Emma Keith

In a thriving city not far from here, there lived a talented baker and his wife.  But the passion in the baker’s heart for his pastries and bake shop did not match the funds in his bank account, which ran drier by the day. At last, the baker and his wife realized that they had but enough money and ingredients for one more day of pastry production.  The baker dutifully prepped his ingredients and bases for his last day of operation the night before, shedding a single tear as he turned off the lights in his shop’s kitchen and headed upstairs to his apartment.  But when the baker turned up the lights in the kitchen the next morning, he was met with a glorious surprise: a row of pastries and treats, still hot and fresh, all ready their trays. He gasped in delight and called to his wife, who helped him set the treats out in the shop.  Soon the shop’s regulars began to appear for their morning muffins and danishes. They noticed on first sight how beautiful ...

I wasn't as much of a fan of several stories in this unit — they seemed a little more unfocused than the Unit A stories, most of which had clear endings and morals. Here, however, were several that I did enjoy from this Grimm unit:  Simeli Mountain This story was one of the darker ones in the unit, more of what I would expect from a Grimm tale. I enjoy that in this story, as in many of the stories in this unit, the evil character truly does receive a terrible comeuppance at the story's end, but I think I might change that in a retelling. Maybe instead of being beheaded in the mountain, the older brother is chased out of the mountain and exiled from the land by the twelve strong robbers.  Illustration by Otto Ubbelohde. Web source .  The Duration of Life This was an interesting origin-type story that was actually kind of sobering at the end. I wonder if I might add another animal in that gives more life and joy to the duration of m...

This week, I read some of the Brothers Grimm work from the Ashliman unit. The stories were quite clever and I enjoyed them all — overall, they definitely weren't as dark as I expected. Here were some of my favorites:  Little Red Cap Little Red Riding Hood, by Arthur Rackham. Source: Wikimedia . I love this Little Red Riding Hood-esque tale — the details are charming and vivid (especially the bit about how the wolf distracts Little Red Cap while she's on her way to grandmother's house). I think one thing I could do with this story is retell it from Little Red Cap's perspective. I also thought about modernizing the tale with some present-day details, but I think the story would lose some of its charm that way.  The Singing Bone This story was dark, but so interesting — I actually gasped at the terrible fate of the older brother at the end. I wonder if there might be a way to bring the younger brother back to life at the end of the story, so he can truly tr...

Anchor: "Aaaand welcome back to Forest News at Five. We've got breaking news for you about a crime in our forest that will make you lock your doors tonight. For more, we go to the scene with reporter Lucy Lion." Lucy: "I'm here at the three bears' castle with some truly startling news. In a neighborhood most assumed to be safe, the bears have seen otherwise today. Let's hear from the bear family now on the disturbing occurrence that took place here just hours ago." Mother bear: "It was terrifying. When we got back from our wonderful afternoon picnic, I realized our castle's front door was open just a crack, and that's where the trouble started."  Father bear: "When we walked in, I saw my son's chair was all broken down and clearly sat in, but that was only the beginning of what this hooligan did to our beautiful home." Lucy: "The three bears report that on returning home, they found out that not on...

The Children in the Wood This story and the prose it's told in are interesting, and the tale just kept getting darker and darker as I read. I like the rhyme scheme the original sticks to, but I don't think I could maintain something like this in a retelling. Maybe I could rewrite it from the perspective of the uncle, who's telling his story to another prisoner after being taken in for the neglect and killing of his niece and nephew. Rushen Coatie This story was another sweet Cinderlla-esque tale. I especially enjoyed the addition of the little red calf over the fairy godmother — he was a delightful character. One thing I've never quite understood in the Cinderella/Rushen Coatie tale is just why the step sisters/mother hate her so much. I think these characters need more motivation — maybe Rushen Coatie is still to receive all of her father's inheritance though he remarried?  Maybe they all wish to be accepted by Rushen Coatie's father  but he truly love...

This week I read more of this unit's English fairy tales, many of which were variations on the familiar. Here were some of my favorites: Tattercoats I enjoyed this  slightly different retelling of the Cinderella tale — I think it was even sadder than the original, since Tattercoat's own grandfather rejected her. I think I would want to retell this from her perspective, to fully encompass her journey from hopelessness to the situation of a princess. Also, I'd like a happy ending for the gooseherd, since he's a really kind and helpful character who gets an unsatisfying ending in the original.   "Scrapefoot" by Joseph Jacobs. Source: Wikimedia . Scrapefoot I love the addition of a fox to this story rather than Goldilocks — Scrapefoot was a strangely endearing character to me. I think this story might be interesting as a segment on the local TV news, a little crime report. The show could bring in the three bears to discuss the crime, and take viewers s...

This story was so clever — I loved the main character and his quick wit. While I liked the ending, I kind of wondered where the man went when the story ended. There was some exposition at the beginning that gave background on the man, but there was no follow-up — might he return to his family? Might he make something of himself in another trade or city? I think more details could be helpful with this tale?  I really enjoyed these Georgian stories — so many have really clever plot points, and a few shocked me with their endings. These were a few of my favorites: The Rioni River in Georgia. Courtesy of Tamuna Kakauridze .   Source: Wikipedia .  Master and Pupil I enjoyed this story, but it didn't make too much sense at some points. The devil offered to train the peasant's son, but he didn't specify which craft he would train him in. The peasant should have some motivation for giving his son up to the devil for a year (like if the devil were to train hi...

This reading was surprisingly dark, but I loved all the unique characters I thought the fox motif throughout all the stories was really interesting — several tales featured a fox as the trickster or villain. Here were my favorites from this unit.  Illustration: " Childe Roland." Source: Wikimedia . Molly Whuppie This story was very casually dark and grim, but I did think it was interesting. I would like to retell it from Molly Whuppie's perspective — she's obviously both clever and brave, and unafraid to trick or rob a giant. I think Molly's quite a character, and instead of just marrying the king's son at the end of the story, I'd like to have her become the kingdom's ruler herself — she doesn't seem like the kind of girl who'd be interested in just settling down.  Mr. Fox This story was incredibly spooky and fascinating to me — I actually gasped at the ending where Mr. Fox was cut to pieces. I think this story could work if I reto...

Beowulf. Courtesy of Helen Stratton. Source: Wikimedia . For this set of reading notes, I ventured into the epic tale of Beowulf. One thing I noticed in these stories is the sumptuous language and descriptions the author uses — everything is described in such detail. Since this story is lengthy and has lots of pieces, I would do a retelling with multiple parts of this tale combined. I think I would want to retell it in a more modern context, but keep the characteristics of all the main players in the story.  Maybe Beowulf is a high school athlete who's pretty revered for his strength (a swimmer, to go with the legend about him beating Breca in the water), but who's expected to inherit the family wilderness guide business (a job that requires wits and strength). The other guides would be jealous because of their years of experience in the outdoors compared to his relative youth, and the company would have a rival wilderness guide business that covers different territory. ...