Outfoxing Fear: Folktales from Around the World Paperback – December 17, 2006

This great collection is a must have for any lover of folklore.

The author's personal reflections are just as enjoyable as the stories themselves.

Thank you.

I was completely outraged by the author's accounts of her four year old daughter's experiences in French schools. Stories of her horrible experiences were blithely interspersed between clusters of disjointed stories from other lands. After mastering French, she was moved to an English speaking school. Clearly her mother had not continued speaking English at home, so once again she was tormented by a miserable language barrier. I could only wonder how someone who found so much meaning in folktales could fail to rescue her child from a life that has probably haunted her. Did she learn nothing from the heroes who did everything they could to overcome difficulties?

In an illuminating opening essay, Ragan describes her family's response to the tragedy of 9/11, as her young girls act out their confusion, integrating their reactions into their play, that shocking violence intruding into the world of childhood. In the process of editing an anthology of folktales, the author turns to her years of research for answers, "tales that emanated from the folk of all social classes... to communicate and share experiences... to survive in a dangerous world." Language is a powerful antidote to fear. Throughout civilization, stories have been whispered in the dark of night to calm frightened children, or spoken around campfires to send shivers of excitement through those gathered in the eerie glow of the fire. Drawing from the fables of the common people, in stories both specific and universal, this collection marries fear and fable as a way of ameliorating the dangers of the unknown. These are fables of empowerment, efforts to regain control, whether outwitting bandits or banishing evil spirits. As mentioned in Jack Zipe's insightful introduction, "Paradoxically, it's because folktales do not `teach' us to overcome fear that they help us deal with fear."In sixty-four selected stories, the author stakes out her terrain: "Building Stories", "The Nature of Fear", "When Common Sense Makes No Sense", "On Death's Payroll", "A Shared Destiny", tales from every corner of the world, weaving her own life story into the collection, reinforcing hope and a positive outlook in spite of all odds. Because the world we live in is unpredictable, there are no happy endings, only these stories, the endless musings of Scheherazade spinning her way through the present in search of the future. The theme is universal, each tale dressed in the folklore of its country of origin, India, Scotland, China, the Northwest Amazon Basin. Yet all have a clear message, conquering fear in all its forms, "The Broken Friendship", "The Story of the King and the Four Girls", "The Devil's Little Joke, "Solomon and the Vulture". This collection is rendered even more remarkable by the Ragan's personal essays, her intimate reactions and experiences, couched in family revelations: "In reading tales from all over the world... I felt I could see the shapes of worlds to come, worlds that might come from each vision." More importantly, Ragan accepts responsibility for the visions she chooses, embracing that challenge with an open heart. Luan Gaines/ 2006.

Kathleen Ragan's earlier collection, "Fearless Girls, Wise Women & Beloved Sisters," is probably the finest anthology of folktales featuring women. In this new, unique, wide-ranging collection inspired by 9/11, Ragan explores how folktales can help us develop creative responses to the terrifying events of today's world. Like the sunrise that never fails, Ragan brings hope.

Simply a very fine collection from an outstanding (possibly in my view the greatest living anthologist?) of folktales. As ever, the author tackles an urgent contemporary issue in her choices - that of fear in the current climate. Fear and how to deal with it, what bravery and courage mean or involve, in every kind of context, big, small or leftfield. If you want a book to give children a better upbringing, this and her collection of folktales about heroines will help with that task brilliantly. If you want a thumping fine collection of tales to read, I recommend it. If you're looking for ancient wisdom passed down through oral history, you'll find it here. If you want to feel less frightened about something, this will help. And if, like me, you're a storyteller and want to find some awesome new tales to give to your audiences, I can't recommend Kathleen Ragan's books too highly. I'd give it more than 5 stars!