“The Little Girl Sold with the Pears”
by Italo Calvino
Italian Folktales (1980)
* * * (Good) Folktale
After being found, hidden away in a basket of pears, a clever young girl quickly rises through the servant ranks only to be forced to complete an impossible quest to steal the witches’ treasure.
Like so many of these Italian folktales, the protagonist is given gifts – usually three – that help him or her overcome the obstacles of the story. The predictability and formulaic nature of the folktales are, I’m sure, a part of the appeal of the form (I see it; I do), but that leaves the success of the story to the details, often small, sometimes lacking. And it’s here in the details that this story succeeds in only being average. The baby hidden in the pear basket is cute, but other than a nice title, it does little to elevate the story above the rote formula of the folktale.
5k (Semi) Challenge
12 years ago
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