Emily Stamey’s Dread and Delight: Fairy Tales in an Anxious World is a companion volume to the 2018 exhibition at the Weatherspoon Art Museum in Greensboro, North Carolina. While no printed text can make up for the experience of seeing such intriguing, appealing, and sometimes disturbing art in person, this publication does offer a glimpse of the works that were displayed and extends the experience for those who were fortunate enough to be there.
Museum director Nancy Doll begins with a brief foreword explaining that the text will explore alternative interpretations of fairy tales. Stamey’s first section, appropriately titled “Dread and Delight,” introduces readers to the text’s themes and provides a cursory explanation of fairy tales. Though she cites all the big names in fairy tale studies throughout (Jack Zipes, Bruno Bettelheim, et al.), this section is clearly targeted at those who do not have extensive knowledge of fairy tales. She provides a decade by decade view of fairy tales since the 1960s. Each section features various references to prominent trends from each decade, in film, art, television, fashion, and popular media. This portion is especially interesting for someone who can remember many of the references. It provides a nostalgic review for late generation Xers and baby boomers, while providing recent examples some may have missed, such as Lady Gaga’s “Hansel and Gretel” photo shoot in Vogue magazine. Despite this section’s brevity, it provides a good context for those who are limited in fairy tale knowledge and establishes the overall theme of the text.
Most of the volume is dedicated to the presentation of fairy tales and artwork from the exhibit. Stamey selects several well-known tales, such as “Hansel and Gretel,” “Little Red Riding Hood,” “Cinderella,” “Rapunzel,” and “Snow White,” but also includes the lesser known “All Fur” and “Fitcher’s Bird.” Discussions of the tales follow, but the highlight of these sections is the presentation of the artworks themselves. She describes many pieces in rich detail and includes explanations of the connections and relevance to the tales, complete with scholarly sources. At times, an image is presented, but the description and discussion occur on another page. Many times, while reading the text, I found myself flipping back and forth just to make sure I saw everything in the way she presented it. This is more a testament to the strength of her descriptions than a complaint.
The book ends with the short story, “The White Cat’s Divorce,” by Pulitzer Award nominee Kelly Link, an alumna of the University of North Carolina Greensboro. In this engaging story, three sons do everything they can to please their rich father. He sends them on futile journeys primarily just to keep them away. But this is not a classic story of people from long ago venturing into the woods. It is a modern fairy tale, set in today’s world, including Colorado, which brings legalized marijuana prominently into the story. Though it contains winks and nods to many prominent fairy tales, it seemingly is mostly inspired by Charles Perrault’s “The Master Cat.” The story evokes enough elements of classic fairy tales to make it feel familiar while unique in its own right.
One of the book’s main missions is to present the artwork. Therefore, it would be a mistake to discuss this text without addressing its visual appeal, which can be summed up in one word: stunning. The book is a bit oversized, reminiscent of the popular role-playing game books that are noted for their mixture of text and art. Natalie Frank’s All Fur III is the cover image, and this work captures the book’s theme of dread and delight perfectly, with a beautiful female in a red garment positioned in front of a menacing beast. Inside, the pages are thick and glossy, and the images that need to be presented in color are done so. The tales themselves are printed in white text on a deep red background. These aesthetically pleasing elements make reading this text a truly rewarding experience.
The text’s varied and unique approach limits its utility a bit. Though it does present and discuss several fairy tales, the ones shared here are limited and quite selective, making it a difficult choice for an introductory course. (Martin Hallet and Barbara Karasek’s Folk and Fairy Tales is one such text that does this job much more thoroughly.) And though it contains citations to much important fairy tale scholarship, it lacks the depth advanced scholars might seek. Its inclusion of fairy tales, art, and a single story might make it suitable for an interdisciplinary seminar looking at the cultural intersections of fairy tales. This book works best, however, as a companion piece to the exhibit of the same name. As such, it is a worthwhile memento that adds layers of depth and context to the stories and artwork for an audience less familiar with fairy tale research. For those who missed the exhibit, the text provides an engaging print-based experience that allows them to share some of the joy of the real thing.
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[Review length: 845 words • Review posted on April 22, 2019]