“Far out in the ocean, where the water is as blue as the prettiest cornflower, and as clear as crystal, it is very, very deep [...] There dwell the Sea King and his subjects.”

Maybe because it’s summer back home in Canada, or perhaps it’s from seeing all of the beautiful Australian coastlines during my travels, but I’m on a major ocean/mermaid kick at the moment. When I was younger, I was obsessed with Disney’s The Little Mermaid.ⁱ I used to fancy myself Ariel and would constantly wail out her signature song, much to my parents’ dismay… their poor ears. As I grew up and branched out into other versions of the fairy tale, I became less absorbed in the land under the sea, and instead began to fear it. A lot. Water & aquatic life scares me. Irrational fear aside though, this tale is still very dear to my heart. Because even though it’s kind of terrifying to think about, things under water look so beautiful and peaceful. Look on for my visual interpretation of Hans Christian Andersen’s version (+1 of the red hair we all associate with mermaids now thanks to Disney).

“‘So I shall die,’ said the little mermaid, ‘and as the foam of the sea I shall be driven about never again to hear the music of the waves, or to see the pretty flowers nor the red sun. Is there anything I can do to win an immortal soul?’”

“‘I will prepare a draught for you [...] Your tail will then disappear, and shrink up into what mankind calls legs, and you will feel great pain, as if a sword were passing through you. [...] You will still have the same floating gracefulness of movement, and no dancer will ever tread so lightly; but at every step you take it will feel as if you were treading upon sharp knives, and that the blood must flow. If you will bear all this, I will help you.’”

“The little mermaid lifted her glorified eyes towards the sun, and felt them, for the first time, filling with tears. On the ship, in which she had left the prince, there were life and noise; she saw him and his beautiful bride searching for her; sorrowfully they gazed at the pearly foam, as if they knew she had thrown herself into the waves.”

All quotations from the Hans Christian Anderson version. You can read the tale online here!

Click images for sources.

1. The kind of obsessed where you have the t-shirts, the backpack, even crayons.

“Perched atop a high mountain [...], its windows sparkling in the starry sky, was a vast castle with many turrets and towers.”

“Harry had never even imagined such a strange and splendid place.”

“The Entrance Hall was so big you could have fitted the whole of the Dursleys’ house in it. The stone walls were lit with flaming torches [...], the ceiling was too high to make out, and a magnificent marble staircase facing them led to the upper floors.”

“Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home.”

Many thanks to my good friend Crissy for being so kind as to type up the quotations from Sorcerer’s Stone for me. Much appreciated! ♥

For more information about the Once Upon A Time… series, please see this post.

Click images for sources.

1. Apparently the film premiers earlier here in Oz than elsewhere in the world, and I promise, I will not say anything about the film so as not to spoil anyone.

“She knew worst wolves are hairy on the inside and she shivered, in spite of the scarlet shawl she pulled more closely round herself as if it could protect her, although is was as red as blood she must spill.”ⁱ

I covered Paulo Coehlo’s The Alchemist for my first installation in the Once Upon A Time… series but I, unfortunately, haven’t been doing much reading for pleasure latelyⁱⁱ hence this very belated second post. So inspired by having seen the movie The Brothers Grimm over the weekendⁱⁱⁱ, I thought I’d revisit one of my favourite fairy tales: Little Red Riding Hood. The Riding Hood tales in all their incarnations have always been most intriguing to me. When I was younger this was possibly because I found great amusement in the Grimms’ version where Little Red Riding Hood outsmarts the wolf, stuffs him full of stones and tosses him in a river. I thought that was pretty bad-ass. I also really wanted a red cloak to flounce around it… still kind of do… but that’s beside the point. For my first degree, I was an English minor and specialized in folk and fairy tales (my obsession!). In my studies, I happened upon the wonders of Angela Carter’s The Company of Wolves which is a modern adaptation of the Riding Hood story. I loved it like a fat kid loves cake. (You can read it here.) Dark, sinister, alluring, a wee bit naughty, and borderline disturbing and all inspired by a childhood favourite fairy tale… what’s not to love? So here’s my take on the girl in the red cloak.

‘“Oh, grandmother, what big ears you have!” “The better to hear you with.”
“Oh, grandmother, what big eyes you have!” “The better to see you with.”
“Oh, grandmother, what big hands you have!” “The better to grab you with.”
“But, grandmother, what a dreadful mouth you have!” “The better to eat you with.”‘^iv

“Alas! Who does not know that these gentle wolves,
Are of all such creatures the most dangerous!“^v

For more information about the Once Upon A Time… series, please see this post.

1. From Angela Carter’s The Company of Wolves
2. University readings have me worn out.
3. which I thought was terrible, by the way. I really don’t recommend it at all. I could barely get through it
4. From Little Red Cap by the Grimms brothers
5. From Perrault’s Little Red Riding Hood