Castle Waiting vol. II by Linda Medley

This.

Yes.

This is good.

You should read it.

Okay, clearly I loved this. But actually I must as a provision to that recommendation. If you read Castle Waiting (vol 1), then yes, you should definitely read this.

The premise is this: After Sleeping Beauty was awakened by her Prince, she left to go be his wife in his kingdom. But who was supposed to rule her old land? And what happened to the castle she left behind? This graphic novel set attempts to answer those questions, filling the castle with a unique and wonderful mix of new characters, some giving us glimpses into a fairy tale world we are familiar with, but generally enriching it with new stories.

It's fabulous. It's funny: I laughed out loud often while reading this (vol 2), causing my attempting-to-nap husband to give me dark looks. If you aren't very into graphic novels, this is a good one to try. It's not terrible cartoony: the artwork is simple, elegant, and clear.

I suppose I should say that it's also powerfully a women's story, but to me that seems kind of silly. There are strong and well-rounded male and female characters, and isn't that how the best stories should be? I think this is one of the best stories, and I do hope Ms. Medley will continue.

ABC's Once Upon a Time (Pilot)

If you are a fairy tale enthusiast like me (does anyone other than that read this blog??) then you have also been looking forward to ABC's new fairy tale mashup, Once Upon a Time. The pilot aired last Sunday, and those of us who are hulu-inclined may or may not have caught up since then.

I watched the first episode yesterday with my husband. There was a bit of cheese involved, some definite hamming, at least in the fairy tale backstory--but not as much as I feared. The early scene that was released as a promotional bit was probably the worst as far as that went, and it was literally the second scene in the episode (where the evil queen comes in and warns everyone that she's going to take away their happy endings).

The show has gotten some mixed reviews, especially as far as mainstream reviewers are concerned, but all of the feedback I've heard from the fairy tale communities has been positive. I'll add my own to that--it's a lot of fun to look for the fairy tale references and see how the characters are spun to be recognizable but modern in the Storybrook, Maine, setting.

Even my husband, who politely indulges my fairy tale obsessions, got to the end of the episode and said, "Wait... so... is the next one out yet?" Which I think is very promising in terms of layman fans of the show.

Here is the trailer, in case you somehow have missed it:

Also it's available on hulu; I'm not sure if they'll have an expiration date with it now--I don't see one at the moment but they do tend to roll five episodes at a time for current network TV.

Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil

I went to see Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil last weekend. Bringing back the elements that I loved from the first one: movie and pop culture references, a kick-ass Red Riding Hood, and a lot of humor.

However... it failed to have an engaging plot. I mean I REALLY enjoyed the first one, and the sequel left me feeling a bit... hollow. I saw it in 3D because that was the only option at my theatre. Now, I don't hate 3D, but I don't think it adds several dollars worth of entertainment value per viewing. It's nice and all, but there are no instances where I think it adds so much to the film to be classified as "necessary." Good scenery will not make me love a movie.

Some of my acquaintances complained about the original movie's lack of stunning CGI quality. I stood up for Hoodwinked, defending it by right of "The STORY is awesome." I... can't say the same for the sequel. In the absence of a tight plot, the audience starts to look at the scenery. And it's not that impressive, especially with CGI technology becoming what it has.

So--problems. The writers had the characters do the thing, you know, where two characters are fighting, and we're not really sure they're that invested in what they're fighting about, and the argument is basically just a "let's move the plot along," thing. You know what I'm talking about. And it gave Red and the Wolf an almost uncomfortably sexual tension. (Which I am fine with in some interpretations, but it felt grossly out of place here.)

The first movie did a great job of taking a simple fairy tale plot, fleshing out all the characters, and letting the movie ride on their organically developed motivations. The second movie failed in every aspect of that. Also, although Hayden Panettiere did a good job, I couldn't help missing Anne Hathaway's richer and more complex voice-acting.

It had enough humor and enough references to other fairy tales to keep me chuckling: I would call it entertaining but not good. It's worth renting, popcorn for your brain.

Fairy Tale Mashup Week: Castle Waiting

One of my favorite formats is the fairy tale mashup: an author takes two or more favorite fairy tales and mixes them together, with unpredictable or unusual results. So this week I thought I'd highlight some of my favorite mashups, some old and some new. If you haven't read many of this format, these are the ones I would recommend starting with.

Sleeping Beauty pricks her finger on a spindle and sleeps for 100 years. Then she's awakened by her Prince's kiss and falls madly in love with him at first sight, and is carried off to his palace to be his bride.

So what happens to the castle? The kingdom remnants have slipped away... there's nothing much left to rule, but here is this castle and the servants who were asleep with the princess for 100 years. What are they to do?

