Book Review: Tales From the Brothers Grimm and the Sisters Weird by Vivian Vande Velde

My nine year old daughter found this in the Junior Fiction section of the library. She tossed it disgustedly on the return pile a few days later, saying, "This book is dumb. I don't like the way the author redid the fairy tales." Since she's not a big fan of fairy tales anyway, I decided to read it to see if she was right, or if she just didn't appreciate it because of the genre.

The answer, I found, is a little of both. After reading this compilation of "twisted" fairy tales (and it's a quick read) it's clear to me that the book has been wrongly placed in the library: it isn't a book for the 8-12 age range, unless you've got a kid who's ahead of his/her years, irony-wise. The cultural references, dark humor, and general irreverence are more suited for teens and adults. The stories themselves are well-written, and amusing in places, (and secretly echo some adults' feelings about certain iconic fairy tales) but for the most part, I myself couldn't work up much enthusiasm over them. But I can definitely see a more appreciative audience out there for it.

*Originally published on June 14, 2013

Karina's New Favorite Series: The Sisters Grimm by Michael Buckley; illustrations by Peter Ferguson

Our library has a section devoted to Middle Reader book series, and one day about a month ago, Karina spied The Sisters Grimm series on the shelf and brought one (it was Book 4) to show me. She was so excited. "Don't you think this has a spooky cover, Mom? It reminds me of the Wizard of Oz. Is this one I can read?"
I was a little nervous, because I didn't know what these books contained. And with her still being so young, (she turns seven in December) I don't want her reading things she isn't ready to handle. I also know Karina. She has, up until now, been largely a book snacker (meaning she rarely reads a whole chapter book straight through.) And although lately I have noticed her getting more into reading whole books, I doubted that she'd stick with this book.

On the other hand, they sounded right up her alley. (Combining fairy tales with sleuthing? Genius!) So I gave the go-ahead. She started with Book 4, Once Upon a Crime, because she liked the deliciously spooky cover.

She started reading it on the way home. After about 20 minutes of silence, she said, "Mom, I'm not sure I got the right one."
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"Well, I think I've started in the middle of the story. Things are happening and I don't know why. I don't think these books are separate like Nancy Drew, I think the story continues in each book. I think I need to start with Book 1." So we went back to get Book 1, The Fairy-Tale Detectives. And last week we got Book 2.  And yes, indeed she reads them avidly. And comes to share funny bits and scary bits, and I have only the vaguest notion what they're about.

She got Olivia hooked on them too.

The library only has Books 1-7. The other night I was looking at Hastings (a book store in our area that also sells used copies, which is now going out of business) and found Book 8. There was much jumping up and down and squeals when I came home with the loot. I was the hero of the hour.

And then they discovered the audio books at the library. More jumping up and down and giddiness. And I hear them upstairs, blasting (okay, I'm getting old) the audio books and chortling at the antics of the characters, and squealing when something bad starts happening. And again with the pausing and running down, both of them laughing and trying to outdo each other in relating the current happenings. And still I have no idea what's going on. (The audios are very ably narrated L.J. Ganser.)

Here's the little I know about the books:

• Read them in order!
• The main characters appear to be sisters Sabrina and Daphne, and their mischievous friend Puck, who comes to live with them, and both helps them and makes their lives fun and miserable, as only brothers can.
• Something has happened to their parents and they live with their granny, whom they only just met.
• There are loads of fairy-tale characters.
• They have awesome covers and internal illustrations.
• I'm going to have to read them myself.

The Fairy-Tale Detectives (Book 1)
The Unusual Suspects (Book 2)
The Problem Child (Book 3)
Once Upon A Crime (Book 4)
Magic and Other Misdemeanors (Book 5)
Tales From the Hood (Book 6)
The Everafter War (Book 7)
The Inside Story (Book 8)

There may be more coming??? Not sure.

Author Michael Buckley's website
Illustrator Peter Ferguson's website

Book Review: A Tale Dark & Grimm by Adam Gidwitz

A Tale Dark & Grimm

Written by Adam Gidwitz
Middle Grade Fiction, Ages 8 and up
(Published in 2010 by Dutton Children's Books)

This is a deliciously gruesome and imaginative tale, done in the original Grimm style, only much better written, with some hilarious, pithy, but sympathetic narrative asides. (It's worth reading the book just for those.)
The story is a clever combination of several fairy tales (Hansel and Gretel, Faithful Johannes, The Seven Ravens, Brother and Sister, The Robber Bridegroom, and The Devil and His Three Golden Hairs) and the author's own originality. It makes for a scary good read. (It would make an excellent read-aloud. But as the narrator warns, it is gruesome and scary in places, so know your child.)
Here's wishing you many more books, Mr. Gidwitz. I eagerly anticipate reading them.

Two Picture Books Illustrated By The Dillons: The Girl Who Spun Gold and Two Little Trains

The Girl Who Spun Gold

Written by Virginia Hamilton

Illustrated by Leo and Diane Dillon

Ages 4 and up

"There be this tale told about a tiny fellow who could hide in a foot of shade amid old trees. All that most could see of him was the way he sparkled."

