Get in, reader, we’re going shopping! Even though it was 1862 when Christina Rossetti’s narrative poem Goblin Market was published, its influence still resonates today. In the poem, Laura and Lizzie are very close sisters, but they differ in their feelings toward the local market. One day, Laura purchases fruit from the market, and eating it makes her delirious and delighted. But her sister reminds her about the dangers of the fruit and about a girl who died after eating fruit from the goblin market.
The poem has been interpreted in many ways: as a tale of temptation referencing Adam and Eve, an expression of Rossetti’s queer and feminist politics, a warning of the dangers of capitalism or addiction, an exploration of sexuality, and more.
Whatever the interpretation, there has been no shortage of “buyer, beware” novels about the dangers of shopping, some literally set in goblin markets. Here are five fun books about such retail adventures. (Retale adventures?)
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English (US)