The illustration is of the boy, Ivasyk Telesyk , a Ukrainian fairy-tale character, escaping from a dragon on swan's wings. His origins were magical. His adventures include the classic motifs of Ukrainian folklore and fairy tales: magic, morality, courage, danger, animal characters, and nature with all its mysteries.
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Dear Mili -- A Fairy Tale of War and Survival
A Grimm Fairy Tale of War, Dear Mili, was Discovered in 1983. It was then Illustrated by Maurice Sendak.
Maurice Sendak was deeply moved by this story and saw parallels with the fate of many of his Jewish Polish relatives during World War Two. He knew of these events through the stories he heard as a child from his immigrant parents.
"Preserved in a letter written to a young girl, Mili, in 1816 (by Wilheim Grimm) and not discovered until 1983, the Grimm story is prefaced by a tender address in which he underscores the story's message: although there are many obstacles that can prevent people from being together, *one human heart can go out to another, undeterred by what lies between.' The story that follows implies that love transcends even death. Like many fairy tales, this one deals with extraordinary events. A widow sends her child into the forest to protect her from an approaching war. The story may have more appeal for adults than for children, but nonetheless it contains unforgettable artwork of resonant power."
Excerpted from a PW (Publishers Weekly) Review
The illustration from Dear Mili is by Maurice Sendak.
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Children
"I have always had a deep respect for children and how they solve complex problems by themselves...through shrewdness, fantasy, and just plain strength -- they want to survive, they want to survive." -
Maurice Sendak
Photo nytimes.com
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The Fairy Tale
"The fairy tale emanates from specific struggles to humanize bestial and barbaric forces, which have terrorized our minds and communities in concrete ways, threatening to destroy free will and human compassion. The fairy tale sets out to conquer this concrete terror through metaphors."
The illustration is by the Ukrainian artist Ivan Marchuk.
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Ukrainian Fairy Tales -- Underdog Heroes
"Folklore is important for understanding people’s cultural narratives – story lines that describe something unique to the culture’s history and its people. They help to define a cultural identity and, in subtle ways, shape future choices. The master narratives that Ukrainian children grow up with – which serve as the dominant cultural script – are radically different from the ones Russian children absorb.
Traditional Ukrainian bedtime stories, such as 'Kotygoroshko', 'Kyrylo Kozhumyaka'and 'Ivasyk Telesyk', all portray unassuming characters persevering against insurmountable odds. The character arc takes them through challenges, testing their will and transforming them from vulnerable to triumphant. . . .In Ukrainian children’s bedtime stories, the main characters often start out as unlikely heroes, but their courage, cleverness and grit help them succeed against the odds.
Russian Fairy Stories -- A different way of life
In Russian fairy tales such as 'By the Pike's Wish', 'Princess Frog', and 'Sivka Burka', the main character eventually prevails. He doesn’t win through his own virtues, though, but through the intervention of a magical being – a fish, a frog, a horse – that does all the hard work while the main character claims credit.
These Russian folk tales seem to suggest that the recipe for success is not to be too smart or work too hard, like the two older brothers, but to sit tight in hope that magic will take care of everything.
The cover illustration for The Frog Princess is by Ivan Billiban.
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All of the above information, about Ukrainian and Russian fairy tales, was excerpted from an article on Ukrainian Fairy Tales written by scholars Mia Bloom and Sophia Moskalenko in theconversation.com.
The top illustration is by an artist unknown. The illustration of the man with the mace fighting a golden dragon is for the Ukrainian classic fairy tale, Kotygorohsko. The artist is unknown.
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The central struggle of civilization
Throughout history, the central struggle of civilization has been against brutality by the powerful. The state of nature is a continuous war in which only the fittest survive – where lives are “nasty, brutish, and short.” -- English philosopher Thomas Hobbes.
The illustration is by Ukrainian artist Ivan Marchuk.
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Motivated by Events in Ukraine
Motivated by events in Ukraine, Sara Cleto and Brittany Warren, creators of the remarkable Carterhaugh School, have blogged about Ukrainian Folk and Fairy Tales. Here is an excerpt:
"There are no words for the Russian invasion of Ukraine. As we posted on social media last week, our hearts go out to all Ukrainians and everyone impacted by recent events. We are amazed by the resistance and want to show our support.
So, we have done what we always do – turn to folklore, to story.
