of “The Shoemaker and the Elves!”
Madeline Mora-Summonte on April 7, 2014 at 12:19 pm said:

I love this line – “Once upon a time” opens the door for the tale to be our own, and when “happily ever after” befalls the protagonists, it also falls upon us.”

Madeline @ The Shellshank Redemption
Minion, Capt. Alex’s Ninja Minion Army
The 2014 Blogging from A-Z Challenge
- mary grace ketner on April 8, 2014 at 1:25 pm said:
  
  Thanks, Madeline! It’s yours!
Stephen Tremp on April 7, 2014 at 8:17 am said:

Great post and worth of a Tweet. I never knew the meaning behind a fairy tale. Now I know. I just learned something new before finishing my first cup of coffee.
- mary grace ketner on April 7, 2014 at 8:29 am said:
  
  Aw, Stephen! How sweet! Thanks for letting me know!