Tales From The Brothers Grimm And The Sisters Weird
September 3rd, 2008Author: Vivian Van Velde
Originally Posted on SF Site, 2006
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This is an amusing, entertaining collection of retold fairy tales, in which the original material has been turned upside-down, inside-out, and in some cases, tossed in a blender for good measure. Thus, in this collection, you’ll find everything from a story in which Rumpelstiltskin is in cahoots with the miller’s daughter (and everyone really does end up happily ever after) to one where the enchanted frog turns the tables on an ungrateful princess in a fitting fashion. There’s an All Points Bulletin for Goldilocks (for breaking and entering), a Little Red Riding Hood that won’t shut up (and we end up rooting for the wolf), a story that questions the Pied Piper’s true motivations, another look at that pesky Jack of the beanstalk fame, fairy tale endings you’re not likely to see (PG-13, no less), a princess whose sensitivity to peas may not be all that desirable after all, and a truly disturbing Hansel and Gretel. And let’s not even mention the version of Beauty and the Beast where she vastly prefers the Beast over the handsome prince.
There’s not much to say about this assortment of stories, poems, and quick double-takes; it’s clever, often unexpected, and slyly witty, but Vivian Vande Velde doesn’t devote much time to any one story. These are like drive-bys against the old solemnity and seriousness of the traditional material, making their point and moving on. As such, they’re fast-paced, and a breath of fresh air, and the collection as a whole makes for a nice diversion. I always enjoy Vande Velde’s work for its originality. Fairy tale lovers might get a kick out of this, and the stories might be fun to read to younger audiences, who will undoubtedly appreciate the humor in some of them.
Publisher: Magic Carpet Books
ISBN: 015205572X
Pages: 144
Prices: 5.95
Release: August 2005
Book: No link available.
![[image_name]](http://www.michaelmjones.com/images/uploads/twilight.jpg)
Isabella (Bella) Swan never expected to really make a home for herself in the small Pacific Northwest town of Forks, Washington, where she’d be living with her father, the police chief. After all, she hasn’t stayed with him for years, preferring to live with her scatter-brained, eccentric mother. But times have changed, and now Bella must fit in at a new school all over again. She quickly settles in, making an assortment of new friends and carving out a niche for herself in true high school fashion. And then she goes and does the one thing she really shouldn’t: she makes friends with Edward Cullen, a strange young man whose family, while vaguely respected in town, are social outcasts for no immediately discernable reason. And Bella pursues this friendship, even as her life takes a strange and dangerous turn. The closer she gets to Edward, the more death stalks her, and the more she fall in love with him. And for all of his protestations and warnings, the feelings seem mutual. Then Bella learns the truth: Edward and his entire family are vampires, ones who deny their craving for human blood even as they attempt to live among humans. But there are still vampires out there who stick to the old ways, and they’re about to complicate matters tremendously for Bella and Edward. Will our heroes find love together, or be torn apart (and limb from limb)? If they want to live long enough to go to the prom, they’ll run for their lives and exercise every ounce of cunning they possess to outwit their foes.