URBAN LEGENDS REPLACING FAIRY TALES

URBAN LEGENDS REPLACING FAIRY TALES

SAN FRANCISCO (Wireless Flash) – It might be time to wean kids off fairy tales and onto urban legends. According to urban legend researcher Ann Fiery, author of The Completely And Totally True Book of Urban Legends (Running Press), kids can learn important life lessons from urban legends that they might not get from the morals in fairy tales. For example, she says the urban legend about the teenage girl who had an e- mail affair with a guy who turned out to be her dad teaches kids to be careful online – a concept you certainly won’t find in Cinderella. Fiery doesn’t want to get rid of fairy tales entirely but says modern kids need 21st century stories. She thinks kids can relate to the possibility of having their organs stolen or burning to a crisp in a tanning salon more than finding a glass slipper.

Fri 09-14-01