Rebel Folklore cover art

Rebel Folklore

Empowering Tales of Spirits, Witches and Other Misfits from Anansi to Baba Yaga

 Preview

Get 30 days of Premium Plus free

£8.99/month after 30-day free trial. Cancel monthly.
Try for £0.00
More purchase options
Buy Now for £7.99

Buy Now for £7.99

About this listen

Rebel Folklore gathers 50 of the darkest and most complicated folktale characters from around the world, showing listeners why we should care about the rebels and misfits of ancient stories.

Folktales were humble stories, passed down generations by those on the fringes of society: women, peasants, outcast groups. Across the world, these ancient stories are filled with strange characters, complicated figures who hold up a mirror to the world that dreamt them up. From outspoken women cast as witches to anti-authority figures denounced as criminals, flawed heroes to relatable villains, Rebel Folklore celebrates 50 of these misfits and what they mean for us today.

Whether it's Muma Padurii, the Romanian forest witch who terrorizes trespassers to protect the environment, La Cegua, the horse-headed woman who haunts unfaithful men, or Robin Hood, everyone's favourite lawless activist, we can learn a lot from the rebels of days gone by: how to speak out, embrace our flaws, and be unashamedly ourselves - even if that means being a cannibalistic swamp witch.

©2023 Icy Sedgwick (P)2023 DK Audio Customs & Traditions Other Religions, Practices & Sacred Texts Social Sciences Spirituality Tradition Magic Users Magic Witchcraft
All stars
Most relevant
I enjoyed the information in this book immensely, but the narrator is a bit disappointing. They have none of Icy's wry humour and warmth of presentation that we know from her talks and podcasts. It's very much as if they are reading the book for the first time along with you. It's not bad enough to spoil a really interesting book, but it made it a little hard for me to stay engaged as the narrator doesn't even sound interested in what they're telling you.

I'm sure the tone and feeling are matters of personal taste/interpretation, so maybe others will enjoy the performance, but there are occasional misreadings or mispronunciations which shatter the flow (for example, there's a BIG difference between "Jack the Giant-Killer" and "Jack and the giant killer"). Ultimately though, the upshot is that I'm now planning to buy a physical copy of the book, which I probably wouldn't if I had enjoyed the reading.

Very good book, not very well read

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Frequently mispronounced words and an unengaging voiceover are distracting.

The tales themselves are interesting, but it feels like the ratio of stories to analysis is off; I’d like more stories.

Overall. It was “OK.”

Interesting stories with poor narration

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.