Breaking The Magic Spell

This text explores, in both historical and critical contexts, the evolution of folk tales and fairy tales, their influence on popular beliefs, the politics behind them and their incorporation in mass media culture today. It focuses particularly on socio-historical forces which have changed the function of fairy tales since the 1700s.

This revised, expanded, and updated edition of the 1979 landmark Breaking the Magic Spell examines the enduring power of fairy tales and the ways they invade our subjective world. In seven provocative essays, Zipes discusses the importance of investigating oral folk tales in their socio-political context and traces their evolution into literary fairy tales, a metamorphosis that often diminished the ideology of the original narrative. Zipes also looks at how folk tales influence our popular beliefs and the ways they have been exploited by a corporate media network intent on regulating the mystical elements of the stories. He examines a range of authors, including the Brothers Grimm, Hans Christian Anderson, Ernst Bloch, Tolkien, Bettelheim, and J.K. Rowling to demonstrate the continuing symbiotic relationship between folklore and literature.

Meet witches and kelpies, fairies and selkies, brave warriors and courageous girls, in ten spellbinding tales from Scotland, from Orkney and Skye to Perthshire and the Borders. . . . The Stories included are... The Selkie’s Toes * Tam Linn * The Ring of Brodgar * The Witch of Lochlann * The King of the Dark Arts * The Monster of Raasay * School for Heroes * the Loch Fada Kelpie * Whuppity Stoorie * The Three Questions

In Grimm Legacies, esteemed literary scholar Jack Zipes explores the legacy of the Brothers Grimm in Europe and North America, from the nineteenth century to the present. Zipes reveals how the Grimms came to play a pivotal and unusual role in the evolution of Western folklore and in the history of the most significant cultural genre in the world—the fairy tale. Folklorists Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm sought to discover and preserve a rich abundance of stories emanating from an oral tradition, and encouraged friends, colleagues, and strangers to gather and share these tales. As a result, hundreds of thousands of wonderful folk and fairy tales poured into books throughout Europe and have kept coming. Zipes looks at the transformation of the Grimms' tales into children's literature, the Americanization of the tales, the "Grimm" aspects of contemporary tales, and the tales' utopian impulses. He shows that the Grimms were not the first scholars to turn their attention to folk tales, but were vital in expanding readership and setting the high standards for folk-tale collecting that continue through the current era. Zipes concludes with a look at contemporary adaptations of the tales and raises questions about authenticity, target audience, and consumerism. With erudition and verve, Grimm Legacies examines the lasting universal influence of two brothers and their collected tales on today's storytelling world.

What do you do when a spell goes haywire? Who would ever think magic could be boring? Certainly not Grace, Jenny, Rachel, Adie, and Una, especially after their disastrous first encounter with witchcraft. Now they're stuck learning dusty old theory—until the radiant Ms. Gold comes into town. Before long, she has the coven turning into blond bombshells, creating cute pets out of thin air, and taking fabulous flying lessons! But the daring friends make a magical mistake that drags the past into the present. Suddenly Grace has to work out who she can really trust... Praise for The Demon Notebook: "Funny, a bit scary and surprisingly realistic, preteens will enjoy the easy read, identify with the characters and ask for more."—Kirkus

From national bestselling author Lisa Shearin comes a new chapter in "one of the best fantasy series currently on the market." (Night Owl Reviews) My name is Raine Benares—and it sucks to be me right now. I’m a seeker who found the Saghred, a soul-stealing stone that gave me unlimited powers I never wanted. Now I’ve lost the rock—and the magic it gave me—to a goblin dark mage whose main goals are my death and world domination. This is more than incentive enough for a little trip to the goblin capital of Regor with a small band of good friends, not-so-good friends, and one outright enemy. Don’t ask. All we need to do is destroy the Saghred, kill the mage, and put a renegade goblin prince on the throne. Did I mention I’ll be doing that with no magic?

Transform Your Life with Real Spells, Rituals, and Other Practices Taught in This Book The keyword of this book is practicality. It is intended for those who want to practice magic without having to read long theoretical books. The Ultimate Book of Magic and Witchcraft allows you to use magic immediately after opening it. It contains a variety of exclusive spells and rituals, such as love, money, beauty, evocations, protection. It also introduces the reader to magical sigils, such as spirit and planetary sigils. No other book teaches the right way to evoke Lucifer and Michael. No other book gives a detailed beauty ritual with the Norse gods Frey and Freya or a powerful love spell with the mysterious Lilith. No other author ever covered so many subjects, from love to planetary magic, in a single work, as Pierre Macedo did. No matter if you are a white or black magic practitioner, a Wicca follower, or if you need some spiritual help, this work was written for you. Now you have in your hands the key to change the course of your life. Here’s a Small Sample of What You Will Find in This Book of Witchcraft, Rituals and Magic Spells Instructions on how to prepare yourself to perform rituals, cast spells, etc. White magic spells Black magic spells Love spells Manipulation spells Breaking and cleansing spells Magical evocation: instructions on how to summon spirits Planetary magic It’s worth mentioning that this book contains real spells, rituals, and other witchcraft practices that work if you follow all the instructions provided.

The fairy tale may be one of the most important cultural and social influences on children's lives. But until Fairy Tales and the Art of Subversion, little attention had been paid to the ways in which the writers and collectors of tales used traditional forms and genres in order to shape children's lives – their behavior, values, and relationship to society. As Jack Zipes convincingly shows, fairy tales have always been a powerful discourse, capable of being used to shape or destabilize attitudes and behavior within culture. For this new edition, the author has revised the work throughout and added a new introduction bringing this classic title up to date.

Capitalist Sorcery neither sets out a new political programme nor offers a new theory. Rather, it aims to encourage all those who are resistant to resignation and inertia, whose stories of partial successes must be told, celebrated and shared.

For Grace and her four best friends, magic is just harmless fun—until it's not... Things have gone wrong for Grace, Jenny, Rachel, Adie, and Una. Very wrong. A freak snowstorm stranded the whole school, the history teacher's gone bonkers, and their notebook has taken on a diabolical life of its own, bringing all of their previously failed spells to life. At first the girls are thrilled to see their magic finally working. But the spells are botched and people might get hurt and Una's not acting quite right... Can the girls stop the madness before the demon notebook works through their list of spells, slowly creeping towards the last, truly awful spell that they didn't really want to happen? Winner of the Waverton Good Read Children's Award for best debut novel.