![]() I was a bit disappointed by the twist ending. dominating the horse, something that was suggested to him to do. I love that Tim cared more for a mutual friendship with the horse vs. What a lovely story! The friendship between the horse and the young man, incongruously named Tim, was uplifting and inspiring. ![]() Otherwise, I heartily recommend this book to all young folklore and mythology lovers, especially those with an interest in Celtic lore, and thank my goodreads friend Chandra for pointing me to it. The faces, in particular, looked rather flat to me. The artwork - credited here to Katie Thamer, who, as Katie Thamer Treherne, has illustrated such works as Tatsinda and The Little Mermaid - was something of a disappointment. I myself saw some some similarities between the Sea King in this tale, and the ruler of the Fomorians, as presented in ancient Celtic lore, a clear indication - as Mayer notes in her brief foreword - of the mythological antecedents of The Black Horse. My online friend Chandra has already noted, in her own excellent review, some of the folkloric parallels here, from the ancient Greek myth of Pegasus and Belleraphon, to the Russian tale of the Golden Mare (often found in the Firebird stories). I enjoyed this story of boy and horse immensely, and appreciated that they were each - horse and boy - characters in their own right. Like many Scots tales, it is set in a mythological Ireland, one in which princes and princesses interact with the monsters and fairies of the ancient Celtic tradition. Campbell - best known for his four volume Popular Tales of the West Highlands - this magical tale follows the story of an impoverished young king's son, his adventures with an enchanted black horse, his enslavement by the evil Sea King, and the many quests which eventually win him the hand of the Princess of the Mountains. Originally collected on the Scots island of Barra by noted folklorist and scholar J.F. Similarly, myth allows a child to believe in his or her own dreams and can instill a boundless hope for the future." Because of this, I choose characters who face overwhelming odds but triumph through courage and perseverance. The sense of hope that books instilled in me as a child saw me through many difficult times. The stories I was told as a child, those half-remembered folktales and myths, have become the foundation for what I continue to work on in my books. I'm striving to reach out to that spirit of wonder within us all. Then to the child in others, whether that child resides in a young person or an adult. First and foremost I write for the child who still lives within me. I listened to Russian music, ate Russian food (which I love!), and tried in other small ways to enter into the essence of that culture." What I learned about Slavic mythology helped to deepen my understanding of the story. While working on Baba Yaga and Vasilisa the Brave, for example, I read all I could about Russia. I try to become part of the culture of a particular tale as much as possible. "While in the midst of a writing project, I live so much in my mind that what takes place in my imagination becomes quite real to me. She explains, "I began to feel more freedom when using words as my paints and plots as my canvases. Gradually, she shifted to the written word as a medium of expression. ![]() Her experiences as an artist provided many images that she began to incorporate into writing. After college, she studied painting at the Art Students League in New York City. And then I decided to start writing a book, at the age of nine." She published her first book at the age of nineteen. My sister and I put on plays made up from my stories. "I liked to tell stories with pictures and compose music. "It seems to me there was never a time when I didn't want to be an artist, " she says. Though widely known as a children's book writer, Marianna Mayer's early education focused on visual art. And, much as an oyster must be disturbed by a grain of sand in order for the pearl to be created, I often choose to retell stories in which I find unresolved fragments that are somehow perplexing to me." "They are a kind of collective dreaming, filled with timeless symbols and images we can all relate to, regardless of age or culture. "I see folktales and myths as humankind's first stories," says Marianna Mayer. Marianna Mayer lives in Roxbury, Connecticut.
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