{"references": ["Abrahams, R. D. 1975. \"Personal Power and Social Restraint in the Definition of Folklore\". Towards New Perspectives in Folklore, Austin: The University of Texas Press, 16-30. Anzald\u00faa, G. 2012. Borderlands La Frontera: The New Mestiza [1987], San Francisco: Aunt Lute Book Company. Ben-Amos, D. 1975. \"Toward a Definition of Folklore in Context\", Towards New Perspectives in Folklore, Austin: The University of Texas Press, 3-15. Castillo, A. 2005. So Far From God [1993], New York: W W Norton & Co. Castro, R. 2001. Chicano Folklore: A Guide to Folktales, Traditions, Rituals and Religious Practices of Mexican Americans [2000], Oxford: Oxford University Press. Chaves, M. 2019. The Curse of La Llorona, Unites States: Warner Bros. Pictures. Cisneros, S. 2004. Woman Hollering Creek [1993], London: Bloomsbury Publishing Plc. Corpi, L. 2000. Black Widow's Wardrobe [1999], Texas: Arte P\u00fablico Press.Deslauriers, A. L. 1994. \"Fairy Tale\" 2011. Concise Oxford English Dictionary, Stevenson and Waite (eds), Oxford University Press, 512. Garcia, R. 1976. \"Multi-Ethnic Literature in America: Overview of Chicano Folklore\", The English Journal. vol. 65, no. 2, 83-87, available at http://jstor.org/stable/814819, (retrieved on 14 June 2018). Grimm, J. and W. Grimm 2018. Cinderella [1884], Global Grey, available at https://www.globalgreyebooks.com/cinderella-ebook/ (retrieved on 13 June 2018). Grimm, J. and W. Grimm 2010. Hansel and Gretel [1850], BookRix. Available at https://www.bookrix.com/book.html?bookID=bx.grimm_1277468325.7006480694#1674,558,6228, (retrieved on 14 June 2018). Hernandez, L. J. 2007. \"Review: Trace Elements of Random Tea Parties and Like Son: The Chican@ Queer Borderlands\", Chicana/ Latina Studies, 7 (1): 132-134, available at http://www.jstor.org/stable/23014678. (retrieved on 6 June 2018). Jagose, A. 1996. Queer Theory: An Introduction. Melbourne: Melbourne University Press. Jorgensen, J. 2014. \"Quantifying the Grimm Corpus: Transgressive and Transformative Bodies in the Grimms' Fairy Tales\". Marvels & Tales, 28(1) 127-141, available at http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.13110/marvelstales.28.1.0127 (retrieved on 6 June 2018). Kearney, M. 1969. \"La Llorona as a Social Symbol\", Western States Folklore Society, 28(3), 199-206. available at http://www.jstor.org/stable/1499265, (retrieved on 13 June 2018. Lemus, F. L. 2003. Trace Elements of Random Tea Parties, New York: Farrer, Straus and Giroux Moore, D. L. 2013. \"Structurelessness, Structure, and Queer Movements\", Women's Studies Quarterly. 41(3/4), 257-260, available at http://www.jstor.org/stable/23611522 (retrieved on 6 June 2018). \"Myth\". 2011. Concise Oxford English Dictionary, Stevenson and Waite (eds.), Oxford University Press, 947. \"Mythology\" 2011. Concise Oxford English Dictionary. Stevenson and Waite (eds.), Oxford University Press. 948. Perez, D. R. 2008. There Was a Woman: La Llorona from Folklore to Popular Culture, Austin: University of Texas Press. Sugg, K. 2003. \"The Ultimate Rebellion: Chicana Narratives of Sexuality and Community\", Meridians, 3(2), 139-170, available at http://www.jstor.org./stable/40338579 (retrieved on 6 June 2018). Taggart, J. M 1986. \"'Hansel and Gretel' in Spain and Mexico\". The Journal of American Folklore. 99(394), 435-460, available at _http://www.jstor.org/stable/540047 (retrieved on 14 June 2018)."]}

The stories we are told while growing up influence our personality and contribute to the shaping of our identity. Fairy tales, witches, curses and beautiful princesses accompany us throughout our lives, regardless of where we grew up and how we were raised. Folklore also finds its way into contemporary literature. For example, in Felicia Luna Lemus’ novel Trace Elements of Random Tea Parties, not only Chicanx myths, but also Western and especially German folklore play an essential role. The element of storytelling itself is central in the novel, being closely linked to the author’s use of the symbolism of color, hair and home, alongside the focus on the protagonist’s cultural roots and search for her own identity. The character of Leticia draws on her Chicanx background and on the stories her grandmother used to tell her in order to find her path in the United States of America and learn to be herself. In this paper, I am going to argue that the fairy tale and mythical elements create a safe haven and home for Leticia, the novel’s protagonist, and, furthermore, enable her to learn to express freely her unique Chicanx and queer identity.The stories we are told while growing up influence our personality and contribute to the shaping of our identity. Fairy tales, witches, curses and beautiful princesses accompany us throughout our lives, regardless of where we grew up and how we were raised. Folklore also finds its way into contemporary literature. For example, in Felicia Luna Lemus’ novel Trace Elements of Random Tea Parties, not only Chicanx myths, but also Western and especially German folklore play an essential role. The element of storytelling itself is central in the novel, being closely linked to the author’s use of the symbolism of color, hair and home, alongside the focus on the protagonist’s cultural roots and search for her own identity. The character of Leticia draws on her Chicanx background and on the stories her grandmother used to tell her in order to find her path in the United States of America and learn to be herself. In this paper, I am going to argue that the fairy tale and mythical elements create a safe haven and home for Leticia, the novel’s protagonist, and, furthermore, enable her to learn to express freely her unique Chicanx and queer identity.