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  • The Forgotten Origins of Fairy Tale Maidens: Old & Obscure Renditions of Three Famous Fables by Charlotte-Rose de Caumont de la Force book cover
  • The Forgotten Origins of Fairy Tale Maidens: Old & Obscure Renditions of Three Famous Fables by Charlotte-Rose de Caumont de la Force book cover
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The Forgotten Origins of Fairy Tale Maidens: Old & Obscure Renditions of Three Famous Fables

by Charlotte-Rose de Caumont de la Force

Before the familiar fairy tales

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AlbakiReads Editorial

Before the familiar fairy tales

This collection traces three early versions behind stories now known as “Sleeping Beauty,” “Rapunzel,” and “Beauty and the Beast.” Its selections span 17th- and 18th-century tales, including Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve’s complete, unabridged novella of “Beauty and the Beast,” with its subplots and backstories, and Charlotte-Rose de Caumont de La Force’s “Persinette,” centered on a girl raised in seclusion. The volume also includes Giambattista Basile’s version of “Talia.” These are historical renditions, not the softened retellings familiar to many contemporary readers; the publisher notes that some events and descriptions may be shocking by modern standards.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Readers interested in the history and evolution of familiar fairy tales.
  • Readers seeking early, unabridged literary versions rather than contemporary adaptations.
  • Teens and young adults interested in older, sometimes unsettling fables.

Themes

Fairy-tale origins and adaptationSeclusion and innocenceLove and identityHistorical storytelling

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

The earlier original stories of three young women - three of the OG Princesses, well-known and loved in modern times - had their stories abridged, modified, and rewritten countless times throughout the centuries.

Discover the lesser known, earliest versions of the tales that became the foundations for Sleeping Beauty, Rapunzel, and Beauty and the Beast.

Reader beware, though - this book is not for light bedtime reading for children. Some events and descriptions in these 17th and 18th century stories will certainly be shocking to the modern reader.

  • This edition includes the complete, unabridged version of The Story of Beauty and The Beast by Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve. Although lengthy by fairy tale standards, this novella contains rich subplots and backstories of Beast, Beauty, and the busy bee fairies.
  • In Persinette, written by Charlotte-Rose de Caumont de La Force, a naive gold-locked girl brought up in complete seclusion is utterly ignorant about matters of life and love.
  • You will understand why the horrifying tale of Talia differs so much today from Giambattista Basile's version.
Volume two will follow with more old & obscure renditions of famous fables.
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