If you’d like to read a whole collection of Ukrainian fairy tales online for free, we’d like to recommend Cossack Fairy Tales translated by R. Nisbet Bain (1916)Bain was a historian and linguist who became interested in folklore following his extensive language study. He could reasonably use over 20 languages, a skill that earned him a job at the British Museum and allowed him to translate books of folklore from all over the world. . . You can read the whole book online by clicking here."
Their blog and their website, like their on-line school, is fascinating. Here is a link: Carterhaugh-
Photo: Brittany is on the left, Sara on the right; photo is from Carterhaugh blog; the Illustration artist is unknown.
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Original Independent Animation
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I Dreamt of Iridescence
Dark journey, slag, Inhuman, abstract, rather mesmerizing
Fractals: By Julius Horsthuis
Music: Energy52 Cafe del Mar
Link I Dreamt of Iridescence Time: 3.39
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Metronome
A man finds his own rhythm, stylized, imaginative.
Created by Anna Leterq.
Music Remi Subjobert
Link: Metronome Time 1:42
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The ABC of Travel
Merry making, imagination, color.
From the mind and studio of Signe Bauman.
Commissioned by the San Francisco Arts Commission for the San Francisco International Airport.
Link The ABC of Travel Time 2:01
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“Children … are the most attentive, curious, eager, observant, sensitive, quick, and generally congenial readers on earth,” -- by E.B. White in his counsel on how to write for children.
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Fantasy Stories - An Expansion of each Reader's Horizons
"In fantasy stories we learn to understand the differences of others, we learn compassion for those things we cannot fathom, we learn the importance of keeping our sense of wonder. The strange worlds that exist in the pages of fantastic literature teach us a tolerance of other people and places and engender an openness toward new experience. Fantasy puts the world into perspective in a way that 'realistic' literature rarely does. It is not so much an escape from the here-and-now as an expansion of each reader's horizons." -- Jane Yolen, award winning author and editor, quoted by Terri Windling in Myth and Moor
Jane Yolen has written over 400 children and YA books, often relating to moral and behavioral issues. Her timeless YA crossover book, Briar Rose, actually deals with the Holocaust. Briar Rose was awarded the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Adult Literature in 1993, and nominated for the Nebula Award.
Illustration by Kristen and Kevin Howdeshell.
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The Power of the NRA is Stronger Than the Power of the People
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Helping to Open Minds through Story of Underserved Children
"General Motors, Candlewick Press, and the American Booksellers Association have announced a new partnership to encourage young readers to develop an interest in STEM subjects through engagement with science fiction and fantasy novels. Funded by General Motors, the #STEMReads initiative will give away 20,000 copies of Christina Soontornvat’s The Last Mapmaker (Candlewick, Apr. 12).
A free box of paperback editions of The Last Mapmaker will be made available to independent booksellers to give away in underserved communities, particularly for readers between the ages of 8 and 12. Stores that participate in the giveaway will also receive a marketing stipend and will be invited to enter to win an in-person or virtual visit from Soontornvat, giving young readers the opportunity to speak to the author herself."
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Iris Murdoch on Where Delights are Lurking
“Education doesn’t make you happy. Nor does freedom. We don’t become happy just because we’re free – if we are. Or because we’ve been educated – if we have. But because education may be the means by which we realize we are happy. It opens our eyes, our ears, tells us where delights are lurking, convinces us that there is only one freedom of any importance whatsoever, that of the mind, and gives us the assurance – the confidence – to walk the path our mind, our educated mind, offers.”
"People from a planet without flowers would think we must be mad with joy the whole time to have such things about us."
The painting is by Sydney Neuwirth.
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The Planet of the Dogs
"I love this series of books and this first, Planet of the Dogs, sets the stage for those works that follow. . .This story borders between reality, a dream world, fantasy, fiction, reality and wonderful imagination. People here on Earth are in trouble with many of the evils they create for themselves, and as in real life, dogs are much brighter about such things than we are. The author has done a wonderful job of weaving this tale, making it a first rate fantasy read, while at the same time addressing quite real problems and indeed, how to fix those problems.
This book can be, and should be, read on several different levels. First, it is completely appropriate for children from about the age of eight and up. While not a beginning reader by any means, the story could be read to children of a younger age and I feel there would be complete understanding with little explanation of the reader's part. . .
Young readers, who love fantasy, dogs, history and simply a good, fast moving story, will love this one. This is a book that belongs on their shelves." -- Don Blankenship, former teacher, reviewer for Good Books for Kids, Amazon top Reviewer
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