Baba Yaga: The Wild Witch of the East in Russian Fairy TalesBaba Yaga is an ambiguous and fascinating figure. She appears in traditional Russian folktales as a monstrous and hungry cannibal, or as a canny inquisitor of the adolescent hero or heroine of the tale. In new translations and with an introduction by Sibelan Forrester, Baba Yaga: The Wild Witch of the East in Russian Fairy Tales is a selection of tales that draws from the famous collection of Aleksandr Afanas'ev, but also includes some tales from the lesser-known nineteenth-century collection of Ivan Khudiakov. This new collection includes beloved classics such as "Vasilisa the Beautiful" and "The Frog Princess," as well as a version of the tale that is the basis for the ballet "The Firebird." The preface and introduction place these tales in their traditional context with reference to Baba Yaga's continuing presence in today's culture--the witch appears iconically on tennis shoes, tee shirts, even tattoos. The stories are enriched with many wonderful illustrations of Baba Yaga, some old (traditional "lubok" woodcuts), some classical (the marvelous images from Victor Vasnetsov or Ivan Bilibin), and some quite recent or solicited specifically for this collection |
Contents
The Wild Witch of the East | |
BRIEF BIBLIOGRAPHY FOR FURTHER READING | |
Baba Yaga | |
Baba Yaga and the Kid | |
Finist the Bright Falcon | |
Ivanushka | |
The Brother | |
The Feather of Finist the Bright Falcon | |
The Firebird | |
The Frog Princess | |
The Stepdaughter and the Stepmothers Daughter | |
The Tale of the Fine Young Man and the Apples of Youth | |
The Three Kingdoms | |
The TsarMaiden | |
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Common terms and phrases
Afanas'ev Aleksandr Rou answered apple tree asked Baba Yaga ball of thread bathhouse Bear Tsar began Beloy Polyanin bird bogatyr bones bright falcon brother carpet chicken legs daughter dear doll dragon drink everything fair maiden fairy tales father Finist the bright Firebird flew flying forest frog Frog Princess gave geese girl golden Golden Horns grabbed Hellboy Hello horse Ivan Bilibin Ivan-Bogatyr Jack Zipes king kingdom Koshchei Koshchei the Deathless little house lived magic Mar'ia Morevna married merchants Mike Mignola Mokosh mother musketeer old woman palace Palekh Prince Ivan Princess Mar'ia rode rusalki Russian Folktale Russian spirit sent shouted sister sleep started stepmother stood stove Suddenly Swan tale tell there's threw told Tsar-Maiden tsaritsa turned Vasilisa the Beautiful Vasilisa the Wise walked and walked Whirlwind wife witch woke Yaga-baba Yaga's young youngest