An enthralling collection of nonfiction essays on a myriad of topics—from art and artists to dreams, myths, and memories—observed in #1 New York Times bestselling author Neil Gaiman’s probing, amusing, and distinctive style. An inquisitive observer, thoughtful commentator, and assiduous craftsman, Neil Gaiman has long been celebrated for the sharp intellect and startling imagination that informs his bestselling fiction. Now, The View from the Cheap Seats brings together for the first time ever more than sixty pieces of his outstanding nonfiction. Analytical yet playful, erudite yet accessible, this cornucopia explores a broad range of interests and topics, including (but not limited to): authors past and present; music; storytelling; comics; bookshops; travel; fairy tales; America; inspiration; libraries; ghosts; and the title piece, at turns touching and self-deprecating, which recounts the author’s experiences at the 2010 Academy Awards in Hollywood. Insightful, incisive, witty, and wise, The View from the Cheap Seats explores the issues and subjects that matter most to Neil Gaiman—offering a glimpse into the head and heart of one of the most acclaimed, beloved, and influential artists of our time.

Marjorie Perloff writes: “Among the great modernist poets, Mina Loy was surely the greatest wit, the most sophisti- cated commentator on the vagaries of love, the one whose brittle and sardonic laughter continues . . . to pursue us.” Stories and Essays of Mina Loy is the first book-length volume of Mina Loy’s narrative writings and critical work ever published. This volume brings together her short fiction, as well as hybrid works that include modernized fairy tales, a Socratic dialogue, and a ballet. Loy’s narratives address issues such as abortion and poverty, and what she called “the sex war” is an abiding theme throughout. Stories and Essays of Mina Loy also contains dramatic works that parody the bravado and misogyny of Futurism and demonstrate Loy’s early, effective use of absurdist technique. Essays and commentaries on aesthetics, historical events, and religion complete this beguiling collection, cementing Mina Loy’s place as one of the great writers of the twentieth century.

"In this capstone book, fairy tale expert Jack Zipes has assembled what he describes as his last theoretical and critical study of fairy tales. His purpose is to create a coherent collection that pays tribute to a group of writers that he views as "survivors with a mission" whose tales inspire readers to this day. The book begins with a substantial introduction in which Zipes discusses the history of his interest in fairy tales and the motivation for his scholarship in the field. In a world filled with conflict, he writes, "fairy tales can be used for enlightenment by all of us or abused by small groups of powerful people who seek domination." The main text includes thirteen essays on notable authors of fairy tales-Édouard Laboulaye, Kurt Schwitters, Béla Bálazs, Christian Bärmann, Charles Godfrey Leland, Mariette Lydis, Ernst Bloch, Paul Vaillant-Couturier, Hermynia zur Mühlen, Lisa Teztner, Felix Salten, Emery Kelen, and Gianni Rodari-many of whom lived through revolutions and world wars or were otherwise compelled to confront political oppression during their lives. Zipes considers their cultural significance and their contributions to fairy tale literature, arguing that each deserves greater attention and appreciation. Some of the chapters have been adapted from previously published introductions Zipes wrote for the Oddly Modern Fairy Tales series, which he edits, and others are adapted from scholarly volumes that Zipes has published over his long career as a self-identified "scholarly scavenger" of largely forgotten tales. Together, they create a portrait of the political stakes that have animated Zipes's lifelong fascination with the fairy tale, and explain why readers and writers alike continue to return to this narrative form"--

Mythopoetic Musings is a gathering of essays and reworked lectures written by Christine Downing during the years since the 2006 publication of her earlier collection Gleanings. Many represent returns to the themes and images, the stories and writers, that have played a central role in her writing and teaching since she began her scholarly career. Amplifications not retractions. As always, they intertwine the academic and the personal and communicate her conviction that a genuinely depth psychological engagement with any theme will inevitably lead us to ourselves. Our stories. As she says, "I have been a teacher and a writer, but really what I have been is a story-teller. I think I can safely tell myself, I'll never stop being one."

Bloody Mary in the Mirror mixes Sigmund Freud with vampires and The Little Mermaid to see what new light psychoanalysis can bring to folklore techniques and forms. Ever since Freud published his analysis of Jewish jokes in 1905 and his disciple Otto Rank followed with his groundbreaking The Myth of the Birth of the Hero in 1909, the psychoanalytic study of folklore has been an acknowledged part of applied psychoanalysis. However, psychoanalysts, handicapped by their limited knowledge of folklore techniques, have tended to confine their efforts to the Bible, to classical mythology, and to the Grimm fairy tales. Most folklorists have been slow to consider psychoanalysis as a method of interpreting folklore. One notable exception is folklorist Alan Dundes. In the seven fascinating essays of Bloody Mary in the Mirror, psychoanalytic theory illuminates such folklore genres as legend (in the vampire tale), folktale (in the ancient Egyptian tale of two brothers), custom (in fraternity hazing and ritual fasting), and games (in the modern Greek game of ""Long Donkey""). One of two essays Dundes co-authored with his daughter Lauren Dundes, professor of sociology at Western Maryland College, successfully probes the content of Disney's The Little Mermaid, yielding new insights into this popular reworking of a Hans Christian Andersen favorite. Among folk rituals investigated is the girl's game of ""Bloody Mary."" Elementary or middle school-age girls huddle in a darkened bathroom awaiting the appearance in the mirror of a frightening apparition. The plausible analysis of this well-known--if somewhat puzzling--American rite is one of many surprising and enlightening finds in this book. All of the essays in this remarkable volume create new takes on old traditions. Bloody Mary in the Mirror is an expedition into psychoanalytic folklore techniques and constitutes a giant step towards realizing the potential Freud's work promises for folklore studies. Alan Dundes is professor of anthropology and folklore at the University of California, Berkeley. Among many others, his books include Interpreting Folklore (1980) and From Game to War and Other Psychoanalytic Essays on Folklore (1997). He edited Mother Wit from the Laughing Barrel: Readings in the Interpretation of Afro-American Folklore (1991), which was published by University Press of Mississippi.