The Story of Yvashka with the Bear's Ear

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About this book

An unusually strong peasant's son sets out after his father sends him away, gathering three remarkable companions as he travels. Quercillo cuts oak, Montano hews rock, and Moustacho catches fish with his enormous moustaches. In George Borrow's translation of this Russian fairy tale, their shared lodging is a cabin that turns on crow's feet. Its owner, Baba Yaga, soon makes the companions' efforts to cook a meal a dangerous business.

Borrow introduces Baba Yaga through her strange vehicle, habits and place in Russian popular tales, with a comparison to a Turkish goblin. The story itself moves through repeated encounters, practical tricks and a descent into an underground world where strength and weakness can come from pitchers of water. Readers interested in folklore will find a compact tale of extraordinary abilities and unsettling magic, told with the directness and repetition of an oral narrative.

About the author

George Borrow

George Borrow was an English writer, translator, linguist, and traveler whose books draw on encounters across Britain and continental Europe. John Murray issued Lavengro in 1851; it blends autobiography and fiction as its wandering narrator moves through barrack towns, London literary work, and meetings with Romani communities.