A richly imagined, inspiring and beautifully told collection of new versions of ancient stories from European myth and folklore which centre and celebrate powerful older women. From early childhood, we learn about the world and its possibilities through myths, fairy tales, and folk tales. But the heroines tend to be young, golden-haired princesses, and the evil-doers are often older women: wicked witches or unforgiving matriarchs. But today''s women in mid-life and onwards want to see positive versions of themselves in these stories: older women who pull the strings, weave the webs of the world, and test or advise the heroes and heroines. Many years of research have gone into this new gathering of storm-haired witches, ungainly giantesses, sequin-strewn fairy godmothers, misunderstood sorceresses, thick-waisted goddesses, hairy-chinned hags, and craggy crones who exist within the mythology and folklore of Europe. They each manifest their wisdom in very different ways - and their stories offer us insight into ways that each of us could uniquely embody an elder woman''s wisdom today.

Vorwort
An inspiring and beautifully told collection of retellings of ancient stories from European myth and folklore which celebrate older women, from the award-winning author of Hagitude.

Autorentext

Dr. Sharon Blackie is an award-winning writer, psychologist and mythologist, and an internationally recognised teacher and lecturer in the field of the mythic imagination. Her most recent book is was Hagitude: Reclaiming the Second Half of Life. Sharon's awards include the Roger Deakin Award from the Society of Authors (2022), and a Creative Scotland Writer's Award (2009). She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, and has taught and lectured around the world.

Angharad Wynne is an acclaimed storyteller, writer, speaker and expedition leader.

Klappentext

An unforgettable collection of retold myths and folk tales celebrating the wisdom and power of older women

Ungainly giantesses. Sequin-strewn fairy godmothers. Misunderstood witches. Fierce grandmothers. Hairy-chinned hags. Craggy crones.

From early childhood, we learn about the world and its possibilities through myths and fairy tales. The heroines, though, tend to be golden-haired princesses, and the evil-doers often older women.

But from midlife onwards, women today are searching for positive versions of themselves, and this dazzling array of not-to-be-messed-with characters provides them. They outwit monsters, test and mentor younger heroines, embody the cycles and seasons of the earth, weave the world into being - and almost always have the last laugh.

These women manifest their wisdom in different ways, and so offer us inspiration for how we too can walk boldly and live authentically in the second half of life.