The Sorcerer's Apprentice: An Anthology of Magical Tales by Jack Zipes

The Sorcerer's Apprentice: An Anthology of Magical Tales by Jack Zipes was released earlier this year. These are just the type of books I adore--obviously since I work on similar collections myself--with a single theme offered in a wide variety of tales and stories from around the globe. Lovely. And when an expert like Jack Zipes is at the helm, double the loveliness. The book will be reliable and it will be affordable, too. So everyone wins!

The book is worth the price of admission for the introduction alone, but then you actually get the tales to read, too. This is also an excellent gateway book to introduce folklore to Harry Potter fans--a definite marketing angle the book provides, being quite self-aware of that. But J.K. Rowling drew from folklore for her inspiration and here is a book that shows how rich those sources are, even though Rowling was probably unaware of many of these herself.

Book description:

A diverse new anthology that traces the meaning and magic of the sorcerer's apprentice tale throughout history

"The Sorcerer's Apprentice" might conjure up images of Mickey Mouse from the Disney film Fantasia, or of Harry Potter. As this anthology reveals, however, "sorcerer's apprentice" tales―in which a young person rebels against, or complies with, an authority who holds the keys to magical powers―have been told through the centuries, in many languages and cultures, from classical times to today. This unique and beautifully illustrated book brings together more than fifty sorcerer's apprentice stories by a plethora of writers, including Ovid, Sir Walter Scott, and the Brothers Grimm. From Goethe's "The Pupil in Magic" to A. K. Ramanujan's "The Guru and His Disciple," this expansive collection presents variations of a classic passed down through countries and eras.

Readers enter worlds where household objects are brought to life and shape-shifting occurs from human to animal and back again. We meet two types of apprentice: "The Humiliated Apprentice," a foolish bumbler who wields magic ineffectively and promotes obedience to authority; and "The Rebellious Apprentice" who, through ambition and transformative skills, promotes empowerment and self-awareness. In an extensive introduction, esteemed fairy-tale scholar Jack Zipes discusses the significance and meaning of the apprentice stories, the contradictions in popular retellings, and the importance of magic as a tool of resistance against figures who abuse their authority. Twenty specially commissioned black-and-white illustrations by noted artist Natalie Frank bring the stories to visual life.

The Sorcerer's Apprentice enlightens and entertains readers with enduring, spellbinding tales of sorcery that have been with us through the ages.

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

List of Figures ix
Preface xi
Notes and Acknowledgments xxiii
Introduction
The Sorcerer's Apprentice, Harry Potter, and Why Magic Matters 1

Part I The Humiliated Apprentice Tales

Early Tales
Lucian of Samosata, "Eucrates and Pancrates" (ca. 170 CE) 85
François Pétis de la Croix, "The Story of the Brahmin Padmanaba and the Young Hassan" (1707) 88
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, "The Pupil in Magic" (1798) 97

Nineteenth-Century Tales
Robert Southey, "Cornelius Agrippa's Bloody Book" (1801) 101
Sir Walter Scott, "The Last Exorciser" (1838) 103
John Naaké, "The Book of Magic" (1874) 103
Alfred Cooper Fryer, "The Master and His Pupil; or, The Magic Book" (1884) 105
Sheykh-Zāda, "The Lady's Fifth Story" (1886) 110
Edith Hodgetts, "The Blacksmith and the Devil" (1890) 112

Twentieth-Century Tales
Henry Thomas Francis, "The Rash Magician" (1916) 117
Richard Rostron, "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" (1941) 119
Richard Dorson, "The Mojo" (1956) 123
Harold Courlander, "The Do-All Ax" (1957) 124

Part II The Rebellious Apprentice Tales

Early Tales
Ovid, "Erysichthon and Mestra" (8 CE) 129
Rachel Harriette Busk, "The Saga of the Well-and-Wise-Walking Khan" (ca. 3rd Century to 11th Century) 136
Somadeva, "Bhavasarman and the Two Witches" (ca. 1070) 140
Farīd al-Dīn ʿAttār, "The Magician's Apprentice" (ca. 1220) 142
Giovan Francesco Straparola, "Maestro Lattantio and His Apprentice Dionigi" (1553) 144
Sangendhi Mahalingam Natesa Sastri, "The Deceiver Shall Be Deceived" (ca. 1770) 151

Nineteenth-Century Tales
Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, "The Nimble Thief and His Master" (1819) 163
Kazimierz Wladyslaw Woycicki, "The Sorcerer and His Apprentice" (1839) 166
Arthur and Albert Schott, "The Devil and His Pupil" (1845) 169
Ludwig Bechstein, "The Magic Combat" (1857) 174
Johann Georg von Hahn, "The Teacher and His Pupil" (1864) 178
Giuseppe Pitrè, "The Tuft of Wild Beet" (1875) 184
Domenico Comparetti, "Oh, Relief!" (1875) 190
François-Marie Luzel, "The Magician and His Servant" (1885) 193
George Webbe Dasent, "Farmer Weathersky" (1888) 202
Jerome Curtin, "The Fisherman's Son and the Gruagach of Tricks" (1890) 209
Edith Hodgetts, "The Wonderful Trade" (1890) 218
Charles Swynnerton, "The Story of Ali the Merchant and the Brahmin" (1892) 227

Twentieth-Century Tales
Leo Wiener, "The Tale of the Sorcerer" (1902) 243
Joseph Charles Mardrus, "The Twelfth Captain's Tale" (ca. 1904) 247
Fletcher Gardner, "The Battle of the Enchanters" (1907) 253
Peter Buchan, "The Black King of Morocco" (1908) 254
Cecil Henry Bompas, "The Boy Who Learnt Magic" (1909) 257
Edith Nesbit, "The Magician's Heart" (1912) 260
Claude-Marius Barbeau, "The Two Magicians" (1916) 272
Hermann Hesse, "The Forest Dweller" (1917) 274
Heywood Broun, "Red Magic" (1921) 281
Dean Fansler, "The Mysterious Book" (1921) 286
Elsie Clews Parsons, "The Battle of the Enchanters" (1923) 289
Romuald Pramberger, "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" (1926) 293
Seumas MacManus, "The Mistress of Magic" (1926) 296
Joseph Médard Carrière, "The Two Magicians" (1937) 306
John Mason Brewer, "The High Sheriff and His Servant" (1958) 311
Corinne Saucier, "The Man and His Son" (1962) 312
A. K. Ramanujan, "The Magician and His Disciple" (1997) 313

Part III Krabat Tales

Joachim Leopold Haupt, "About an Evil Man in Groß-Särchen" (1837) 323
Michael Hornig, "Krabat: A Legend from Folklore" (1858) 324
Georg Gustav Kubasch, "Krabat" (1865) 326
Edmund Veckenstedt, "The Sorcerer's Apprentice, I" (1880; Recorded by Hendrich Jordan) 329
Edmund Veckenstedt, "The Sorcerer's Apprentice, II" (1880; Recorded by Alexander von Rabenau) 331
Johann Goltsch, "The Story about Krabat" (1885) 333
Georg Pilk, "The Wendish Faust Legend" (1900) 334
Jerzy Slizinski, "Krabat" (1959) 344

Biographies of Authors, Editors, Collectors, and Translators 349
Filmography 365
Bibliography 369
Selected and Chronological List of Sorcerer's Apprentice Tales 387
Index 397

Bargain Ebook: Magic Under Glass by Jaclyn Dolamore

Magic Under Glass by Jaclyn Dolamore is bargain priced at $1.59 in ebook format ($8.54 in paperback). It is not a fairy tale retelling, but has been recommended by several fairy tale fans, so I thought I would share here. Not much of a risk at $1.59 and the reader reviews are strong, too. Dolamore also wrote a novel about sirens, Between the Sea and Sky, which is perhaps what got her on many fairy tale readers' radar.

Book description:

Nimira is a foreign music-hall girl forced to dance for pennies. When wealthy sorcerer Hollin Parry hires her to sing with a piano-playing automaton, Nimira believes it is the start of a new and better life. In Parry's world, however, buried secrets are beginning to stir. Unsettling below-stairs rumors swirl about ghosts, a madwoman roaming the halls, and Parry's involvement with a league of sorcerers who torture fairies for sport. Then Nimira discovers the spirit of a fairy gentleman named Erris is trapped inside the clockwork automaton, waiting for someone to break his curse. The two fall into a love that seems hopeless, and breaking the curse becomes a race against time, as not just their love, but the fate of the entire magical world may be in peril.Look out for the follow-up to this book, Magic Under Stone, out next year!

The sequel, Magic Under Stone (Magic Under Glass), was released last year and remains $9.99 for ebook and $11.55 for hardcover.

Book description:

For star-crossed lovers Nimira and Erris, there can be no happily ever after until Erris is freed from the clockwork form that entraps him. And so they go in search of the sorcerer Ordoria Valdana, hoping he will know how to grant Erris real life again. But Valdana has mysteriously vanished, and it's not long before Nimira decides to take matters into her own hands-and begins to study the sorcerer's spell books in secret. Yet even as she begins to understand the power and limitations of sorcery, it becomes clear that freeing Erris will mean returning him to the fairy capital. But with a new ruling family in power, Erris's return will bring danger, if not out-and-out war as factions within the faerie world are prepared to stop at nothing to prevent Erris from regaining the throne. Only Nimira, with her fledgling grasp of sorcery can help, but saving the man she loves could prove doom for the fairie world and beyond.

New Film: The Sorcerer and the White Snake

Here's a change for SurLaLune, a new film based on a Chinese folktale, Legend of the White Snake, that is making the press rounds now. And judging from these trailers it is visually stunning. Makes me want to watch Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon again.

From Action stars put modern twist on classic fairy tale:

Veteran action star Jet Li and action director Tony Ching haven't forgotten their adult audiences, even though their latest movie is the children's fairy tale "The Sorcerer and the White Snake."

The movie, based on a Chinese fairy tale much like Cinderella or Sleeping Beauty, made its world premiere out of competition Friday at the Venice Film Festival.

Cast members said they recalled first hearing the classic tale from their grandmothers.

But Ching says he sought to put a modern twist on the fable by mixing action with special effects. He says "the idea was to blend Chinese tradition, which is martial arts, with Western technology."

There's more about the tale on Wikipedia, with more links to learn more. Here's an excerpt:

The Legend of the White Snake is a Chinese legend, which existed as oral traditions before any written compilation. It has since become a major subject of several Chinese opera, films and television series.

The earliest attempt to fictionalize the story appears to be The White Maiden Locked for Eternity in the Leifeng Pagoda (白娘子永鎮雷峰塔) in Feng Menglong's Jingshi Tongyan (警世通言), which was written during the Ming Dynasty.

At its most basic, the story tells of a young scholar who falls in love with a beautiful woman, unaware that she is a thousand year old white snake that has taken on human form. A monk intervenes in order to maintain nature's law and casts the white snake into a deep well at Leifeng Pagoda.

Over the centuries the story has evolved from horror story to romance with the scholar and the white snake-woman genuinely in love with one another, but such a relationship is forbidden by nature's law. There have also been variations on the telling of the story : like the thousand year old white snake have met the boy before and the story continues as reincarnation; or the white snake's offspring being a reincarnation of Wenchang Wang.

An additional character is a hundred year old green snake (or in some cases a carp) that has also transformed into a woman, and serves as the white snake-woman's soul sister and confidante.

Bargain Ebooks: Sarah Zettel's Isavalta Series

A Sorcerer's Treason (Prologue Fantasy), book one in Sarah Zettel's Isavalta series, as well as the other three books in the series, are all priced temporarily at 99 cents each for ebook format, part of a sell by publisher Prologue Books Sale. I am unaware of how long the sale will last, but the books are usually priced $3+ each. I've had the first title sitting in my TBR (to be read) pile for a while. The series uses a historical  American setting with a fantasy world inspired by Russian, Chinese, and Indian folklore which sounds quite fascinating and something different for those weary of the typical fantasy settings. I'll probably buy the other three once I hit publish on this post.

Book description:

Bridget Lederle resides in the lighthouse she’s tended since her father died. Here, on the rocky shore of Lake Suprior, she’s alone with the bitter ignominy of her birth, the shame of her love child’s death, and the ghost of a mother she never really knew . . .

That all changes on the wintry night she rescues a mysterious, charismatic stranger whose boat is nearly dashed upon the rocks. After she’s nursed him back to health, he tells her a fantastical tale . . . of another world, where somehow only she can save the beleaguered Empress from sorcerous plottings to usurp the throne.

His tale is wildly fanciful, yet Bridget feels somehow drawn to his world, to the empire of Isavalta. Kalami, her handsome, charming patient, transports her with him from Lake Superior to a dazzling world that seems like a dream . . .

But if Isavalta is a dream, Bridget’s new life is a nightmare. Caught in a magical crossfire between the powerful Dowager Empress, her daughter-in-law, an the sorcerers who serve their mistresses and other more subtle ends, she doesn’t know whom to trust, whom to beware . . . With the fate of an empire at stake and her heart torn by conflicting desires, she becomes a reluctant player in a deadly game of politics and magic with rules as hard to untangle as the knots in a silken tassel or the threads of a woven rug.

As she attempts to see beyond the masks of power and discover truth in a world where magical spells can take almost any form, each hour she spends in the luxury of Isavalta’s court bunds her more tightly in the seductive embrace of secrets from her own past and of unfulfilled yearnings she can’t deny. A stranger in this bedazzling place, she must find a path to salvation - for herself and for her new, otherworldly home - but that path seems rockier than the Lake Superior shore she left behind.

The Usurper's Crown (Prologue Fantasy)

Book description:

Ingrid Lotfield was a good woman, doing right by her parents, protecting her sensitive sister, and reliably completing her fair share of the chores necessary for life in their fishing village in 1872, on the cold shore of Lake Superior. Then Avan came. He said he was Norwegian, as many of the fisherman were. He was different - kind and quiet and strong—and one day he somehow miraculously helped to save her sister form a terrible fate in a watery grave.

She knew Avan was from a far land, knew he loved her. They would be married, have children . . . be fisherfolk as had generations before them.

But before they could wed, he was called back to the land of his birth, a land beyond the shore of Superior, beyond Earth, a magical land where he was more than a fisherman. He had to go. He wouldn’t see her hurt, and there were untold forces in his homeland, Isavalta, that could harm her beyond her wildest imaginings. But her love was too strong for him to resist. She would go with him, no matter the risks. So brave, so dear. Together they would face danger and excitement: to save an empire and its empress, and find their own fate, no matter what peril, mo matter how strange.

The Firebird's Vengeance (Prologue Fantasy)

Magic and the force of destiny propelled Bridget Lederle across the void between worlds, through the Land of Death and Spirit, to the world of Isavalta, where she discovered secrets about herself and her family that had been hidden since before her birth. It seems like only yesterday that a charismatic stranger swept her from her home on the shore of Lake Superior and took her on an impossible journey to a strange, bejeweled world where sorcery could spring from the simplest of patterns, with most serious effect.

In Isavalta she also discovered magical powers she had never suspected she possessed before her transit between the worlds. More than self-knowledge has changed her: she is in love with Sakra, a powerful sorcerer and her staunch ally. And she learns that her daughter, who she thought was lost to her, is alive.

But that daughter is also the pawn in a dangerous game of power and politics. The powerful spells of a ruler intent on conquest threaten to destroy both mother and daughter. Torn between the contending forces of magic and empire, Bridget lives an extraordinary adventure replete with unimaginable dangers. Beset by enemies on all sides, she must rely on the aid of supernatural forces she can’t control, lest she be destroyed by a fate she cannot imagine.

Sword of the Deceiver (Prologue Fantasy)

For five hundred years, the great southern empire of Hastinapura has flourished, ruling the world of Isavalta with an iron fist. But nothing lasts forever . . .

The day of her womanhood ceremony finds Princess Natharie of Sindhu happily celebrating with her family, joyfully awaiting her marriage to a prince of another realm. However, when the empire demands that her family send someone to court, Natharie realizes that she is the only one who can satisfy the empror’s wishes.

As Natharie spends time in the Hastinapura court, she learns of the empire’s bloodthirsty worship of the Mothers and of the intention of their high priest, Divakesh, to spread their worship beyond the empire - including into neighboring Sindhu - at any cost.

These plots threaten to pit Natharie’s homeland against Hastinapura in a disastrous war. Appalled by the power and brazenness of the emperor’s brother, Pirnce Samudra, she realizes as each day brings war ever nearer, that the powerful prince may be her only hope to prevent a war that could destroy them all.

Bargain Ebooks: Split Worlds Series by Emma Newman TODAY ONLY

Two books on my wish list are on sale today only for $1.99 each in ebook format. Between Two Thorns (Split Worlds) and Any Other Name (The Split Worlds) by Emma Newman don't retell any fairy tales to my knowledge but they do create a world of Faerie that has made them popular and recommended to me by other readers.

The marketing buzzwords are "Georgette Heyer meets J.K. Rowling" or something of that sort but reading the descriptions makes me think of the beloved cult classic Sorcery & Cecelia: or The Enchanted Chocolate Pot (The Cecelia and Kate Novels, 1) and its sequels. Which I love. Reminder to myself, it's been a few years since I've reread those.

Anyway, the first two books are on sale for $1.99 today only, marked down from the $6 range. The third book, All Is Fair: The Split Worlds - Book 3, is $5.79, slightly dropped, too. All three books together are available for under $10.

And don't you love those covers, too?

Book description for Between Two Thorns (Split Worlds):

Something is wrong in Aquae Sulis, Bath’s secret mirror city.

The new season is starting and the Master of Ceremonies is missing. Max, an Arbiter of the Split Worlds Treaty, is assigned with the task of finding him with no one to help but a dislocated soul and a mad sorcerer.

There is a witness but his memories have been bound by magical chains only the enemy can break. A rebellious woman trying to escape her family may prove to be the ally Max needs.

But can she be trusted? And why does she want to give up eternal youth and the life of privilege she’s been born into?

Book description for Any Other Name (The Split Worlds):

Cat has been forced into an arranged marriage with William - a situation that comes with far more strings than even she could have anticipated, especially when she learns of his family's intentions for them both.

Meanwhile, Max and the gargoyle investigate The Agency - a mysterious organisation that appears to play by its own rules - and none of them favourable to Society.

Over in Mundanus, Sam has discovered something very peculiar about his wife's employer - something that could herald a change for everyone in both sides of the Split Worlds.

The Cecelia and Kate Novels by Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer for $1.99 (For all 3!)

Happy Thanksgiving! I'm taking a "sit break" real quick from my Thanksgiving hosting demands and sharing this treasure because it makes me smile just to think about it.

The Cecelia and Kate Novels: Sorcery & Cecelia, The Grand Tour, and The Mislaid Magician by Patricia C. Wrede (Author) and Caroline Stevermer (Author) is on sale for $1.99--it's usually $9.99 so that is a bargain. That's 3 books for two bucks and they are excellent books, too.

I've recommended these repeatedly over the years with about a 98% success rate of people loving them. Sorcery & Cecelia was a cult classic for years that was out of print with paperback editions selling for sometimes $100. Yes, that was years ago and I am old. But Wrede and Stevermer then wrote the two sequels and the first book got reprinted as a result. Now they never have to go out of print again with the digital age. Love that!

So if you haven't read these, they will make a nice escape once your six hours of Gilmore Girls watching has been completed this weekend. Because according to the media that is what everyone will be doing instead of shopping. And I will be one of them! I'm ready for a trip to Stars Hollow myself.

Book descriptions:

A trio of bewitching novels featuring devoted cousins who must juggle their magical powers with their duties as ladies in Regency-era England.

Enter Regency-era England—and a world in which magical mayhem and high society go hand in hand—with three novels featuring cousins Cecelia and Kate.

In Sorcery & Cecelia, the two cousins have been inseparable since girlhood. But in 1817, Kate goes to London to make her debut into English society, leaving Cecelia behind to fight boredom in her small country town. While visiting the Royal College of Wizards, Kate stumbles on a plot to destroy a beloved sorcerer—and only Cecelia can help her save him.

