Fairy Tale Review Archive
Once upon a time …
The practice of retelling fairy tales in the form of literary fiction is, if not quite hallowed, certainly established. The great Angela Carter’s revelatory 1979 story collection, “The Bloody Chamber” — a brocaded work of heady sensuality, intelligence and violence — remains the benchmark, but Kate Bernheimer’s Fairy Tale Review and the several excellent Bernheimer-edited anthologies spun off from it carry the standard forward. Those are just some of the more overt homages; Western literature owes as much to fairy tales as it does to Greek myth and the Bible.
-The New York Times
Winter Father Persimmon Sleep
as a child I couldn’t sleep
my parents tried ignoring me holding me
stroking fingers down my back
but still I cried into the winter nights
Meet the Editors! Part Two
This time, we’re bringing you a behind-the-scenes look at a smattering of our newer readers!
The Robe
Our father is a woodcutter driven to drink, and when he drinks he likes to talk.
Announcing the 2016 Fairy Tale Review Awards in Poetry and Prose
The editors of Fairy Tale Review are pleased to offer more information about this year's contest, our third annual, in both poetry and prose. Each...
Pins & Needles No. 51: Helen Phillips
No. 51: Helen Phillips Q. What appeals to you about extremes, the “either … or,” to the extent that you made this story revel in them? The story...
Fairy-Tale Files: Sacrificial Mothers
Fairy-Tale Files, published once weekly, feature three variations of a fairy tale chosen by one of Fairy Tale Review’s editors, readers, editorial...
Pins & Needles No. 50: Caleb Washburn
The movement always reminded me more of ballet; a gorgeous balance between synchronicity and chaos.
Fairy-Tale Files: The Singing Bone
Fairy-Tale Files, published once weekly, feature three variations of a fairy tale chosen by one of Fairy Tale Review’s editors. As recorded by the...
Pins & Needles No. 49: Kellie Wells
I exit the bed each morning with the fond, if futile, hope that perhaps today…
Fairy-Tale Files: Poets and their Tribulations
Fairy-Tale Files, published once weekly, feature three variations of a fairy tale chosen by one of Fairy Tale Review’s editors (or, in this case,...
Pins & Needles No. 48: Mary Lavallee
No. 48: Mary Lavallee Q. The characters in "Victor Vale" are rather well-traveled—Prague, Paris, a beach, a forest. Are there any fairy-tale-esque...
Fairy-Tale Files: Geryon and Heracles
Fairy-Tale Files, published once weekly, feature three variations of a fairy tale chosen by one of Fairy Tale Review’s editors (or, in this case,...
Pins & Needles No. 47: Lenny DellaRocca
No. 47: Lenny DellaRocca Q. You’ve been writing since 1968; how would you describe your evolution through the decades? I was 14 in 1968, now I’m 61!...
Miscellany: The Dido Galleries
Beautiful and brainy, Queen Dido would have been a talk show favorite. Her brother Pygmalion seized the throne the siblings shared and murdered her...
Fairy-Tale Files: Circle of Salt
Fairy-Tale Files, published once weekly, feature three variations of a fairy tale chosen by one of Fairy Tale Review’s editors (or, in this case,...
