Far North & Other Dark Tales

Book excerpt: More 'modern traditional tales' from an acknowledged master of the genre, drawing on the author's deep knowledge of classical mythology and traditional stories from every continent. 'Far North', based on an Inuit myth, is set among desperate women in the frozen north surviving against all odds. Here is a new version of the Grimms' tale of the seven swan brothers and their sister's vow of silence; the Sirens justify the mayhem they wreak on the Greek sailors, while a tribe struggles over the tattooing of babies in the Amazon. Scheherazade is still trying to stay alive by telling stories, and the Princess Kalito tries to free both her feet and her heart from their bindings. All these stories, formally bold and innovative, emotionally edgy and deeply imbued with a sense of location, address Sara Maitland's primary concerns about the links between beauty and terror, modernity and ritual. Intertwining the everyday and the inexplicable to witty and disquieting effect, her wildest flights of fantasy are anchored in deep psychological understanding and vivid description, overlaid with a wickedly ironic humor.