Books 170-174
Unless otherwise noted, these are all Grimm Brothers tales:
170. Thankful, by Mary E. Wilkins Freeman. A sweet if dated story. Could be good to read to younger kids but might not resonate with older kids. Here, two girls make a bet - whose family turkey is heavier? One bets her cherish doll, the other her workbox. They both learn lessons on the foolishness of their actions.
171. Fitcher's Bird. A rather different take on the Bluebeard tale, with a couple twists. The heroine and her family work together to thwart a rather shady and seedy old man who makes girls "disappear." Interesting tale.
172. Ferdinand the Faithful. A teen comes into an odd inheritance from his impoverished godfather on his 14th birthday. With his gift, a white horse, and his penchant for kindness, he travels the world and is in the end rewarded. I enjoyed this tale, which was a new one for me.
173. Faithful John. A dying king charges his most faithful servant for taking care of and advising his young son, who becomes king once the old king has passed away. Faithful John finds himself challenged as the young king wants passionately to do the one thing the old king did NOT want to do, and the trustworthy servant finds me must risk his life to keep his promise. I enjoyed this story, the moral is predictable but the path is not. Part of the ending is a bit eyebrow-raising, though.
174. Eve's Various Children. Didn't care for this one, it did not age well. Here, Eve has the opportunity for her children to receive blessings from God, but ... she at first only shows God her "pretty" children and hides the less fortunate and dirty children away. The morale is questionable- the attractive children have higher status, and it's strongly implied they are all boys. The lower but less powerful positions go to the "ugly" children- again implying in most of the cases they are boys.