275: Liberian Storytelling and Oral Tradition (with Mayonn Paasewe-Valchev)

We’re joined by author Mayonn Paasewe-Valchev, an incredible storyteller and educator. We talk about how myths are purposeful, cautionary storytelling, and the differences between oral storytelling and literary traditions.     Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of parental death, grief, animal attacks, drowning, and kidnapping.   Guest Mayonn Paasewe-Valchev was born in Liberia, where she was exposed to a culture of oral storytelling at a young age. She lived in the Netherlands for several years, where she learned to stuff her klompen (wooden shoes) with carrots and developed a love for reading stories—especially tales written by Roald Dahl and Astrid Lindgren. She lives in Georgia with her family. Pre-order her book, The Leopard Behind the Moon, today!   Housekeeping - MERCH! Preorder the Tarot Tee Shirt and get your other on-sale merch at spiritspodcast.com/merch! - Recommendation: This week, Amanda recommends Pokemon Legends: Arceus.  - Books: Check out our previous book recommendations, guests’ books, and more at spiritspodcast.com/books - Call to Action: Check out Multitude’s newest member show, Queer Movie Podcast! This is a queer movie watch party hosted by Rowan Ellis and Jazza John. Join them as they research and rate their way through the queer film canon, one genre at a time. Search for Queer Movie Podcast in your podcast app to subscribe today!   Sponsors - BetterHelp is a secure online counseling service. Get 10% off your first month at betterhelp.com/spirits - Shmanners is an etiquette and culture podcast hosted by husband and wife team Travis and Teresa McElroy. Listen to Shmanners today at shmanners.com or wherever you listen to podcasts.  - Blueland creates everyday eco-friendly cleaning productions that save you money and space, without any plastic waste. Get 20% off your first order when you go to blueland.com/spirits.    Find Us Online If you like Spirits, help us grow by spreading the word! Follow us @SpiritsPodcast on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Goodreads. You can support us on Patreon (http://patreon.com/spiritspodcast) to unlock bonus Your Urban Legends episodes, director’s commentaries, custom recipe cards, and so much more. We also have lists of our book recommendations and previous guests’ books at http://spiritspodcast.com/books. Transcripts are available at http://spiritspodcast.com/episodes. To buy merch, hear us on other podcasts, contact us, find our mailing address, or download our press kit, head on over to http://spiritspodcast.com.   About Us Spirits was created by Julia Schifini, Amanda McLoughlin and Eric Schneider. We are founding members of Multitude, an independent podcast collective and production studio. Our music is "Danger Storm" by Kevin MacLeod (http://incompetech.com), licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0.