Rendition

Stories of cheating on your spouse are as old as time. These three short stories help us understand how--and why--people are unfaithful.

At an early age we learn that crime has its consequences, especially if we steal another's property. This episode has four stories that show us how ironic and surprising a thief's karma could be.

A lie can hurt, damage, and even destroy. But, can it ever serve a purpose? Can it help us? These three short stories all revolve around lies told by those closest to us, with surprising effects.

Expectations usually free up brain bandwidth for the BIG stuff, but they can also imprison us in a flat view of the world.  In this episode, three cautionary stories of when expectations go wrong...

Music by Ben-Murray-Smith and LiamLRY

Every country, near and far, seems to have this one stock character in its folklore. I first became fascinated by this character as a 9-year-old when I was growing up in the Dominican Republic. We'll call this character "The Wise Fool" and hear a handful of stories that showcase the characters versatility and charm.

Music by Ben Murray-Smith and iAmLarry

Are geniuses born, or made? In this week's episode we hear two ancient stories about brilliant youths, and we see both perspectives to this question. These two folktales also happen to be the genesis of two modern movie genres.

Dreams are today's answers to tomorrow's questions. A common motif in stories, movies, and music, is to bring in a dream as foreshadowing for what will happen later. This week we hear two stories in which dreams foreshadow and determine the main characters' fate.

Stories since the beginning of time have been thrilling us by having characters take on false identities. In this episode we look at one legendary song and two folktales that show us the GOOD and BAD consequences of pretending to be someone we're not. Major thanks to Christopher Wallace, Aaron Shepard, and O. Henry for their contribution to the legacy of stories.

Love stories are as old as time, but then again, so are stories about its creepy sibling-emotion: infatuation. Unrequited love often brings a feeling of obsession, and these two folk tales paint the picture of the lengths humans will go to just to catch the apple of their eye.

Tolstoy once said that “all great literature is one of two stories: someone goes on a journey, or a stranger comes to town.” In this first episode we hear three folk stories centered around this most familiar theme: a stranger shows up to disrupt the status quo.