Humans have always been storytellers: it’s practically written in our DNA. Stories about the otherside, the Upside Down, the world beyond the veil, or tales of fairy rings, trolls under bridges and the fantastic tales of heroes overcoming monsters with the aid of benevolent magic have captivated listeners and imparted important cultural knowledge for thousands of years.
The books below expand on this ancient tradition to share delicious recipes, captivating histories, vital ecological lessons, and contemplation on what lies beyond the veil at the end of life.
Arab Fairy Tale Feasts, by Karim Alrawi, illustrated by Nahid Kazemi (Tradewind Books)
Written by award-winning author and master storyteller Karim Alrawi, each charming story in Arab Fairy Tale Feasts features food or feasting in some way, and concludes with an iconic, kid-friendly recipe. Steeped in knowledge of Arab culture, these original stories are a tasty treat for both the imagination and the tongue. Centering food and the culture of eating and sharing meals, these stories come to life on the page through Nahid Kazemi’s colourful illustrations and provide an interactive avenue for further engagement with the text, as well as with Arabic culture with delicious recipes to try at home.
This is truly a book to be enjoyed by the entire family!
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In the Belly of the Sphinx by Grant Buday (Touchwood Editions)
There are few ancient civilizations that captivate the modern imagination like Ancient Egypt. Replete with rival gods and a robust afterlife mythos, the stories uncovered from this bygone era have a remarkable staying power.
In Grant Buday’s new novel, In the Belly of the Sphinx, smart, stubborn, and forthright Pearl Greyland-Smith has her 1882 life in James Bay upended when an Irish woman named Cassidy arrives at her door and addresses her as Sinead. Her identity suddenly in crisis, Pearl embarks on a journey of self-discovery, auras, and the afterlife to find out who she is and what her place is within the world both near and far.
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Dark Tide by Sean Rodman (Orca Book Publishers)
What teen wants to spend their summer out on a floating research station in the middle of nowhere? What’s worse for Rick is that he’s stuck there with his stepfather with nothing but ocean around them in all directions. But when their research awakens something that has been slumbering beneath the waves for thousands of years—something out of myth and nightmare—Rick and his stepfather must work together to save not only themselves, but the whole world, before the creature escapes Blind Bay and wreaks havoc in the open ocean.
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Ghost Girl by Brooke Carter, illustrated by Alyssa Waterbury (Orca Book Publishers)
Samhain, the ancient predecessor of modern-day Halloween, is a time when the veil between the living and the dead is at its weakest, and spirits can cross over into the living world. It just so happens that ten-year-old Sly is spending the weekend with their fortune-telling grandmother in a probably haunted mansion at just this time.
Called by an unknown voice, Sly and their grandmother discover a ghost girl, trapped in a mirror in a locked cabinet. One slip of the tongue and suddenly Sly and their grandmother are at risk of being trapped there with the ghost for all time—unless they can solve the ghost girl’s mysteries before the clock winds down on Samhain.
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