Folklore in the Modern World
Event Details
Through generations and centuries, folktales survive because they are nimble. They adapt to the shape of the era. From the revival of traditional folktales to
Event Details
Through generations and centuries, folktales survive because they are nimble. They adapt to the shape of the era. From the revival of traditional folktales to the creation of new ones, what does folklore for a modern world look like?
Ordinary Wonder Tales by Emily Urquhart
Biblioasis
“I’ve always felt that the term fairy tale doesn’t quite capture the essence of these stories,” writes Emily Urquhart. “I prefer the term wonder tale, which is Irish in origin, for its suggestion of awe coupled with narrative. In a way, this is most of our stories.” In this startlingly original essay collection, Urquhart reveals the truths that underlie our imaginings: what we see in our heads when we read, how the sight of a ghost can heal, how the entrance to the underworld can be glimpsed in an oil painting or a winter storm—or the onset of a loved one’s dementia. In essays on death and dying, pregnancy and prenatal genetics, radioactivity, chimeras, cottagers, and plague, Ordinary Wonder Tales reveals the essential truth: if you let yourself look closely, there is magic in the everyday.
The Wolf Suit by Sid Sharp
Annick Press
Bellwether Riggwelter is, once again, out of blackberries. This time, rather than tiptoe through a forest full of predators, he comes up with a new plan. He will keep himself safe by blending in—he will sew a Wolf Suit! The disguise works perfectly . . . sort of. Bellwether realizes he can’t enjoy the forest in a bulky suit, and he may not be the only creature in the forest who feels that way. Perhaps not everyone is as wolfish as they appear.
Speakers for this event
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Dominik Parisien
Dominik Parisien
Author
Dominik Parisien is a disabled, bisexual French Canadian and the author of the poetry collection Side Effects May Include Strangers, and the forthcoming memoir On a Scale of 1 to 500 Miles: A Memoir of Chronic Pain. He also co-edited several award-winning anthologies, including The Mythic Dream and The Starlit Wood.
Author
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Emily Urquhart
Emily Urquhart
Moderator
Emily Urquhart is the author of three books of nonfiction. The most recent, Ordinary Wonder Tales, is a collection of essays. She teaches creative writing, works as a nonfiction editor for The New Quarterly, and is a five-time National Magazine Award nominee for her freelance journalism.
Moderator
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Sid Sharp
Sid Sharp
Author
Sid is an artist and author from Toronto whose interests include folklore, scary stories, mysterious and unknowable things, and finding good sticks for their stick collection. Sid attended OCAD University, works in a bookstore, and published The Wolf Suit, their first graphic novel for kids, with Annick Press in 2022.
Author