Do The Talking: Russian Fairy tales + Recommendations

Hello, and it’s THAT time again!
Another Do The Talking: Russian books  post is here!
I won’t deny: I feel somewhat special when I have something new I can share with you guys, because you know how other countries books deserve their exposure time!

I know that I’m not the only one talking about Russian books, there are several other more experienced bloggers who talk about them professionally, but I want to introduce you to Russian literature in a way it doesn’t feel overwhelming, and at the same time attractive to you! And I’m always happy when someone decides to at least give a try to Russian books from those recommended lists I put up, because this is how your effort should be paid with!

So today I would like to talk about Russian Fairy tales, and, of course, at the end of my ranting, you will see recommendations. Remember, everything written here is complied from a subjective point of view, so don’t blame yourself (or me) for not matching your tastes and/or expectations!

We all love them fairy tales. They are the very first books we get a hold of, in whichever way possible, be it learning to read yourself (if you’re a child prodigy lol), or having your mom read them to you as bedtime stories.

With recent trend of having fairy tale retellings, and also a rising trend of Russian fairytale retellings in particular, I think it’s not bad to jump back in time and see what Russian tales Russians usually read and absolutely love.

Russian Fairy tales, just like tales from any other country, is full of national character. A lot of Russian manners and superstitions are mentioned in those fairy tales, but overall concept of teaching valuable morals remains unchanged. Characters can diverge from actual human, to magical animals that can speak, fly, to magical objects.

Russian Fairy tales are divided into two categories: folk tales, a.k.a. tales composed by Russian nation in general, and tales written by Russian writers. Popular folk tales are represented by Baba Yaga, The Magic Swan Geese, Kolobok, Father Frost, etc., while notable tales written by Russian writers are Doctor Aybolit, The Scarlet Flower, The Wizard of the Emerald City (based on The Wonderful Wizard of Oz), The Twelve Months, Buratino, and so many other tales.

As you can see, several Russian tales are based or inspired by world classic tales, twisted so it fits Russian culture, and you can’t even tell that these were based on other tales, unless you read them all. Lots of fairy tales were put into cartoon and live-action movies, mostly of them were produced back in Soviet Russia, and they are still loved by many Russians of all ages.

Instead of my usual recommendation list, I would like to introduce you to this compilation book by Aleksandr Afanasev, who collected EVERY SINGLE Russian fairy tale to make this. 175 Russian fairy tales are ready for you on: Goodreads, Amazon, Book Depository, and Barnes & Noble*.

Plus, you can have a glimpse over most popular Russian fairy tales here, provided by Great Russian Gifts.

*All links are NOT affiliated, and I receive NO PROFIT from sharing these links.

So, what do you think of this post? Interesting? If you read any Russian fairy tale retellings, probably you would be interested in knowing the original story.

See you soon on another ranting post,

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