Folk Tales of the Ever After

Folk Tales of the Ever After gathers traditional stories from different cultures around death, dying, bereavement, loss, grief and what may follow. Its themes are approached through tales that can be humorous, challenging or touching, reflecting the varied ways communities have imagined mortality and the possibility of an afterlife.

The collection includes a Baghdad story about a man trying to outrun Death, an episode in which Sir Lancelot rides on the hangman’s cart, and an Ancient Sumerian tale involving a ball game and a journey to the underworld. Fiona Collins and June Peters also draw on their professional storytelling repertoires, offering insight into how these traditional narratives are selected, shaped and retold.