An expansive view of stories from Turkestan, as if they embody the sweeping spaces of the steppe, and the freedom of those who tell them. Take me to some tales from Turkestan…

‘The essence of the stories from Turkestan is generosity, a virtue of the plains and the shepherds, never of those who crush furrowed ground or pray for rainstorms or droughts.’ 

See also Karen Blixen on stories as therapy and David Boyle on the value of stories as an antidote to the tyranny of numbers.  And Arundhati Roy on what makes the Great Stories so great. Another great story-teller is the children’s writer Elizabeth Goudge – here are a couple of story related comments in her books, including the fairy tale as a lesson in existential humility, and the element in stories that allows people to find their way.  

Source: Jorge Luis Borges, On Writing, Harmondsworth: Penguin, 2010, p. 138

Photo credits: AdinaVoicu at pixabay.com and Jean-Luc Crucifix at unsplash.com