Linda Medley explores the question in her beautiful graphic novel, Castle Waiting. This collection brings together the first 12 issues of the Eisner Award-winning series. This is one of those books that you can just immerse yourself into, the drawings as compelling as the writing, the story spun slowly out so that even as the action moves on, the character's past is revealed in tantalizing tidbits. With engaging nested stories (for those who like that style), this book ends up including multiple tales, all with fairy-tale flavor, feminine empowerment in a range of forms, and some wonderful offhand references to other stories.

The artwork is gorgeous and creative, a far cry from the "cartoony" feel of some comic books, so if you haven't read any graphic novels before, this might be a good one to try. Altogether, Medley portrays her story well, both in words and images, for a delightful exploration of Sleepy Beauty's castle. I'm looking forward to Volume 2.

Fairy Tale Mashup Week: The Stepsister Scheme

One of my favorite formats is the fairy tale mashup: an author takes two or more favorite fairy tales and mixes them together, with unpredictable or unusual results. So this week I thought I'd highlight some of my favorite mashups, some old and some new. If you haven't read many of this format, these are the ones I would recommend starting with.

Let me just start with: Awesome.

This is the first book in Jim C. Hines' Princess series, featuring a Cinderelle, Snow White, and Sleeping Beauty who will have you completely rethinking your Disney versions. These ladies are based on their original prototypes--that is to say, Cinderella (Danielle) can talk to birds, and Snow White's (Snow!--don't ask her if you can call her by her real name!) nemesis is her own mother, not a stepmother. And you probably know what happened to Sleeping Beauty (Talia).

I was beyond impressed with this. It's fast-paced, funny, and interesting, without losing sight of the characters and giving all three of these girls a lot more depth that they usually get. If you haven't read it, please give yourself the opportunity to enjoy it!

There are now two sequels, with another coming out soon. This has been one of my favorite series of all time, both for the fairy tale aspects and for the consistency of the writing and storytelling from one book to another. I cannot wait to read the new book.

Jim C. Hines also has a blog that's great reading.

Fairy Tale Mashup Week: Glasgow Fairytale

One of my favorite formats is the fairy tale mashup: an author takes two or more favorite fairy tales and mixes them together, with unpredictable or unusual results. So this week I thought I'd highlight some of my favorite mashups, some old and some new. If you haven't read many of this format, these are the ones I would recommend starting with.

I am especially excited to tell you about this book because the author, Mr. McIver, has been a long-time member of my fairy tale community on LiveJournal. We've had quite a few talks about fairy tales and folklore, so I am just thrilled to see his storytelling in action here.

The story starts as several fairytales begin to act upon one another, with often hilarious results--as, for example, Reggie King decides to take out Snowy White (in a nicely done gender reversal) to be the bonniest man in Glasgow--and he hires none other than Ella McCinders to get the job done.

I won't give too much away, but I will tell you that this is one of the funniest adaptations I've ever read, mixing stories and rearranging the elements to fit McIver's own Glasgow. I giggled out loud frequently, and the Cinderella ball scene is my favorite every Cinderella dance. Also: Best Frog Prince Ever.

McIver's penchant for telling stories is apparent in his prose, which is excellent for reading aloud. As an American reader, I had to sometimes slow down to read the Scottish dialect, but even then it wasn't so heavy that I had trouble understanding it.

This is still only available in America through intermediates on amazon.com marketplace, but it IS available, and for an excellent price for a trade paperback. I highly recommend this for anyone who likes mixed up fairy tales and funny retellings. I hope you'll check it out!

The Grimm Legacy by Polly Shulman

Lonely teen Elizabeth is feeling lost and out of sorts at a new school, and with a new step-family to contend with. When her essay on fairy tale history catches the eye of one of her teachers, he recommends that she apply for work at the New York Circulating Materials Repository, where she becomes a page, fetching items of historic value for patrons to check out.

But soon she becomes curious about some of the special collections, especially The Grimm Collection (and who wouldn't be intrigued, with a name like that?). When items start to go missing, she and her fellow pages start sleuthing.

I have to admit, the archivist in me was intrigued by this book from the first time I heard of it, and it didn't disappoint. I don't think the cataloging details would bog down a lay-reader, but I certainly enjoyed them so it's hard to say. The book is funny and quick, and I really enjoyed the way the character fell into and out of suspicion from Elizabeth's point of view.

Although this is not an adaptation, the magical references are plentiful and enjoyable. And oh my goodness, how I'd love to work there!

My one quibble was perhaps my own misunderstanding of Elizabeth's age. At first in the story she comes across as perhaps middle school, and then later she definitely seemed more like she was in her mid-teens, all within the course of a single year at school. Which is incidental, really.

I think there's some open-endedness, perhaps in preparation for a sequel and if Ms. Shulman produces one, I certainly enjoyed the first one enough to check out the second.

Snow White and the Seven Samurai by Tom Holt

If you like Terry Pratchett or Jasper Fforde, Tom Holt might also be up your alley, filled with what I like to think of as British humor--rather dry and self-referential.

Our story begins with the wicked Queen's mirror, but when the Queen steps out for a moment, three kid-hackers break into the fairy tale reality and quickly set everything amok when they crash the Mirrors (computer) system.

With plenty of puns and loads of fairy tale references, though mostly well-known tales, this is an enjoyable read. The story is a bit disorganized and the ending is not as fully satisfying as I hoped it would be. However, seeing the stories come together and clash is always one of my favorite things to do, and this book is chock-full of that. If you like mashups of multiple stories, this is a fun one.

Reckless by Cornelia Funke

While Reckless is not a direct adaptation of any story I know, Cornelia Funke does borrow often and heavily from fairy tale lore to create the world behind the mirror, from gingerbread houses to fairy spells and curses.

If you liked Inkspell I think you'll be well pleased with Reckless. My problem with Inkspell was all the capture/escape scenarios, but I feel like Funke has gotten away from that with this newest book, drawing the reader into her mirrorworld and her character's dilemma with insistence.

I found the premise and the setting to be more intriguing than the characters. There is a level of assumption, that we will understand that these two are brothers, so even though they aren't close they are bonded, and these two are engaged, so their love and relationship must be deep. I would have liked to see more character development in the story; however, I enjoyed the plot and waiting to spot the next fairy tale reference.

Glasgow Fairytale by Alastair D. McIver

I am especially excited to tell you about this book because the author, Mr. McIver, has been a long-time member of my fairy tale community on LiveJournal. We've had quite a few talks about fairy tales and folklore, so I am just thrilled to see his storytelling in action here.

The story starts as several fairytales begin to act upon one another, with often hilarious results--as, for example, Reggie King decides to take out Snowy White (in a nicely done gender reversal) to be the bonniest man in Glasgow--and he hires none other than Ella McCinders to get the job done.

I won't give too much away, but I will tell you that this is one of the funniest adaptations I've ever read, mixing stories and rearranging the elements to fit McIver's own Glasgow. I giggled out loud frequently, and the Cinderella ball scene is my favorite every Cinderella dance. Also: Best Frog Prince Ever.

McIver's penchant for telling stories is apparent in his prose, which is excellent for reading aloud. As an American reader, I had to sometimes slow down to read the Scottish dialect, but even then it wasn't so heavy that I had trouble understanding it.

This is only available in America through intermediates on amazon.com marketplace, but it IS available, and for an excellent price for a trade paperback. I highly recommend this for anyone who likes mixed up fairy tales and funny retellings. I hope you'll check it out!

Reminder: Book of Lost Things Giveaway!

Don't forget! Tomorrow is the drawing for The Book of Lost Things giveaway. Be sure to go to the ORIGINAL POST to enter!

• 1 entry for a link to Fairy Layers from your blog
• 1 entry for a link to Fairy Layers from your twitter

The Book of Lost Things by John Connelly

I was really hesitant to read this when I heard about it, because I am wary of books about children that claim to be for grown-ups. Not that that's a recipe for failure, by any means, but it made me set it aside, mentally, until it popped up again in my life in the form of my friend Annamarie.

Annamarie is not a BIG reader. She loves books about horses, and fairy tales where everything comes out okay in the end. I have recommended a lot to her; she had never returned the favor--until The Book of Lost Things. Which she insisted emphatically that I read. And dragged me to a bookstore, and bought it for me, and put it in my hands, and sat me down, and forced me to read the beginning so that I would be hooked and read it right away.

Which I did, nearly in one sitting. And oh my. What an excellent recommendation.

This is the story of David, a 12-year-old boy who's just lost his mother. When his father remarries and has another son, David retreats into his books and fairy tales, but gets much more drawn in than he expected.

And, oh, the references and rewritings. With many stories twisted into new shapes (including a Beauty and the Beast where the Beast is the woman--and the Beauty does not free her from her spell--and a Sleeping Beauty where the sleeper awakens every night and is more of a danger to the princes than any thorns ever were), David explores a new land where the greatest danger will be the ones he calls from his own imagination.

Try to figure out who the villain is before the reveal at the end. (Yeah, I totally did.)

This is now one of my favorites books. (I don't say that too often, do I???) Check it out!

