Olga Murray, who founded the Nepal Youth Foundation, passed away at the age of 98 in February of this year.  Founder's Day, an annual celebration of the creation of this nonprofit, will be held on May 30th. While this event will include a celebration of life for Olga Murray and all she was able to do in her life, it will also be a time to look forward and walk a path that was started by this hardworking and loving woman. After a member of the Nepal Youth team in Nepal reached out to The Fairy Tellers podcast, Katrina and Geoff decided to come back from their current hiatus to tell some tales specifically requested by listeners in Nepal. Please enjoy the tales, what they communicate about the Nepalese culture, and what they can teach about life.   The Nepal Youth Foundation

In this episode, Katrina and Geoff retell a tale from Armenia that was recommended to them by one of our wonderful Patreon patrons! The tale of "Dyjhycon the Coward Hero" has many similarities to the tale of "The Brave Little Tailor" found in western Europe except for some vast personality differences between the two protagonists. The cultural differences between what makes a person worth rooting for are very stark in these two tales. And of course, plenty of jokes are made about "7 in one blow".   If you like what we are doing and wish to support our endeavors please consider becoming a patron of the arts over on Patreon.

Katrina and Geoff are back at it again with a new series to kick off the next 100 episodes of the podcast! Even though Geoffrey joked that the last episode we would ever do would be an episode on "Pourquoi Tales", we've decided to use it as a jumping off point for more fun. In this episode, Katrina starts off the series by telling us what Pourquoi Tales are NOT, and that is stories that have to be believed to be True to carry truths. She retells a tale from Ghana and then focus in on tales recorded by Zora Neale Hurston in her book Mules and Men.   If you love what we are doing with the podcast and want to help us create more content, please consider becoming on of our Patreon supports! You would receive bonus content and our undying gratitude!

Happy 100th Episode from Geoff and Katrina to you! This year had a ton of milestones and we're excited to send off 2023 with our 100th episode. We've had a blast the last 4 years podcasting about myths, legends, folklore, and fables. To celebrate we had another installment of Cinderella tales but this one comes with a Snow White twist. This tale from India recorded in the 1800's starts off with a princess missing a shoe and ends with our heroine coming back from a death like state from her Rajah. Thank you to everyone who has been sticking with us this year while we've worked through life, death, sickness, school, and travel. It's been a wild year and we're hoping that 2024 will allow us to create even more fairy tale content.

It's winter time once again in the Northern Hemisphere and we're getting ready for winter celebrations.  Plant life plays a lot into the season and while there are plenty of traditions associated with these plants, there are also stories. Geoff and Katrina talk about a few of holiday plants and stories surrounding the mysterious properties of plants that appear to be evergreen. They also talk about the tradition of wassailing and pour one out for our plant homies.Books Mentioned:Botanical Folk Tales of Britain and Ireland by Lisa Schneidau   If you want to support the podcast and get to hear some bonus material, consider joining our Patreon!

In this episode, Geoff and Katrina get into more tales featuring the iconic Baba Yaga. During the December Divinations episode, the Fates decided that we needed more Baba on the podcast and who are we to deny fate? We discuss two tales which show how differently Baba Yaga can appear in stories. When men are bumbling through the woods looking for help saving their lives, they can count on Baba Yaga to save the day with her advice. When little girls need help in the woods, they better bring some magic of their own.

In this episode, Geoff and Katrina complete their shining tiara of a series, with this crown jewel. After a year devoted to exploring the motifs, themes, and elements that have traveled through the ocean of stories for centuries, we cover the story of Snow White. Crafted and created by the Brothers Grimm, Little Snow White is a tale that most people feel familiar with, but there are still surprises to be had in this episode. If you are enjoying the content that we are creating and you are interested in listening to more or want to support our efforts, consider becoming a patron of the arts on Patreon. Book that we used in this episode:The Fairest of Them All by Maria TatarThe Complete Fairy Tales of the Brothers' Grimm translated by Jack Zipes

CW: Violence and Death of Children Fate dictates that we provide our audience with a “B” inspired episode and Geoff does not disappoint with his Bestiary of Bakemono. In this Geoff-isode, we dive into tales of Japanese spirits that explain why things so often go bump in the night. While some might be downright silly sounding, with eyeballs for buttholes, others are waiting to bounce at the least provocation, frighten you by bodies of water, or marry you. Geoff has us all exploring the line between monstrous creature or beautiful gods. If you like the work that we are doing and would like to encourage our efforts monetarily, please consider joining our Patreon. For more information on Michael Dylan Foster and his work, check out this FolkWise episode (FolkWise: Michael Dylan Foster) The Book of Yokai

The 5th Friday in September was a special selection of tree tales from various locations around the world. With the prompt for "plant tales" picked out by our Patreon subscribers, we decided to do an episode on trees. We retold tales of Baobab trees, which were flipped upside down for their ungratefulness and Hera's marriage present of citrons. Greeks weren't the only people to have a special relationship with citrons. And we also talked briefly about items made of trees and how their tie in to folklore help give them context.

Katrina and Geoff are back to finish up the frame story of The Tale of Tales by Giambattista Basile but first, one last story about a hunt for a woman started by the colors red, white, and black. But unlike the other tale, the color black is framed as a force for harm, giving us some cultural context on how to view the tricolors in the tale. With Diarrhea Linda out of the picture, we see if Zoza is able to outwit Lucia and claim the prince that she cried a bucket of tears for. And Katrina ends with a mic drop quote from Maria Tatar.