The story of “The Lad who stole a Troll’s Hat, a Bird and a Horse and Married the Princess” comes from “Sámi Folktales from the Near and Far Worlds” by Just Knud Qvigstad and Isak Saba as translated by Barbara Sjoholm published just yesterday through the University of Minnesota Press! We were lucky enough to receive an early edition of the book and it was a treat to look through all the different stories of the Sámi people.  This story is truly one that makes you ask: WHY and HOW instead of what since it's all technically in the title!  Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Instagram   Mastodon TikTok

Happy 5th Anniversary, Travellers! What started as a pandemic project is still going strong and we wanted to share our top "Enchantees" with you! We scoured our entire catalogue to find the best myths, fairy tales and folklore that cover such prestigious categories as:  The Failing Forward Award Wait, that's why? Award It’s Hot and it’s Cold Award Somehow that works Award Let us know what your nominations would have been!  Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Instagram   Mastodon TikTok Award music was by paulyudin.

It is a truth universally acknowledged that a beautiful, accomplished young woman must be in want of a husband who can keep her happy. Unfortunately, she ends up being courted by a Canadian-Wolf-Bird and a trickster fox. How does that lead to a Sparrow searching for Whirlwinds and Rain? Well, you'll have to listen to find out!  April showers bring May flowers and we'll be searching for rain in this Canadian story from the 1922 book of Canadian fairy tales by Cyrus Macmillan.  Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Instagram   Mastodon TikTok

With all the buzz around NASA's Artemis II lunar mission with the Orion spacecraft, we thought now was a great refresher on the Greek Olympian herself- Artemis! The Goddess of the Hunt is the daughter of Zeus and Leto, sister of Apollo, and the maybe lover of Orion!  Learn about her origin story, the Homeric Hymns to Artemis, some of her wrath myths involving Niobe and her involvement in the Trojan War (where we also mention an epic roast by Hera). Of course, we also cover the three different storytelling traditions involving the Goddess and Orion. Stick around for the end when we review some of our ARC's for the month including: “How to Calm a Rain Bull” by Denise Gallagher, “Nell O'Dell Hates Quests” by Emily B. Martin, "Aicha" by Soraya Bouazzaoui and "The Infinite Sadness of Small Appliances" by Glenn Dixon.  Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok

Travellers, we've covered most of the major players coming into the Trojan War and now it is time for the Iliad itself! That's right, the prologue and preamble was longer than the Iliad section, but don't worry as we will pull from the Odyssey along with other plays and writings to draw a picture of what happened to our sisters who started it all- Helen and Clytemnestra. Featuring one of my favourite confrontations with a Goddess probably ever and lots of feminine rage!  Fox and Sparrow draw a close to the Trojan War series (for now) with part three: The Women of the Trojan War.  Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok

Last episode we dove into the beginnings of the Trojan War- namely centred around Helen of Sparta and her legendary, divine beauty that changed the world forever. However, more threads of fate were being woven together than just in the House of Sparta. The Trojan royal family had many secrets of their own....as did the House of Atreus...things are about to get a lot more messy before we can step into the war itself. So back in time we go! Weaving through Homer's Iliad & Odyssey, the Cyrpia and countless histories, plays and poems, we bring you part two on the House of Troy and the Curse of the Atreides.  Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok

The Trojan War is the last great clash of the Greek heroes and it was all due to one face that launched a thousand ships- or was it? Join Fox and special guest, Squirrel, as we launch our first episode in our three part series on the lead up to the Trojan War and the women at the centre of it all. There are two prophecies Zeus receives about bringing calamity to mankind. The first involves Helen of Sparta who was born with a curse already laid upon her by both her divine father, Zeus, and her mortal stepfather. Starting with Leda and the Swan, the Abduction of Helen by Theseus and the Suitor's Oath, we work our way through Helen's story. The second prophecy involves Thetis and her son so we side quest through the history of Peleus as well.  Weaving through Homer's Iliad & Odyssey, the Cyrpia and countless histories, plays and poems, we bring you part one of our series on the Trojan War with: The House of Sparta.  Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok

With the 2026 Winter Olympics in full swing, let's take you on a journey to the Norse Olympics in the Land of the Giants! Thor and Loki make their way to Utgard where King Utgard-Loki challenges them to feats in order for them to stay. But, not all is as it seems... Collected from Snorri Sturluson’s Prose Edda and "Folklore and Legends of Scandinavia" edited by Charles Tibbitts.  Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok

Ever wondered where the "Heer and Ranjha" verse in Bachna Ae Haseeno's “Jogi Mahi” come from? Or who the Ranjha from the movie Sheershah's hit song is about? Well, we went down the rabbit hole so you don't have to! Join us as we tell the tragic tale of Heer and her lover, Ranjha that is sadly still applicable to life today.  We used many versions in our retelling with the main text being from Waris Shah with English translations by Charles Frederick Usborne and Umer Munir. Also, Muhammad Sheeraz’s translation of the urdu version by Shafi Aqueel from his book Folk Tales of Pakistan and R.C Temple's Legends of the Punjab.  Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok

Based on the snow conditions, it looks like King Frost has passed by, so why not tell a story to keep him at bay? For the first episode in the new year, we have a Fox short as Sparrow gathers more tales for the rest of 2026.  Our story today has the classic trope of "Kind and Unkind Girls" as taken from Edith Martha Almedingen’s retelling of Russian folktales based on the works of Aleksandr Nikolaevich Afanasev. Sometimes, it's nice to just see good rewarded and bad punished. Oh, and there's a Fairy Queen.  Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok