some thoughts on fairy tales

with an upcoming new one from Neil Gaiman (reading at B&N E. 17th St. 9/20 6pm) and a new one out now from Aimee Bender, there's been a lot of talk (again) about the art of the fantastic, the fairy tale, "magical realism" etc. That said, here's something from Jeanette Winterson's site. You really should read the whole piece but I know how busy you all are...

"what I want to know is why does Prince Charming need a mobile phone, and why is the Red Riding Hood wolf watching TV? All the fairy tale Lego has been modernised with gadgets. Result? Disaster. What was timeless has been manhandled into time. What was about the imagination has become a product placement exercise...
Don’t get me wrong, I believe in the changing word. I love cover versions of fairy stories. I write them myself. Angela Carter, Italo Calvino, Isabelle Allende, are just three genius writers who have re-worked folk, fable, and fairytale heritage to create new and delightful combinations. The huge popularity of story-telling evenings and festivals depends on new cuts of the old cloth.

Relief, unease. Familiarity, strangeness. Art trades in these paradoxes. The art of the fairy tale does the same, and it does it best in its own language. The carpet flies, the solid hillside reveals a door, statues speak and puddings multiply. Who needs tonight’s TV and a mobile phone? "