The Magic Love Fairy Tales from Twenty-First Century China

“
The Magic Love: Fairy Tales from Twenty-First Century China
is a treasure trove of newly translated fairy tales and an important addition to fairy- tale studies. Zhang’s careful selection, translations, and contextualization invite readers to reflect on the essence of Chinese fairy tales and to rethink the fundamental concepts of family and love within the historical framework of storytelling tradition in China. An enlightening and enjoyable read.”
— Claudia Schwabe, Utah State University; Author of
Craving Supernatural Creatures

“This welcome collection of fairy tales from China does a lot to challenge Eurocentric understandings of the genre and offers delightful tales from a contemporary oral tradition where love, fairies, family and wonder are not what we have learned to expect.”
— Cristina Bacchilega, University of Hawai’i; Co-editor of
Inviting Interruptions: Wonder Tales in the 21st Century

“The compelling tales in
The Magic Love
were collected in the early 21st century from several master storytellers in various parts of China. Juwen Zhang’s thorough introduction offers new ways of understanding these contemporary yet traditional tales and challenges accepted ideas about folk tale scholarship.”
— Mark Bender, Ohio State University; Co-editor of
The Columbia Anthology of Chinese Folk and Popular Literature

Juwen Zhang (Ph.D. in folklore and folklife from the University of Pennsylvania) is Professor of Chinese Studies and Folklore at Willamette University, a Fellow of the American Folklore Society, and President of the Western States Folklore Society. His recent publications include The Dragon Daughter and Other Lin Lan Fairy Tales and Oral Traditions in Contemporary China: Healing a Nation.