This is a West Indies inspired version of the tale of Rumpelstiltskin, called Lit'mahn in this story. The mother of a young village girl brags to the passing Big King about her daughter's ability to spin gold thread. Big King happily marries the girl, but "being young, he went too far." He tells her he will give her everything her heart desires, but in a year and a day she must start her spinning. You know how the story ends. Or do you?

I found this a refreshing take on the usual Grimm version. And it's fun to read aloud, once you get into the rhythm of the language. (Before you read the story aloud, be sure to first read it yourself to become familiar with the cadence of the words, because the sentence structure echoes the West Indian [Caribbean] dialect.) My girls liked it, too. They laughed in delight and oohed and aahed over the pictures.

And the pictures are stunning, with gold over-painted in strategic spots, beautifully reinforcing the story.

Two Little Trains

Written by Margaret Wise Brown

Illustrated by Leo and Diane Dillon

Ages 3 and up

 "Two little trains went down the track,
Two little trains went west.
Puff, Puff, Puff and Chug, Chug, Chug,
Two little trains to the West." 

So begins this poem of two little trains, a "streamlined train" and a "little old train", "going west."
The marvelous pictures drive (pardon the pun) the story of two trains, one a sleek passenger train, the other a toy train. The movement of the real train is echoed in the imaginary scenarios featuring the toy train being played with at home. For example, when the "two little trains [come] to a hill, a mountainous hill to the West", the "streamlined train" passes through a tunnel in a hill and the toy train is shown passing through a tunnel formed by a book "mountain." 
 

Olivia (7) and Karina (6) liked the illustrations and liked pointing out the contrasting elements between the two trains. They have looked at the pictures more than once since we brought it home from the library, but were underwhelmed by the text. "Boring", was their response. Susanna (3) didn't "get" this book at all, and wandered away in the middle. None of them have asked me to re-read it.

That's not to say, of course, that it won't be loved by other children, which is one reason I'm featuring it here. And it was worth checking out for the pictures alone.

Both these books were borrowed from the library.

Mini Reviews of Some of My Girls' Favorite Picture Books

Owl Babies
Written by Martin Waddell; Illustrated by Patrick Benson

Three little baby owls are left home alone while their mother goes to hunt for food. When she is gone longer than they expect, they worry about whether she will come home. It is a warm, sweet story, beautifully illustrated, that addresses the fear every child has about whether Mama is coming back. Our family adores this book. Even my husband, crusty curmudgeon that he is, loves this book, and gets a little weepy at its powerfully simple text. The illustrations are perfect for the story. They set the tone of the book, and create an anxious feel while at the same time making you want to scoop the owls up and cuddle them.

The Best Nest
Author/Illustrator: P.D. Eastman

This beloved story chronicles the mis-adventures of Mr. and Mrs. Bird in their search for the"perfect" house. I remember loving this book when I was little. My mom gave us a copy of the book when my oldest was 6 months old, and it has been a favorite in our household ever since. In fact, it is so well loved that we are on our second copy. As the mama reader, I'm sick to death of it, but only because I've read it umpteen million times. It never gets old for my kids though.

Cinderella

Author/Illustrator: Barbara McClintock

The illustrations for this version are so much fun to look at, very detailed. Karina pours over these pictures frequently, looking for all the detail. Last night she said in delight, "Look, there's the fairy godmother!" pointing to her almost hidden self in the last page of the book. All of Barbara McClintock books are a treat; check them out if you haven't already. (Another of hers frequently checked out of the library by my girls is Dahlia.) 

Book Review: Thornspell by Helen Lowe

From the back cover of my Yearling paperback edition:

"Prince Sigismund has grown up hearing fantastical stories about enchantments and faie spells, basilisks and dragons, knights-errant and heroic quests. He'd love for them to be true - he's been sheltered in a country castle for most of his life and longs for adventure - but they're just stories. Or are they?

  From the day that a mysterious lady in a fine carriage speaks to him through the castle gates, Sigismund's world starts to shift. He begins to dream of a girl wrapped, trapped, in thorns. He dreams of a palace, utterly still, waiting. He dreams of a man in red armor, riding a red horse - and then suddenly that man arrives at the castle!

  Sigismund is about to learn that sometimes dreams are true. That the world is both more magical and more dangerous than he imagined. And that the heroic quest he imagined for himself as a boy...begins now." 

  First of all, what a great cover! The artist is Antonio Javier Caparo. I love good cover art.

  This debut novel by Helen Lowe is a clever re-imagining of Sleeping Beauty: it's the prince's story. I love this about the book. In the traditional stories, the prince, while playing a major role, gets very little page time, so his part seems almost incidental. I loved that that this story was all about the prince, and his training to fulfill his role.  I love the role the princess played in here as well, even though she wasn't in it a lot. (I can't say too much without spoiling it for you.) The premise of the story is very creative, and the story has depth and complexity; I love the plot. Her characters are well done, and in the end I was sorry to say goodbye to them.
  Having said that, it was sometimes hard for me to stay focused on the story. It took a long time to get it finished because I kept putting it down. It dragged in quite a few places with too much wordiness; weighed down by too much description. Despite this, I was definitely interested enough in the story that I didn't want to give up on it, and I'm glad I didn't. I will be reading her next book with enthusiasm.