Forest Myths

Popularized by Joseph Campbell, the hero's journey features narrative stages along which a person matures and transforms. But where heroes transform is just as important as what they do to get there. Holly Bellebuono shows you how the location of each hero's journey step is intimately tied to the challenges faced, setting the tone for the entire adventure.

May finds herself in a world that most certainly does not feel like a fuzzy mitten. In fact it is a place few living people have ever seen. Here, towns glow blue beneath zipping stars and the people walk through walls. Here the Book of the Dead holds the answers to everything in the universe. And here, if May is discovered, the horrifyingly evil Bo Cleevil will turn her into nothing.

Princess Æroreh Rosen was faerie blessed before her birth. To promote the New Dawn Era, the Queen coded her daughter with every feminine perfection. Hunger and lung sickness plague the kingdom of Ealdspell. But Æroreh is plugged into the Dream, a program created by a sect of faeries to control the realms through illusions of beauty and contentment. All Æroreh has ever known is blissful servitude to a cursed system, and she believes her realm is prospering. Until a different faerie sect decides to wake her sleeping mind and set her true magic free.

Unlike the other residents of St. Virgil, Selina DaSilva does not believe in magic. With a logical mind and a knack for botany, Selina used to dream of leaving the island to study Pharmacology—until a vicious, unsolved attack left her father dead and her mother in a coma. Now her guilt over her mother’s condition keeps her tethered to the island, relegated to conning gullible tourists with useless talismans and phony protection rituals. But when one of those tourists ends up at the center of a string of strange murders, the truth that Selina has been denying can no longer be avoided.

A classic tale of honesty rewarded, reminding children to stay truthful—one of several heartwarming stories included.

On the heels of a devastating plague, Torvi’s sister, Morgunn is stolen from the family farm by Uther, a flame-loving Fremish wolf-priest who leads a pack of ragged, starving girls. Torvi leaves the only home she’s ever known, and joins a shaven-skulled druid and a band of roaming Elsh artists known as the Butcher Bards. They set out on a quest to rescue Torvi’s sister, and find a mythical sword.

Six months after Paola Santiago confronted the legendary La Llorona, life is nothing like she'd expected it to be. She is barely speaking to her best friends, Dante and Emma, and what's worse, her mom has a totally annoying boyfriend. Even with her chupacabra puppy, Bruto, around, Pao can't escape the feeling that she's all alone in the world. Pao has no one to tell that she's having nightmares again, this time set in a terrifying forest.

The epic tale of an ambitious 12-year-old boy and his ragtag group of misfit friends who are flung into the heat of battle as a power-hungry dark wizard takes over their home, Camelot. In turn, they must embark on a dangerous quest to The Forest of the Forsaken and become the knights they have always dreamt to be in order to save their families and their kingdom. But first, they must look past their own differences and learn to work together.

Traditional stories endure generation after generation because, although they are not literal, they resound in truths on a human scale. Folktales remind us of wisdom so elemental it is often lost in the rush of everyday life - sometimes common sense makes no sense at all.

Nestled deep within the Enchanted Forest, where the leaves shimmer with golden dreams and every breeze carries a lullaby, lives a magical world where nap time is a cherished ritual. As the sun stretches and yawns high above, woodland creatures—like Daisy the Deer, Tumble the Turtle, and Pip the Fox—begin their gentle snooze routine. The tall trees sway softly, their branches humming sleepy songs, while glowing mushrooms cast a warm, drowsy light on the mossy ground. Even the giggling brook hushes to a murmur, letting the stillness wrap everything like a cozy blanket.

A beast. An enchantress. An unbreakable curse.... Deep within the sentient woods, Larkin uncovers a secret that puts her in dreadful danger. Worse, now that the beast has had his taste, he’ll never stop hunting her. But the forest has woken something inside Larkin; something that gives her the power to fight back. Magic. Using forbidden magic will get Larkin hanged. Not using it will leave her at the mercy of the beast's enchantment. But there’s a third option; one that scares her more than anything.

The waking forest has secrets. To Rhea, it appears like a mirage, dark and dense, at the very edge of her backyard. But when she reaches out to touch it, the forest vanishes. She's desperate to know more—until she finds a peculiar boy who offers to reveal its secrets...if she plays a game. To the Witch, the forest is her home, where she sits on her throne of carved bone, waiting for dreaming children to beg her to grant their wishes. One night, a mysterious visitor arrives and asks her what she wishes for, but the Witch sends him away. And then the uninvited guest returns.

Jeff Madison - dream catcher, loyal friend and fearless teenager - must save his best friend Rhed from a devastating spell which was cast on him during their last visit to Drakmere. But from this dark kingdom, two evil witches send forth unspeakable horrors. Can Jeff overcome Wiedzma's terrifying screatures and Zorka's flesh-eating shadowraiths? As Wiedzma's screatures endanger Jeff's family and Zorka's Zombies call for blood, the curse on Rhed becomes life threatening and time is running out.

In the tradition of The Yellow House and Half Broke Horses, a memoir of the Cuban diaspora that follows one family’s exile from the island, through a lyrical exploration of memory, cultural mythology, and the history of Cuban-American relations. History is undeniably dominated by its men, but...

A brave knight wakes up and is surprised to be in the middle of an enchanted forest, with no memories of the previous night and only a bunch of mysterious herbs as a clue to what the evening consisted of. That brave knight is you. Try to escape from the forest while piecing together what you did last night.

On her birthday, Zaria Fierce finds her usual path to school blocked by an ugly river-troll. At first she’s surprised and curious, but then Olaf threatens to eat her, which is an act Zaria could not in good conscience consent to, so Zaria counteroffers. A deal is struck and she goes to school, but Zaria is about to learn the hard way that one does not trick a river-troll and expect to win.

Un día aterriza en el blanco del Bosque Furioso una tetera pequeña. Los asombrados animales descubren que en este medio de transporte acaba de llegar a su bosque una pequeña hada traviesa que frunce las cejas y está super enfadada. Enseguida se dan cuenta que se diferencia mucho de otras hadas, ya que «arma jaleo, alborota, grita, malcría a los jóvenes y dice muchas palabrotas». Pero no pueden ni imaginarse de qué manera su llegada cambiará sus vidas.

Rama, Sita, and Lakshmana journey through the Dandaka forest, facing dangers and forming alliances, as they adapt to life in exile.

राम, सीता और लक्ष्मण के दंडक वन में यात्रा की कहानी है, जहाँ वे कठिनाइयों का सामना करते हैं और मित्रों से मिलते हैं।

The Pandavas in the Forest chronicles the years of exile the Pandavas endure in the forest. Amidst hardships, they strengthen their resolve and deepen their bonds. This period of reflection and preparation showcases resilience, family unity, and spiritual growth.