This is a critical examination of the writers of the late 20th-early 21st centuries whose re-inventions of the literary fairy tale mirror the social, political, and cultural climate of the age. Sixteen essays consider fairy tales recreated through contemporary short stories, novels, poetry, and the graphic novel from both best-selling and lesser-known writers. The essays apply a variety of theoretical perspectives, including postmodernism, psychoanalysis, Marxism, feminism, structuralism, queer theory and gender studies.

Beyond the 'His Dark Materials' series lies a vast fictional realm populated by the many diverse character creations of Philip Pullman. The picture books, novellas, and novels written for children, adolescents, and adults are analysed through the themes of innocence and experience, and the journeys Pullman sets his characters on, journeys through which they learn that one must embrace change, loss, and suffering to grow in wisdom and grace.

Many female figures in recent fiction, film, and television embody the Artemis archetype, modeled on the Greco-Roman goddess of the hunt. These characters are often identified as heroines and recognized as powerful and progressive pop icons. Some fit the image of the tough, resourceful female in a science fiction or fantasy setting, while others are more relatable, inhabiting a possible future, a recent past, or a very real present. Examining both iconic and lesser-known works, this collection of new essays analyzes the independent and capable female figure as an ideal representation of women...