Episode #52: Storytime Reading of St. George and the Dragon
https://archive.org/download/13thHrEps16On/Podcast%2052.mp3
This week, we’re reading an illustrated adaptation of the first part of Edmund Spenser’s Faerie Queen – the tale of St. George and the Dragon. The one we’re reading from was illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman (check out a tribute and bio on this blog) and penned by Margaret Hodges. You can find a copy online at retailers like Amazon or you local library. There are a few pictures and excerpts includes below. I’d recommend any of the books written and illustrated by this duo if you enjoy fairy tales and/or fantasy art.
The tale is an abridged version for children of the original, which was a lengthy poem. You can find a summary of the original Faerie Queen tale and a commentary here. It’s more adult oriented than this version and has more overt allegorical/religious/moral overtones as opposed to this one, which reads more like a traditional fairy tale and mirrors the end of the original poem, a summary of which you can find here.
Personally, I have always wondered why everyone had it in for the dragon, who also fought a good fight, and I kind of felt bad for him. Here he was minding his own business and … well, I guess that kind of flips the story on its head, doesn’t it. Maybe someone one day can rewrite the tale from the dragon’s point of view.
But that’s neither here nor there. Anyhow, I posted a few pictures from the book on Instagram before from the book, which you can find here:
https://instagram.com/p/BDx0pE7Mg4y/
https://instagram.com/p/BDqIyd5sg7d/
Here are some others:
It’s also in these pages that we learn that the name George means “Plow the Earth” and “Fight the Good Fight.” Georges of the world, take note and take heart. You have a fine lineage.
As always, thanks for listening!
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