I do recommend the paperback edition with the red cover, as there's a section of notes at the back of the book, with Connelly's thoughts on the fairy tales he used, as well as original versions of the tales.

AND

I know that I say "This is one of my new favorite books!" far too often, especially here where I am talking about my favorite kind of book. But I really want to back that up this time, with this exceptionally good book.

SO.

A GIVEAWAY!

Post a link back to this blog on your blog for 1 entry, or on twitter for 1 entry. (If you have multiple blogs you can have an entry for each blog you post on, but only one entry per blog.)

Be sure to put a comment on this entry so I can see your links!

I'll draw a random winner on Friday, December 3rd, and I'll send the winner a copy of The Book of Lost Things.

Beauty by Sheri S. Tepper

Beauty is a particularly complex fairy tale retelling, touching on Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, and Cinderella, with references to others along the way. From the first time I heard of it, I was determined to read it, but broke. Fortunately I walked past the fiction section at the library and it yelled to me, "Here I am!" from the shelf where it had been waiting for me. True story.

I found this to be a very engaging book, holding my attention through the unusual plot twists. Although Beauty has received some criticism for hosting such disparate elements (from a 14th century princess to a future dystopia) I was utterly captivated while reading. Tepper manages to write an issues book without being preachy (although some readers will disagree with me; I thought the story was in the forefront the whole time, rather than the issues).

Overall, the book was much... BIGGER than I was expecting. Tepper bravely goes to a whole different level with her book. While some feel it's less successful, I have to give her mucho credit for her bold, unique book. It's certainly worth a shot.

Mercedes Lackey's 500 Kingdoms Week: The Sleeping Beauty

The fifth book in the Five Hundred Kingdoms series, The Sleeping Beauty is new as of this July. Touching on both our major "Beauty Asleep" stories, Sleeping Beauty and Snow White, the Godmother Lily is keeping a sharp eye on the Kingdom, trying to figure out which way the Tradition will push things--but it seems to like Princess Rosamund for either version, and before she can figure it out, the Princess is whisked out of her sight.

To further complicate things, Prince Siegfried wanders into the kingdom with his own sleeping beauty problems--this one being his aunt, with whom he's supposed to fall in love with, ick. As you might imagine, he's doing all he can to avoid his Traditional fate. This throws another wrench in the works for Godmother Lily, who must do all in her power to persuade the Tradition to work for her before the kingdom's enemies, on all borders, come crashing in.

With a clever plan, and a bit of luck, they all might find a happy ending. Okay, okay, this is a Lackey book... of course they'll find a happy ending, and it won't be entirely outside the realm of predictability, but we're just here to enjoy the ride, right?

Once more, I wish Lackey would stop having her characters explain things to each other, after she's had them think about things to explain them to us. BUT having said that, this is a clever weaving of stories. I especially like the third sleeping beauty aspect, from Norse/German tradition. In her introduction, Lackey recommends checking out Anna Russell's routine, "Ring of the Nebulungs (An Analysis)".

So when I was a couple chapters into the book, I got distracted by the internet (more a reflection on my personal habits than on the book), and decided to look it up. Personally, I recommend watching it before you read the books, if you aren't familiar with Siegfried's story. (If you are familiar, it could go either way.) I'll include it here (three 9ish minute youtube videos) for ease of reference:

(The routine is hilarious. I add my recommendation to Ms. Lackey's, for what it's worth!)

Mercedes Lackey's 500 Kingdoms Week: The Snow Queen

This is a pretty solid entry in the series; not my favorite, not a bad one. Lackey gives us the flip side of the coin with a sorceress (snow queen) who, in the position of a character who is usually a "bad guy" Traditionally-speaking, is actually a Godmother, using her "evil" position to carefully and safely move her kingdom through the Traditional tales toward happy endings.

It's an interesting perspective into the Five Hundred Kingdoms. There is a hint of it in a previous book, a "good guy" getting set up as the big baddy of the land, and this explores that concept a bit more--how far can your manipulations go while you're still on the right side?

So this is the story of The Snow Queen, with most of the elements from the original story, told mostly from the perspective of said Snow Queen.

Again, this series gets heavy handed with the long winded explanations, but this is a decent book nonetheless, and a fun episode in the series.

Mercedes Lackey's 500 Kingdoms Week: Fortune's Fool

Following up with the drearily slow One Good Knight is the third installment, and possibly my favorite in the series: Fortune's Fool. Lackey returns to the kingdoms with a story about a mermaid who falls in love with a prince--fortunately this is a very, very lucky prince.

