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W. R. S. Ralston- Russian Fairy Tales-A Choice Collection of Muscovite Folk-lore.
1873. One touch of storytelling may . . . make the whole world kin. So stated Ralston. In England the works of Ralston were the first to deal with the vast field of Slavonic, and more especially of Russian, folklore. His chief endeavor was to show the great amount of information which the unwritten literature of Russia contains as to the early stages of religious development.
570 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 30, 2000
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
November 21, 2015
I downloaded this for free at gutenberg.org. It is a wonderful resource on Russian folklore with different versions of legends regarding Baba Yaga, Koshei the deathless, Maria Morevna, Beautiful Vassilisa, and many others.
The chapters each focus on a specific legend or type of monster/creature/hero type that is unique to Russian folk tales and provides several different stories that relate to the theme. I found some cool references to monsters that I had first heard about on Supernatural, such as the "Shtriga" that was portrayed on one of the episodes.
This book was a lot of fun, and good research material for those interested in folklore from around the world.
The book was not illustrated, but here are a few images from Russian mythology that I found on the net.
The chapters each focus on a specific legend or type of monster/creature/hero type that is unique to Russian folk tales and provides several different stories that relate to the theme. I found some cool references to monsters that I had first heard about on Supernatural, such as the "Shtriga" that was portrayed on one of the episodes.
This book was a lot of fun, and good research material for those interested in folklore from around the world.
The book was not illustrated, but here are a few images from Russian mythology that I found on the net.
December 13, 2009
I love Russian myth. Especially Baba Yaga (who depending on the story can be good or evil) and Vasilissa, who is always wise and beautiful.
March 1, 2015
Reads like a dissertation. More Skazkas, less analysis.
December 28, 2025
As someone new to Slavonic culture, I really loved this (and I plucked it for free from a street library so lucky me!) It perfectly satiates my appetite for European folklore. I particularly loved the final chapter about legends and demons.
It covers many aspects of Russian folktales from myths, magic, ghost stories, and legends. The contents list 51 tales but Ralston includes similar abridged versions in between each one and in footnotes, so really, there's more than 80 stories in this book (and a lot of Ivans).
It covers many aspects of Russian folktales from myths, magic, ghost stories, and legends. The contents list 51 tales but Ralston includes similar abridged versions in between each one and in footnotes, so really, there's more than 80 stories in this book (and a lot of Ivans).
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews