Sharon Creeden

In Full Bloom: Tales of Women in Their Prime Sharon Creeden

Here is a celebration of mature women--women whom author Sharon Creeden likens to fully opened blossoms. A professional storyteller, Creeden draws on folktales, her stock-in-trade, to illuminate female heroism and life issues women face, including childbirth, aging, and death. Each folktale is paired with a vignette about a notable American woman. Using this approach, Creeden provides a rich context for viewing women's lives--and brings us some inspired pairings: the Rumanian tale of "The Wise Old Woman" and the story of Maggie Kuhn, founder of the Gray Panthers; the Irish legend of Finn MacCool's wife (the real power behind the legend) and the account of Edith Wilson, who ran the White House when her husband was impaired by a stroke; the Cherokee creation myth "Spider brings the Fire" and the portrait of Wilma Mankiller, former principal chief of the Cherokee Nation; the heartbreaking Jewish tale "Beruriah's Jewels" and the story of Rose Kennedy, who helped a nation grieve. In Full Bloom includes 30 such pairings, with folktales from a wide array of traditions, including Mexico, Ethiopia, China, Japan, the south Pacific, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Greek mythology, Biblical scripture, the American South, and the Cherokee nation.