This is also the beginning of the storylines that seem to focus a lot on a family of royals who really understand the Tradition and how to use it to their benefit. So Sasha, seventh son of the king, plays the fool in public, but in the rare moments of privacy, his family cherish their good fortune in having him--because in Traditional manner, things just naturally go his way.

When he meets Katya, a princess from a very different kingdom, things heat up right away between them (naturally), until they catch the attention of one of those magic-power grubbing Jinn the Tradition is so likely to throw your way in this world.

I thought this story was one of the strongest in the series, mostly because there was enough plot to keep things rolling steadily. Lackey incorporated the folklore of more than European culture, here, as well, which always changes things up a bit. Also, the spicy romance didn't hurt.

Mercedes Lackey's 500 Kingdoms Week: One Good Knight

Mercedes Lackey's second installation in the Five Hundred Kingdoms series, One Good Knight, is... weak. Probably my least favorite of all her books (and I say this as a fan), it seems that although the concept is interesting, Lackey didn't have the time (deadlines?? who knows??) to really explore the storylines and characters. There is a load of exposition, followed by some more stuff about the world, a smattering of plot, an awkward love story, and some more stuff about the world.

Although I love Lackey, and enjoy this series, I'd say that unless you're a huge fan already, or you just desperately want to know what happens in detail, you could just as easily skip this one and move onto the next in the series without missing much.

The dragons in this story are referenced in later books, but all you honestly need to know for continuity's sake is that Godmother Elena ends up with some dragon buddies.

Not my favorite, but others have enjoyed it.

Mercedes Lackey's 500 Kingdoms Week: The Fairy Godmother

I admit up front, I am a big Mercedes Lackey fan, ever since I read Magic's Pawn (The Last Herald-Mage Series, Book 1). I devoured the rest of the series, and almost everything she's put out since then.

So when she started a new series, devoted to a magical land where a fairy tale Tradition forces people into unhappy situations in order to play out the same stories over and over--let's just say, my resistance was nil.

In this world, the Five Hundred Kingdoms, a powerful magical force called the Tradition acts to put people in their places--in commonly told stories. Magicians, sorcerers, and witches are all able to harness this magical power, so "evil" magic users are drawn to princesses or maidens or heroes around whom the Tradition is acting strongly, setting them up for stories to replay over and over. Some of the only people to truly understand this power are the Godmothers (fairy or not), who see how the Tradition works in the wide scope, and are able to direct the power toward the happy endings versions of stories--if they can get there in time.

The trouble is, there aren't enough Godmothers, so when Elena finds herself at the mercy of her stepmother and sisters, the Tradition pushes her into the "Ella Cinders" path with no one to come to her aid. Not that it would do any good, since the nearest prince is about 7 years old. She has to take matters into her own hands, and so she sets out to find a job as a housekeeper for anyone else. And that's when she does meet a Godmother, and sets out on a new path of her own choosing.

While this series sometimes gets a bit heavy-handed, as far as telling-not-showing. Even so, this one moves along at a fairly good pace, and I love the concept of the world. It's fun to spot the references, from common tales to obscure, and see how Lackey has woven them into her tale.

The Stepsister Scheme by Jim C. Hines

Let me just start with: Awesome.

This is the first book in Jim C. Hines' Princess series, featuring a Cinderelle, Snow White, and Sleeping Beauty who will have you completely rethinking your Disney versions. These ladies are based on their original prototypes--that is to say, Cinderella (Danielle) can talk to birds, and Snow White's (Snow!--don't ask her if you can call her by her real name!) nemesis is her own mother, not a stepmother. And you probably know what happened to Sleeping Beauty (Talia).

I was beyond impressed with this. It's fast-paced, funny, and interesting, without losing sight of the characters and giving all three of these girls a lot more depth that they usually get. If you haven't read it, please give yourself the opportunity to enjoy it!

Jim C. Hines also has a blog that's great reading.

The Godmother by Elizabeth Ann Scarborough

I just finished reading The Godmother, by Elizabeth Ann Scarborough.

I was pretty impressed by how well the fairy tales fit into modern Seattle, and I enjoyed the themes the main character, Rose, pulled out of the book of fairy tales. I won't go into details, but I will say that Cinderella, Snow White, Hanzel and Gretel, Bluebeard, and Puss in Boots all make appearances of various kinds.

I felt like the book wrapped up a little too quickly, something like, "My, this is quite a word count I have! Time to end things!" However, upon consideration, I felt that kind of fit with the rush the characters themselves felt they were in, and to be fair, I did read the second half of the book in one big chunk, after taking several... weeks? to get through the first part. (I'm one of those people who is always reading about 20 books at once.)

In any case, I feel that if you enjoy fairy tales, you'd like this book.