Announcing Myth-Take!

Soooo this announcement is coming late. And if you have me on any other social media platform then you’ve probably heard about it already, so apologies for the bombardment. But in case some of you folks missed out on it or haven’t seen a full run down of what it is…let me introduce to you, Myth-Take!

Myth-Take is a project my friend Charlotte and I have started, where we’ll be hosting monthly readalongs focusing on fantasy books that retell myths/fairy tales/folklore. Both Charlotte and I absolutely adore fantasy as a genre, especially when throwing in the extra element of mythology/folklore, so we’re so excited to be doing this!

The details:

• Every month will have a different theme – a different culture focus so we can make it as diverse/inclusive as possible
• Every month will have a set “book of the month” that fits the theme. There will be a specific hashtag for each book so thoughts can be shared on twitter and instagram. While we’d adore for you to join us in reading this book, there’s absolutely no pressure to do so. You can join us with the group book whenever you like!
• Charlotte and I will be reading and making reading vlogs for each book of the month
• We have the hashtag #MythTakeReads on both twitter and instagram – if you read any fantasy book that includes myths/folklore, or have anything to say related to it, we’d love for you to use it! It could be the book of the month, it could be a book of your own choice, recommendations, or even asking for them. Anything at all, we just want to spread the love for myths/folklore!
• Charlotte and I are running a Myth-Take twitter account. We’ll be sharing loads on there!
• This project is running throughout summer, though may continue on a bi-monthly basis once Charlotte and I are back at uni. But we’re not that far yet, and it’ll all depend on how well the project runs over summer!

So all this started midway through April, our first book being The Wren Hunt by Mary Watson, based on Irish Mythology. Since we only had half a month for that book, we’ve broadened May’s theme out to European Folklore so that Irish folklore could still be included if you wanted a longer focus. But either way, we want this to be as inclusive and as accessible as possible with zero pressure in reading, so even if you read a retelling that’s not related to the specific theme, we want to hear about it in the hashtag!

Our current book of the month is Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Marillier, a retelling of the Grimms’ The Six Swans fairy tale but also heavily inspired by Irish folklore. If you decide to read along with us, use the hashtag #ReadDotF and/or #MythTakeReads!

If you decide to join us in this project, remember to use the hashtag #MythTakeReads on twitter or instagram so we can see and share your updates!

I can’t wait to see what books we discover during all this! I really hope some of you join us through it all. I know time is a bit scant right now with deadlines/exams/whatever spring-time responsibilities are happening. But as I keep saying, there’s no pressure of time limits, page counts etc etc. Just read retellings and come chat to us about it!

Let me know if you’re thinking of joining us, and be sure to leave any questions you have down below!

Until next time,