AFS Fellow Jack Zipes Publishes Novella for Young Adults

Jack Zipes is Professor Emeritus in the Department of German, Nordic, Slavic, and Dutch at the University of Minnesota. He is an AFS Fellow and his book Grimm Legacies: The Magic Spell of the Grimms’ Folk and Fairy Tales won the 2015 Chicago Folklore Prize. In addition to his scholarly work, he is an active storyteller in public schools and has worked with children’s theaters in France, Germany, Canada, and the United States. In 1997, he founded a storytelling and creative drama program, Neighborhood Bridges, in collaboration with the Children’s Theatre Company of Minneapolis that is still thriving in the elementary schools of the Twin Cities.

The latest novella by Zipes, The Wrath of Peace or How the Wellikans Saved the World (Austin Macauley Publishers, 2025), follows the journey of twins Anja and Zack, two young witches who are separated from their parents after a ruthless dictator named Nexus takes control of the world. Guided by a mysterious, elderly witch, they set out to find the Wellikans, a hidden people living on a dark and secretive island. With her wisdom and support, Anja and Zack reach the island and join forces with scientists and the Wellikans to challenge Nexus’s formidable technological power.

This novella reflects his belief that the world’s conditions have deteriorated for many, particularly the young, and that fascism has crept into even the smallest corners of the globe. It is a hopeful tale of resistance and defiance, intended for his grandchildren and anyone who believes in standing up against oppression.

The novella will have two sequels titled Lost and Found or How the Wellikans Helped the Twins Avoid a Catastrophe and Home Is Not Sweet or How the Wellikans and the Tins Found Truth, respectively, together making them a trilogy.