The Girl Who Fell Beneath Fairyland and Led the Revels There by Catherynne M. Valente (Fairyland #2)

September longs to go back to fairyland. But when she falls into it almost by accident she finds it much changed. It turns out the shadow she lost has become Halloween, the Hollow Queen, of Fairyland-Below and who is stealing all the shadows and thus the magic out of Fairyland-Above. September sets out to find her shadow and try to set to rights what Halloween has done.

For there are two kinds of forgiveness in the world: the one you practice because everything really is all right, and what went before is mended. The other kind of forgiveness you practice because someone needs desperately to be forgiven, or because you need just as badly to forgive them, for a heart can grab hold of old wounds and go sour as milk over them.

This I enjoyed more than the first one. The first lacked a charm for me that I found here. I don't know if it was just a better mood for me, a better narrator or if it is just a better book. But I liked Fell Beneath Fairyland and September's adventures in Fairyland-Below. September encounters the shadows of her beloved friends, Saturday and A Through L who are and are not just like their counterparts. September learns with her new and growing heart about betrayal and love and what makes someone real. And that people, and yes even shadows, are not black and white characters but grey too. And also that everyone longs for something, even a shadow. I think there is a whole lot to this books beyond the surface story if you dig deep and look hard. But the wisdom is laid there on top too. It was all in all a labyrinth type story with many quirky sweet elements to it. I look forward to the next book.

 S.J. Tucker is the narrator and I am so happy they got a professional narrator for this book. As I've said before I am not a big fan of author read books and I didn't enjoy Valente as the narrator of the first book. Tucker's voice acting adds to the story and made me want to continue. I  enjoyed the audiobook quite a bit.

8 hours, 21 minutes

The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Catherynne M. Valente (audio)

One day September is brought into Fairyland by the Green Wind and his Leopard of Small Breezes. There she accepts a quest to retrieve a Spoon from the not very nice and very bureaucratic ruler of Fairyland and in the process she makes some very good friends and learns some very hard lessons.

Stories have a way of changing faces. They are unruly things, undisciplined, given to delinquency and the throwing of erasers. This is why we must close them up into thick, solid books, so they cannot get out and cause trouble.

I have an odd affinity for books with long titles. I don't know why but it makes them more intriguing. I had a hard time with this book though. I don't know what it was. I started it in book form and couldn't get into it, then switched to audio thinking that might help. And I guess it did. I wasn't fond of the narrator (see below) but the story is fun and sweet. It is sort of Alice in Wonderland crossed with The Chronicles of Narnia tinged with The Phantom Tollbooth and The Neverending Story. It's a modern fairytale. The illustrations in the actual book are lovely. As for the story itself, it wasn't quite what I thought it was going to be. This is an infinity quotable book and I love that. But I just had a hard time with getting into this book. It was good, just not going to be one of my favorites. Still I enjoyed the story. I think it was really well written and the ending was spot-on wonderful. September is fairly sympathetic character despite the author's insistence that all children are heartless. And I found the Marquess an incredibly interested and layered character for a villain.

I'm not a fan of author read audio books. I find that while most authors can do a passable job, it's still not as good as a professional. Some authors are really good at it (see Libba Bray and Neil Gaiman) but others should just stick to their day job. Catherynne M. Valente is just okay. Her voice is too unprofessional to my liking and I think a real audio book narrator would have elevated this book to another level. Valente was just passable. I was pretty happy to find that the next book in the series has a real narrator.

7 hours,  16 minutes

Enchanted by Alethea Kontis (Woodcutter Sisters #1) (audio)

Sunday is the seventh daughter of a seventh daughter and it expected by her father to be extraordinary as a result. But the most extraordinary thing about Sunday is that things she writes down come true, but not always in a desirable way. So she sticks with writing down truths about her family. One day she meets a talking frog in the forest and the two of them kindle a friendship that deepens into love. When Sunday kisses him, he turns out to be the crowned prince and someone Sunday's family hates. Can Rumbold woo Sunday and make her love him as the man he is?

This was adorable! It is sort of a mish-mash of fairy tale elements combined into a totally unique yet recognizable story. I love fairy tales and I love fractured fairy tales the most.  I also love the use of the fortune-telling rhymes* as the names and futures of all of Sunday's sisters and for her mother's family**. This story included so many things like changelings and giant beanstalks and witches with apples but it was all fairly subtle so not to take too much from one story.

Sunday is a sweet and goodhearted girl. Rumbold gets less of a good treatment but mostly because he can't remember too much and so his characterization is a little less rounded. But he is still a good guy if a bit misguided in his attempts to woo Sunday. I do that that the first thing he does after becoming a man again is call for three royal balls to attract Sunday.

There is a lot of interesting backstory that is mentioned but not explored fully. Jack Jr., the oldest son, adds a mysterious element to the story and is the cause of the animosity that the Woodcutter family holds against the prince. Monday, the eldest sister, has the princess in the bed backstory but she is not a big feature and I wish there was more on her. At least Saturday is getting her own book soon and that should be exciting.

