This annual challenge is hosted by the Into the Forest group on Goodreads. Into the Forest is a group to “discuss the fairy and folk tales, world mythologies, mythic fiction, magical realism fiction, and monsters. Of course, we also discuss retellings. In short, if you like myth, legends, and fairy tales, welcome home.”
The rules are simple: read a title that fits the group’s genres and the challenge category.
The challenge runs from January 1, 2018 through December 31, 2018.
Group members discuss their progress in this thread.
1. A book by a modern author known for the the retelling genre – e.g., De Lint, McKillip, Marillier, Jane Yolen, Robin McKinley, etc.
✔ Winter Rose by Patricia McKillip – my review
(my library; also on Endicott list; also Mythopoeic nominee)
- Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Marillier (my library; also on Endicott list)
- White as Snow by Tanith Lee (my library; also on Endicott list)
2. One of Andrew Lang’s Colored Fairy Books.
- The Blue Fairy Book by Andrew Lang (my library)
3. A book involving teleportation or transportation to another world or fairy-tale world.
✔ The Treachery of Beautiful Things by Ruth Frances Long – my review
✔ Stardust by Neil Gaiman – my review
✔ Half World by Hiromi Goto – my review
- Labyrinth Lost by Zoraida Córdova (MPL has it)
- A Wish After Midnight by Zetta Elliott (MPL has it)
4. A retelling of a children’s or adult’s literature classic.
✔ The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert [Alice in Wonderland] – my review
✔ Girls Made of Snow and Glass by Melissa Bashardoust [Snow White] – my review
- The Child Thief by Brom [Peter Pan]
5. A book that has been nominated for the Mythopoeic Award.
✔ Will Do Magic for Small Change by Andrea Hairston – my review
✔ Redemption in Indigo by Karen Lord – my review
- The New Moon’s Arms by Nalo Hopkinson (MPL has it)
- Shadowshaper by Daniel José Older (MPL has it)
- Grendel by John Gardner (my library)
6. A non-fiction book about the author of, or a character from, a famous fairy/folk tale or myth.
- The Invention of Angela Carter: A Biography by Edmund Gordon (4 stars on GR; authorized by Carter’s estate; MPL has it)
- The Other Alice: The Story of Alice Liddell and Alice in Wonderland (MPL has it)
7. A retelling inspired by fairy/folk tales or myths from a non-European culture.
✔ Zahrah the Windseeker by Nnedi Okorafor – my review
✔ The People Could Fly by Virginia Hamilton – my review
✔ Brown Girl in the Ring by Nalo Hopkinson – my review
✔ Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor – my review
- The Djinn Falls in Love and Other Stories (a collection; my library)
- Sister of My Heart by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni (also on Endicott list; MPL has it)
8. A retelling inspired by First Nations/Native American folktales or mythology.
✔ Trail of Lightning by Rebecca Roanhorse – my review
- Ceremony by Leslie Marmon Silko (Laguna Pueblo) (my library)
- When the Chenoo Howls : Native American Tales of Terror by Joseph Bruchac (Abenaki) (MPL has it)
9. Read one additional book from a series you started prior to 2018.
✔ The Girl in the Tower by Katherine Arden – my review
- Beneath the Sugar Sky by Seanan McGuire (pre-ordered 11/11/17; releases January 2018)
- The Mermaid’s Madness (Princess #2) by Jim C. Hines (my library)
- Who Fears Death by Nnedi Okorafor (MPL has it)
- Beauty, Beast, and Belladonna (Fairy Tale Fatal Book #3) by Maia Chance (my library)
- The Current & the Cure (Water and the Wild #3, finale) by KE Ormsbee (on sale 06/12/18) (This could also work for #3)
10. A retelling, novel inspired by, or original tale based on a classic European myth, fairy or folktale – e.g., Arthurian legends.
- Blue Diary by Alice Hoffman [Bluebeard] (also on Endicott list) (MPL has it)
- Fair Peril [Frog Prince] (also on Endicott list; also Mythopoeic nominee) (MPL has it)
11. One “essential” fairy tale, folktale, myth – i.e., A book considered an essential [fairy-tale/ folktale/ mythic] read that you haven’t gotten around to reading yet. This could be a novel or a collection.
- Deerskin by Robin McKinley (also on Endicott list; also on Mythopoeic list) (MPL has it)
- The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle (MPL has it)
12. A novel or short story anthology in translation.
- There Once Lived a Woman Who Tried to Kill Her Neighbor’s Baby by Ludmilla Petrushevskaya
- The Wandering Unicorn by Manuel Mujica Lainez [Argentina] (my library; also Mythopoeic)
- Troll: A Love Story by Johanna Sinisalo [Finland] (also on Endicott list) (wishlist)
- The Garden of the Departed Cats by Bilge Karasu [Turkey] (also on Endicott list) (wishlist)
I’ve participated for several years, but this year I decided to create a page for tracking my initial ideas versus what I end up reading for each category. My plan is to read at least 24 books in total; two books in each category except #2, in which I’ll only read one book, and #9, in which I’ll read three books. Here’s what I read in 2012; 2013; 2014; 2015; 2016; 2017.
Last Updated: 9/25/2018