Once Upon a Time II

I love folklore. Discovering old stories and traditions that managed to reach us today from so long ago. There is something magical about the past, something over-romanticised, sure, but still magical. Same goes for mythology - so much about a culture becomes clear when you look at its myths and legends.

I also love fairy tales. I started re-discovering them quite recently, I had to get over the 'you're too old for this' block in my head. It's a real privilege to have the ability to completely lose oneself in a fairy tale. If there are actual fairies in it, so much the better!

For these two reasons and many more, I am thrilled to be taking part in Carl's Once Upon a Time II challenge. I like the idea of reading one book from each of the four categories (Fantasy, Mythology, Folklore, Fairy Tales) so I'll try for Quest the Second, with an option to switch to Quest the First if I don't manage and an option to switch to Quest the Third if I manage to fit in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, which I'm sure I have lying around somewhere. For details, check out Carl's original post.

Here are my possibilities - I'm having trouble locating other possibilities for the folklore section, so any recommendations would be welcome!

Fantasy:

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling

Inkheart by Cornelia Funke

Mythology:

The Stolen Child by Keith Donahue

The Wood Wife by Terri Windling

The Penelopiad by Margaret Atwood

Folklore:

Folk Tales of the North American Indian

Cajun Tales of the Louisiana Bayous by Ray Robinson

Fairy Tales:

The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale

The Princess Bride by William Goldman

The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly