Beautiful Angiola: The Lost Sicilian Folk and Fairy Tales of Laura Gonzenbach [Hardcover]

Jack David Zipes (Editor), Laura Gonzenbach (Editor), Joellyn Rock (Illustrator)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0415968089 | ISBN-13: 978-0415968089 | Publication Date: September 4, 2003 | Edition: 1

In one of the most startling literary discoveries of recent years, Jack Zipes has uncovered this neglected treasure trove of Sicilian folk and fairy tales. Like the Grimm brothers before her, Laura Gonzenbach, a talented Swiss-German born in Sicily, set out to gather up the tales told and retold among the peasants. Gonzenbach collected wonderful stories - some on subjects that readers will know from the Grimms or Perrault, some entirely new - and published them in German. Her early death and the destruction of her papers in the Messina earthquake of 1908 only add to the mystery behind her achievement. Beautiful Angiola is an instant classic: a nineteenth-century collection of stories in the great tradition of fairy and folk tales now translated into English for the first time. Gonzenbach delights us with heroines and princes, sorcery and surprise, the deeds of the brave and the treacherous, and the magic of the true storyteller. The Green Bird , The Humiliated Princess , sorfarina , The Magic Cane, the Golden Donkey, and the Little Stick that Hits are titles destine to become new favourites for readers everywhere. Yet while the stories enchant us, the wry taglines with which they often end ("And so they remained rich and consoled, while we keep sitting here and are getting old") gently bring us back to earth.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...a treasure...All the magic elements of the folk and fairy tales are in these stories, but with a delightfully Sicilian angle: stories where a man's word is his life, a woman can leave her home and determine her own fate, and working hard reaps reward. When I finished the last page, I knew this book was a labor of love and deserved my respect." -- Kathryn Thurman, Territorial Tattler

About the Author

Jack Zipes is Professor of German at the University of Minnesota. An acclaimed translator and scholar of children's literature and culture, his most recent books include Hans Christian Andersen: The Misunderstood Storyteller and Speaking Out: Storytelling and Creative Drama for Children, both published by Routledge.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 632 pages
• Publisher: Routledge; 1 edition (September 4, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0415968089
• ISBN-13: 978-0415968089
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 7.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,569,632 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An important addition to your folklore library, November 24, 2003

By 

Heidi Anne Heiner (SurLaLune Fairy Tales.com) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Beautiful Angiola: The Lost Sicilian Folk and Fairy Tales of Laura Gonzenbach (Hardcover)

Here the inexhaustible Jack Zipes edits and translates a lesser known, but arguably very important, collection of Sicilian folk and fairy tales. Originally collected and recorded by Laura Gonzenbach in mid-19th century Sicily, these tales provide a different perspective on the folklore of the time and ours today. Zipes argues that this collection is perhaps the most important collection from the time period, even more important than the Grimms' collection. The tales are unadulterated, carefully recorded to reflect the voice of the original teller. Since Gonzenbach collected primarily from women tellers and was herself female, the feminine perspective of the tales hearkens back to the French Salons albeit at a different class level. Be warned that these tales have not been softened and at times reflect the violence, cruelty, and unfairness of life with clear language; these stories are not for the nursery. Zipes' comprehensive introduction and endnotes (including Aarne-Thompson classification numbers) enhance the scholarly weight of the text, but the stories can be read strictly for the enjoyment of the armchair folklorist.

This collection is especially recommended for readers interested in 19th century folktale collections, feminist folklore and Sicily.

Highly recommended.

0 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars of questionable value and provenance, July 21, 2007

By 

Bruce D. Wilner "Bruce David Wilner" (Alexandria, VA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Beautiful Angiola: The Lost Sicilian Folk and Fairy Tales of Laura Gonzenbach (Hardcover)

I question the value because, while the stories are entertaining and do indeed exhibit a uniquely Sicilian flair, the plot lines are extremely familiar. To be sure, both Gonzenbach/Zipes books are completely subsumed by Italo Calvino's monumental work under Pantheon's colophon. I question the provenance because--some years after Zipes "discovered" Gonzenbach's $35 trove of Sicilian tales--he mysteriously just happened to "discover" a complementary $35 trove. Hmm ... I guess sticking to the ol' two-stage discovery paradigm doubles your revenues.