Tuesday, July 12, 2011

A Tale Dark & Grimm

A Tale Dark and Grimm
Notable Books for Children

Gidwitz, A. (2010).  A tale dark & grimm. New York, NY:  Dutton Children's Books.

This book was great fun!  It is the story of Hansel and Gretel told in the dark and grim way of the Grimm's Brothers.  It also takes Hansel and Gretel through a few other old tales.  One of my favorite stories when I was young was Hansel and Gretel so I was excited to read this.  As I first began to read, I loved how the author would give the reader warnings, like put the young ones to bed because it's going to get ugly.  His words are in bold and he sometimes gives a quick history of the next part, etc.  Then, as I read the bad parts, I was shocked...at one point Hansel and Gretel have to behead their father!  However, after reading the whole thing and taking it for what it was meant to be...bringing the violence and blood back from the original Grimm's fairy tales and rewriting it for 9-12 year olds - it's pretty cool.  I can really see boys and girls alike getting into this "fairy tale".  Even though I still like my old "safe" version the best, I do think this will be the next read for my son and me to read together.

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