In The Grand Tour, Cecelia and Kate, along with their husbands, are inaugurating married life with a trip to the Continent. When a mysterious woman in Calais gives Cecelia a package intended for Kate’s mother-in-law, however, the two young wives realize they must spend their honeymoons preventing an emperor-in-exile named Napoleon from reclaiming the French crown.

In The Mislaid Magician, it is 1828 and the cousins are now society matrons. The steam engine is announcing its arrival and the shaking of the locomotives begins to disrupt England’s ancient, underground magical ley lines. When the disappearance of a foreign diplomat threatens to become an international incident, Cecelia departs to fight for the future of magic—leaving Kate to care for a gaggle of disobedient, spell-casting tots.

Blending history, romance, and magic, these charming novels from the author of the Enchanted Forest Chronicles will delight anyone who loves Harry Potter or Susannah Clarke’s Jonathan Strange & Mr Norell.

Kindle Daily Deal: The Seventh Bride by T. Kingfisher for $1.99

The Seventh Bride by T. Kingfisher is one of the Kindle Daily Deals on sale for $1.99 TODAY ONLY. This is a Bluebeard retelling with some unusual twists.

Book description:

Young Rhea is a miller’s daughter of low birth, so she is understandably surprised when a mysterious nobleman, Lord Crevan, shows up on her doorstep and proposes marriage. Since commoners don’t turn down lords—no matter how sinister they may seem—Rhea is forced to agree to the engagement.

Lord Crevan demands that Rhea visit his remote manor before their wedding. Upon arrival, she discovers that not only was her betrothed married six times before, but his previous wives are all imprisoned in his enchanted castle. Determined not to share their same fate, Rhea asserts her desire for freedom. In answer, Lord Crevan gives Rhea a series of magical tasks to complete, with the threat “Come back before dawn, or else I’ll marry you.”

With time running out and each task more dangerous and bizarre than the last, Rhea must use her resourcefulness, compassion, and bravery to rally the other wives and defeat the sorcerer before he binds her to him forever.

New Book: Scarlet in the Snow by Sophie Masson

Scarlet in the Snow by Sophie Masson will be released next week.

Book description:

Masson delves into the depths of two ancient Russian fairy tales and brings to life the beguiling adventure of Natasha, the rose-stealer, and the Beast, its protector

When Natasha is forced to take shelter from a sudden blizzard, she is lucky to see a mansion looming out of the snow. Inside, it is beautiful: the fire lit, the table set, but mysteriously enough there is no one there. On the walls, instead of paintings, sit empty frames. In the garden, she finds one perfect red rose about to bloom, a vivid splash of scarlet against the snow. Dreamily she reaches out a hand, only to have the master of the house appear—a terrifying, gigantic creature who looks like a cross between a bear and a man—and demand vengeance on her for taking his rose. So begins an extraordinary adventure that will see Natasha plunged deep into the heart of a mystery. She begins to realize she has stumbled onto a great tragedy—a spell of revenge laid on the young man the Beast once was, devised by a powerful sorcerer. But even if she can break the spell, the Beast she has now come to love will be snatched from her. Natasha will have a long journey, and many ordeals, ahead of her before there can be a happy ending.

Bargain Ebook: A Whole New World: A Twisted Tale by by Liz Braswell for $1.99

A Whole New World: A Twisted Tale by by Liz Braswell is on sale today only for $1.99 down from a usual range of $10. This is a novel retelling Aladdin--the Disney version--from with dark twists, part of a series by Braswell for the Disney imprint that retells many Disney fairy tales. Oh, the layers of folklore manipulation!

Book description:

What if Aladdin had never found the lamp? This first book in the A Twisted Tale line will explore a dark and daring version of Disney's Aladdin. When Jafar steals the Genie's lamp, he uses his first two wishes to become sultan and the most powerful sorcerer in the world. Agrabah lives in fear, waiting for his third and final wish.To stop the power-mad ruler, Aladdin and the deposed princess Jasmine must unite the people of Agrabah in rebellion. But soon their fight for freedom threatens to tear the kingdom apart in a costly civil war. What happens next? A Street Rat becomes a leader. A princess becomes a revolutionary. And readers will never look at the story of Aladdin in the same way again.