Storybook Favorites


Image Info: Abby Library of St. Gaul. Source: Forbes.com


Thoughts: This story stuck out to me because I'm half Chinese, and my mother told me many Chinese fairy tales when I was growing up. The writer of the post isn't Chinese, but his wife of four years is, and it was interesting to know that these stories are being told by someone who did not grow up hearing them. Each fairytale is succinctly and effectively told. All three stories contain classic elements of Chinese folklore: fantastical creatures, family struggle, and bittersweet endings. The story, The Bird With Nine Heads, stuck out to me, as it actually has a completely happy ending (the hero gets to be with the princess), which is not something I've encountered often with Chinese fairy tales. 


Thoughts: The author does a good job establishing the history of Alexander the Great in his introduction. I'm a big fan of the historical exploits of Alexander the Great– his undefeated battle record stands as an impressive feat of ancient warfare. The author has decided to mix genres, adding a science fiction twist to the story of Alexander. Overall, the story is an entertaining piece of sci-fi pulp fiction. It's fun to connect Xander Mace's (the author's futuristic reincarnation of AoG) with the exploits of the historical Alexander. 


I didn't see as many OU themed stories as I expected on the storybook list. This particular story concerns an OU student, and the student's various pranks on the OU campus. The author links her story's themes to the mythological story of Prometheus. It was entertaining to read about familiar areas of campus and notable campus staff members. I found the choice to tell the story from the perspective of campus security, rather than the trickster, to be an interesting narrative choice, one that added more suspense to the story.

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