In this episode, Geoff and Katrina complete their shining tiara of a series, with this crown jewel. After a year devoted to exploring the motifs, themes, and elements that have traveled through the ocean of stories for centuries, we cover the story of Snow White. Crafted and created by the Brothers Grimm, Little Snow White is a tale that most people feel familiar with, but there are still surprises to be had in this episode. 

Book that we used in this episode:

CW: Violence and Death of Children

Fate dictates that we provide our audience with a “B” inspired episode and Geoff does not disappoint with his Bestiary of Bakemono. In this Geoff-isode, we dive into tales of Japanese spirits that explain why things so often go bump in the night. While some might be downright silly sounding, with eyeballs for buttholes, others are waiting to bounce at the least provocation, frighten you by bodies of water, or marry you. Geoff has us all exploring the line between monstrous creature or beautiful gods.

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For more information on Michael Dylan Foster and his work, check out this FolkWise episode (FolkWise: Michael Dylan Foster)

The Book of Yokai

The 5th Friday in September was a special selection of tree tales from various locations around the world. With the prompt for "plant tales" picked out by our Patreon subscribers, we decided to do an episode on trees. We retold tales of Baobab trees, which were flipped upside down for their ungratefulness and Hera's marriage present of citrons. Greeks weren't the only people to have a special relationship with citrons. And we also talked briefly about items made of trees and how their tie in to folklore help give them context.

Katrina and Geoff are back to finish up the frame story of The Tale of Tales by Giambattista Basile but first, one last story about a hunt for a woman started by the colors red, white, and black. But unlike the other tale, the color black is framed as a force for harm, giving us some cultural context on how to view the tricolors in the tale. With Diarrhea Linda out of the picture, we see if Zoza is able to outwit Lucia and claim the prince that she cried a bucket of tears for. And Katrina ends with a mic drop quote from Maria Tatar.

In this episode, Geoff and Katrina dive into The Tale of Tales by Giambattista Basile for another installment of the Snow White series. The tri-colors of fairy tales (white, black, and red) appear over and over but in Snow White we think of these elements being embodied by one beautiful woman. Retelling these tales inside The Tale of Tales requires an understanding of the frame narrative that The Crow/The Raven is found in so Katrina embarks on framing the stories with the trials and quest of Zoza, no matter who many nuts and tears are required.

In this episode Katrina and Geoff fight their burnout by turning to ATU 650 Strong John, an episode that the fates decided we would do during our December Divinations episode. While researching this tale type, Katrina came across a wild tale with twists and turns that happens to take place in The Un-United Kingdoms of America. Throw away your textbooks and get ready to hear the history of castles and kingdoms that never were. This tale is a crazy ride with the prince of West Virginia trying to claim his rightful crown, while falling in love with his coworker Tom (at least in Katrina's version), fighting dragons, and saving his mother. Buckle up for one of the most unhinged stories of the year!

Happy Mer-MAY...or rather...this episode was recorded in Mer-MAY in anticipation of the release of the new Little Mermaid movie coming out in theaters. In our most long awaited episode, after a very unplanned hiatus, we are back talking about mermaid lore and the Christian tone that this story was originally written with by Hans Christian Andersen. We first start the episode with two short mer-man tales from the area that Hans Christian Andersen grew up that might have helped inspire his tale that has long since left the confines of the shores of Denmark. Please enjoy this 2 and a half hour long special. We are happy to be back.

Katrina and Geoff have been traveling! And they came back with some fascinating folklore from their travels. Join us for the recording of our Instagram Live episode all about it.

Content Warning: Child Abuse, Infanticide, Suicide, Domestic Violence and Assault

In this episode, Geoff and Katrina talk magic mirrors in another installment of the Snow White project. We dissect the importance of the mirror in the Snow White tale by telling a tale of vanity and another of tools for divination. The first tale is the story of Narcissus from Ovid's Metamorphoses. Tales of reflective surfaces serve the important function of communicating the theme of vanity. But if this was the only purpose, why do some Snow White variants not have a mirror but instead feature magical trout and the anthropomorphic sun? 

Links to Some Sources (These are unaffiliated links and I don't receive compensation for you using them):

The Fairest of Them All by Maria Tatar

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Content Warning: Greek/Roman Gods, sexual assault, physical assault