We all know the genre of the fairy tale retelling, in which classic, familiar tales get rewritten or recast from new perspectives. But there are other ways to riff on fairy tales in contemporary novels. Authors can drop hints of classic tales into their narratives, or they can employ the very craft techniques of fairy tales: their dark, whimsical tones, wonky internal logic, and sense of "flatness."
What makes the following reads "fairy tale-like" is one or two of the following, as outlined in Kate Bernheimer's essay "Fairy Tale is Form, Form is Fairy Tale"1: abstracted language (i.e. lacks emotional depth, gives few details), flatness (i.e. characters don't feel three dimensional and complex), nonsensical logic (things seem to happen for no reason at all), and "normalized magic" (magic occurs and characters aren't too surprised). Similar to magical realism, modern-day fairy tales are immersive, whimsical, and often have a touch of the otherworldly, even when set in familiar places. Though they may reference classic and familiar tales, modern fairy tale novels are their own creatures. Here are some of our favorites.
Dwelling is quiet, unsettling, and delightfully nonsensical, lingering long after its last page. Protagonist Evie has lost her way. Like every renter in New York City, she's being forced to leave her apartment and find a new place to live. She has already lost her parents, and her sister is locked away in a mental institution. Evie's only connection is a distant cousin in the middle of nowhere, Texas, where through a strange string of events, Evie finds herself living in a shoe. Scrambling to make ends meet, she must also rescue her sister and become a master of a new trade. Adventure and re-enchantment await.
Bunny is a lot of things. Fans of literature and pop culture will instantly notice nods to fairy tales, Greek mythology, Disney princesses, and cult films like Heathers and Carrie peppered throughout. The 2019 novel's plot hinges on Samantha Heather Mackey's arrival on a small New England campus as an MFA student. Put off by the "rich girl" clique called the Bunnies who dominate the social scene, Samantha keeps to herself. Little does she know that she will soon be drawn down the rabbit hole after an invitation to the Smut Salon that introduces her to a world of rituals and disturbing magic.
In 2018's The Hazel Wood, teenage Alice learns just how bad bad luck can get when her cult-favorite author grandmother dies alone in her estate. This happens right before her mother is kidnapped by a mysterious figure claiming to be from a place called the Hinterland that exists in her grandmother's stories. With the only instruction to stay away from the Hazel Wood, left behind by her grandmother, Alice is out of both luck and ideas. Luckily, she can turn to her grandmother's superfans to enter the realm of her famed tales. While the story is completely original, The Hazel Wood sprinkles in references to The Three Little Pigs, Hansel and Gretel, and Rumpelstiltskin that serve as magical little breadcrumbs.
This 2011 retelling of William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream with some absurdist and dark twists thins the veil between a faerie kingdom and the mortal world. Just as three humans run from heartbreak and failed relationships into San Francisco's Buena Vista Park, the faeries who secretly live there unleash an ancient menace that threatens the lives of both mortals and faeries. With nods to both A Midsummer Night's Dream and classic fairy tales, The Great Night reads like a novel that could be a collaboration between Shakespeare and the Brothers Grimm if they all lived in modern-day San Francisco. With lines blurred between dreams and reality, the novel is playful, charming, and heartbreaking all at once.
When Librarian Sayuri Komachi recommends a book to you, it will change the course of your life. That's the premise of this charming, smile-inducing 2022 novel that centers on a well-read librarian with a gift for sensing exactly what each soul who enters the library needs. Readers see how Komachi's gift impacts the lives of five library patrons seeking answers and fulfillment at different junctions in life. It's prose is sparse and straightforward in a charming, fable-like way, perhaps due to the fact that it's a translation (the original is in Japanese). The effect is a no-frills modern fairy tale.
Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore is an enduring blend of Bay Area tech culture with old-world curiosity. In this tale, web designer Clay Johnson takes a job at an unusual San Francisco bookstore that has almost no customers. It does have a steady roster of eccentric regulars, though. Eventually, Clay discovers that the bookstore is really a cover for a secret society that is focused on unlocking immortality through ancient texts. Clay dives headfirst into solving this mystery, leading readers on a journey that feels both novel and fairy tale-like.
Inglenook Lit is an online literary magazine for magic enthusiasts and enchantment seekers
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I wonder if A Wild Swan by Michael Cunningham might belong on this list too.
Oooh, must check it out...