The Once Upon a Time challenge was the first reading challenge that I have ever done and I have to say that it truly was a challenge in the best and worst sense of the word. I found myself reading in genres that I had previously been completely uninterested in. I read titles that I would never have thought of touching before this challenge and I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised with what I found. Fantasy is not that scary and (at least in the case of The City of Ember) not that fantastical. I was pleased to discover that contemporary fairy tales no longer reek of sexism. I was excited that modern-day fairy tales have been made into graphic novels and comics, two forms that can truly express the visual and textual elements of fairy tales. I was most impressed by the non-fiction selection that I chose for the folktale reading. Previous to this challenge, I had sworn off Zora Neale Hurston and her writings. However, this challenge actually brought me back to her and I am proud to say that I will be reading more of her works. The only selection that disappointed me was the reading I chose for mythology. Still, it made me read outside of my comfort zone which is rare for me.
Overall, I found the experiece to be a good one. Looking forward, I will not cast aside young adult novels as irrelevant to my life; I will not continue to view fairy tales as inappropriately sexist; I will agreed to read authors that I have previously removed from my library; and I will never again read a Tom Stoppard play!
On to the next challenge!
-DLP
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