A Goosle Chase

Over here, Colleen Mondor tackles 'The Goosle'—brave woman, because she knew it would knock her around. Well, it did its thing, she says:

It's hard to simply recommend "The Goosle" because it is upsetting - it disturbs as much as it enlightens. But some stories are supposed to scare the crap out of us; some stories are supposed to make us wary for what might come or thankful for what we have. Before "The Goosle", this was a throwaway tale, another bad joke about stepmothers or a lesson in not getting lost.

It was a joke.

Now Hansel is the one who lived and Gretel the one he mourns and their family the ones who were lost. Everyone else are monsters - real monsters and they get exactly what they deserve. Hansel is the hero not just for getting away in the end but for living in the midst of so much death - for hanging in there when so many others would have given up.

Margo Lanagan has made Hansel the strongest survivor to come out of fairy tale land in a long long time. I'll take it - I'll take him. My heart hurts from this story, but I'll take it so finally I can have him.