The Bloody Chamber (1979)

A classic feminist take on fairy tales. Something that I'd been anticipating reading and thought for certain I'd enjoy. I will confess that this isn't my favourite look at fairy tales. One contributing factor may be that I've read a lot of versions both 'originals' and retakes and what maybe would have been new (in my younger years) I've now seen before.

Don't get me wrong, I'm definitely glad I got the chance to immerse myself in the rhythm of her words and I will most likely revisit this again (maybe even regularly - as I suspect I'll get more from a reread).

"The Bloody Chamber" was one of my favourites of this set. (the protagonist's mother for the win! I couldn't see her feeling in any way ashamed of an indelible red mark on her forehead - rather I imagine she'd see it as a sign of victory) ( )

Feminist, psychological reinterpretations of Grimms’ fairy tales, most of which are primarily concerned with carnality—women’s bodies and the animalistic nature of people are primary themes. Blood and sex, always implicit in fairy tales, are made much more explicit. But women have much more agency than they do in traditional tales and are generally the characters of primary concern. Some stories were downright amusing (“Puss in Boots,” for one), but most were eerie and unsettling. The ending of “The Company of Wolves” (a Carterian take on “Little Red Riding Hood”) took me quite by surprise, though given the themes of blood, sex, and self-determining women, it really shouldn’t have. Altogether an intriguing and enjoyable collection. ( )

Adult short stories; modern fairy tales. I wanted to like this but the amusing stories were destroyed by the author's frequent use of fancy and complicated language, as though trying to prove herself as an intelligent woman. The effect of these unwanted trills and supercilious ornaments is to disrupt what otherwise might be captivating, lyrical prose--having to stop and think every few minutes, "why the hell would she choose to express herself THAT way?" certainly makes it hard to focus on anything else--indeed, the critical reviews at the front of the book talk of little else, since there isn't really anything particularly praiseworthy to say about the collection. On the other hand, if you know a Literature major that is constantly annoying people with similar quirks of phrase, this would be something She would probably enjoy. ( )

These were interesting and engaging retellings (reimaginings?) of classic fairy/folk tales. The narration was good and I quite liked the way it was split between 2 narrators so it was easy to follow where one story ended and the next began. I particularly liked the way they were set in the middle ground between Grimm's and Disney; they didn't have happy endings, per se, but they definitely didnt have sad endings either.

A very interesting collection, and well read by the narrators. (Listened to on Audible) ( )

These were interesting and engaging retellings (reimaginings?) of classic fairy/folk tales. The narration was good and I quite liked the way it was split between 2 narrators so it was easy to follow where one story ended and the next began. I particularly liked the way they were set in the middle ground between Grimm's and Disney; they didn't have happy endings, per se, but they definitely didnt have sad endings either.

A very interesting collection, and well read by the narrators. (Listened to on Audible) ( )