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The Uses of Enchantment by Bruno Bettelheim
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The Uses of Enchantment

The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales

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Narrator Gerard Doyle

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Length 14 hours 25 minutes
Language English
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Bruno Bettelheim was one of the great child psychologists of the twentieth century and perhaps none of his books has been more influential than this revelatory study of fairy tales and their universal importance in understanding childhood development.

Analyzing a wide range of traditional stories, from the tales of Sindbad to "The Three Little Pigs," "Hansel and Gretel," and "The Sleeping Beauty," Bettelheim shows how the fantastical, sometimes cruel, but always deeply significant narrative strands of the classic fairy tales can aid in our greatest human task, that of finding meaning for one's life.

Bruno Bettelheim was born in Vienna in 1903. He received his doctorate at the University of Vienna and came to America in 1939, after a year in the concentration camps of Dachau and Buchenwald. He was a Distinguished Professor of Education and professor of both psychology and psychiatry at the University of Chicago. He died in 1990.

Gerard Doyle records everything from adult, young adult, and children's books to literary fiction, mysteries, humor, adventure, and fantasy. He has won countless AudioFile Earphones Awards, including for A Star Called Henry by Roddy Doyle, and was named a Best Voice in Young Adult Fiction in 2008. His audiobook credits include Clubland by Frank Owen, And Thereby Hangs a Tale by Jeffrey Archer, The Distant Echo by Val McDermid, and A Risk Worth Taking by Robin Pilcher. His career in British repertory theater includes many productions, most notably The Crucible, The Tempest, The Importance of Being Earnest, and Fiddler on the Roof. He has also appeared on television, including New York Undercover and Law & Order.

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Reviews

"He won me over. I found him provocative and persuasive." ---Boston Globe Expand reviews