Katherine Kellgren is one of my favorite narrators of all time and she is the reason I picked out this book. I was looking for a new audio book and searched for something she narrated. I'm glad I did. This was an excellent book and a good choice. Kellgren is such great reader. She always does her books justice. I can't believe that once did not like her though that may have been more the book than her performance. I will admit that there were parts in this book that I found a bit grating particularly the bits about Rumbold. But I don't know if that is due to Kellgren's voice or the book itself. It sometimes can be hard to separate the two in an audio book.

*Monday's child is fair of face,
Tuesday's child is full of grace,
Wednesday's child is full of woe,
Thursday's child has far to go,
Friday's child is loving and giving,
Saturday's child works hard for a living,
But the child who is born on the Sabbath Day
Is bonny and blithe and good and gay.


**One for sorrow,
Two for joy,
Three for a girl,
Four for a boy,
Five for silver,
Six for gold,
Seven for a secret never to be told. 

Kill Me Softly by Sarah Cross

Mira longs to visit the town she was born in where her parents died saving her. But her godmothers have forbidden it along with so many other things. But close to her 16th birthday, Mira sneaks out of town and travels to Beau Rivage to find her parents' graves and learn more about her past. There she finds more secrets and lies in a town where fairy tales come true and the people are marked with their destiny. 

I pick this up on the recommendation of Twitter who said it was an amazing book. So because I love fairy tales and twisted retellings, I bought it. It was okay. I was frustrated with Mira. I wanted her to see more than she was allowed. I know that her ignorance of fairy tales can be explained by her godmothers' banishment of any of that kind from her house but it frustrated me nonetheless. I was also frustrated by Blue who was obviously going to become the love interest. His character was so alarming in the beginning and yet he just kept showing up. But in the end he won me over. 

I liked the dark tone set by the fairy tales. It is pointed out many times that fairy tales don't always have a happy ending for everyone involved and they can be quite violent. And this makes for a fairly interesting story for Mira. I think some of the actions are a little gross though given the fact that she is only 15. The story seems to lose sight of that on occasion. So it was a decent read especially if you love fractured fairy tales. It just wasn't the most engrossing one I have read.

Wisdom's Kiss by Catherine Gilbert Murdock

Goodreads: 
Princess Wisdom, known as Dizzy, longs for a life of adventure far beyond the staid old kingdom of Montagne.
Tips, a soldier, longs to keep his true life secret from his family.
Fortitude, an orphaned maid, longs only for Tips.
These three passionate souls might just attain their dreams while preserving Montagne from certain destruction, if only they can tolerate each other long enough to come up with a plan. Tough to save the world when you can't even be in the same room together.

I haven't read Princess Ben so I was unfamiliar with the world and with the character.  I might have to go back and read it because Nonna Ben was pretty fierce.  As was Wisdom.  She was very tenacious and curious and fairly unprincess-like. While she wasn't my favorite character (that honor going to Trudy) she was alright for a princess.  Trudy was the sweetest and the one with the most to lose as an orphaned serving girl with psychic powers.  The love triangle that springs up between Wisdom, Trudy and Tips, Trudy's childhood friend and first love, was inevitable.  But the real meat of the story, for me, was in the intrigue between Wisdom's kingdom and the duchy she is meant to marry into.  I loved the outcome and how clever they solved the problem.

I liked this book, let me say, I did.  But it is told in many random forms like diary entries, memoirs, letters, biographies, a play and all of that together felt mish mashed.  Random bits of important information are thrown in through in encyclopedia entries which seems like a lazy way of importing things readers need to know.  The conceit is cute at the beginning but loses its cuteness about half way through the book.  But it doesn't make the book unreadable.  On the contrary, it is a charming book that I enjoyed very much.  It was just one of the those things I couldn't help noticing.

From NetGalley

A Tale of Two Castles by Gail Carson Levine

Elodie is a spirited girl who only wants to become a mansioner, an actor, but is thwarted in her ambitions by her lack of money.  So she becomes the assistant to Meenore, a dragon skilled in logic and deduction.  When the ogre hires the dragon to find out who is behind a strange turn of events at his castle, Meenore sends Elodie to be ITs eyes and ears.  And Elodie learns about using her mansioning and logic talents for other purposes. 

Gail Carson Levine can tell a good tale.  While some of her other books are retellings of fairy tales (Ella Enchanted), this one has a few aspects (Puss in Boots) but is a wholly original book.  And it is a very cute book.  I loved all the fairy tale touches and the characters were delightful.  I thought the solution to the mystery was easy, but that is because there tends to be a pattern in Levine's fairy tale books that gave it away.  I do wish there was more of the dragon and the ogre because I loved both characters, but I'm wondering if they are going to be more books with Elodie and her friends.

Provided by NetGalley
Publish date: May 10, 2011

Hogwarts: Care of Magical Creatures

The Grimm Legacy (e-book) by Polly Shulman

Because of a history project on the Grimm Brothers, Elizabeth starts working at the New York Circulating Material Repository, a library which loans out material objects rather than books, as a page.  There is she is granted access to the Grimm Collection, a magical collection involving objects collected by the Grimms themselves, not only related to their fairy tales but straight out of them entirely.  Because it turns out the stories which quite made up and that magical objects are extremely powerful and very troublesome...

The stack door opened and an unfamiliar librarian came in.  She was tall and skinny, with glasses and hair in a bun; she looked like a stereotype of a librarian.  She was the first one I'd eve seen who looked like that.  p.42 e-book

The concept of this book is really fun.  You might know how much I love fairy tales and this book was right up my alley. The idea that the magical objects are real is so awesome and I like how they were dangerous too in their own right.  And a lending library of objects, not just magical, but historical and useful made me little librarian's heart flutter.  Really any book set in a library makes me happy, but the idea of this one and how it works is really well thought out and makes me wish I was a librarian there. 

There are parts that stretch the imagination a bit too much and made me raise an eyebrow and I was less than keen on the boys of the book and how they factored into the story.  I found them off-putting, especially Aaron, the head page.  I waited for him to be a little more umph to justify Elizabeth's interest but I don't feel like I got that.  Elizabeth, though, was a sweet and generous girl, sort of playing out a Cinderella role and she made a good main character.  The adventures that take place really made the book move along and it never stalled.  If you are interested in fairy tales and the Grimm Brothers, then this is a fun book.


Hogwarts: History of Magic
E-Books

Matchless by Gregory Maguire

On an island so far north that it snowed from September to April, a boy named Frederik kept himself warm by keeping a secret.

What a sweet, sad but hopeful little story.  It's the classic Little Match Girl story tied together with the story of Frederik, a poor simple boy.  The Little Match Girl tale is sandwiched between Frederik's story and is an almost faithful version of that story. The tale of Frederik is just as simple.  A little boy who barely interacts with the Little Match Girl but whose life intersects with hers nonetheless.  It is a very short, very simple tale much like a classic fairy tale but so so sweet.  I will admit to tearing up at the end.  It is a beautiful little book.

Hogwarts: Charms
Holiday Reading

Ponyo (Based on a Fairy Tale)

The storyline is a take on "The Little Mermaid" by  Hayao Miyazaki.  Ponyo is a young goldfish who come to love Sōsuke, a five year old boy.  Defying her father, she goes to Sōsuke and tries to stay with him.  But her father, a sorcerer, does not wish for her to be human so he enlists her mother, a sea goddess, to get Ponyo back.

It was such a sweet movie with a nice message about saving sea life.  The animation seemed rougher/sharper in some places like for the sorcerer, but was very fluid and soft for Ponyo and the water scenes.  It was a nice choice since it showed the character of each scene.

I was also impressed with Noah Cyrus (Ponyo) and Frankie Jonas (Sōsuke).  Both did a great job on the voices.  I was afraid because sometimes the voice over actors are awful (Castle in the Sky), but everyone did a fine job.  Other voices include Tina Fey (Sōsuke's mom), Matt Damon (Sōsuke's dad), Liam Nelson (Ponyo's dad), Cate Blanchett (Ponyo's mom) and as the old ladies in the nursing home: Lily Tomlin, Cloris Leachman and Betty White.  It is such an amazing cast!

It has become one of me and my son's favorite movies to watch and I would recommend it to anyone whether they liked anime or not.  Miyazaki is one of the best movie making and I love most if not all of his movies.

Princess of Glass by Jessica Day George

(I had the worst time trying to write my own summary.)

From Goodreads:
Hoping to escape the troubles in her kingdom, Princess Poppy reluctantly agrees to take part in a royal exchange program, whereby young princes and princesses travel to each other’s countries in the name of better political alliances—and potential marriages. It’s got the makings of a fairy tale—until a hapless servant named Eleanor is tricked by a vengeful fairy godmother into competing with Poppy for the eligible prince. Ballgowns, cinders, and enchanted glass slippers fly in this romantic and action-packed happily-ever-after quest from an author with a flair for embroidering tales in her own delightful way.

Christian couldn't help laughing as he guided their steps toward a severe-looking figure in judge's robes with a noose tied to his waist.  For one thing,... it was just like Poppy to be jealous that her weapon was smaller.  p.198 ARC

As you may or may not know, I am a lover of all things fairy tales especially reimaginings of the classics so Princess of Glass is right up my alley.  It is definitely not the same old Cinderella tale and borrows a bit from the Twelve Dancing Princesses since Poppy was one of those same princesses.  But all that happened in the first book, Princess of the Midnight Ball which I have yet to read, but definitely will soon.  They call this one a companion to the first book, but it is more of an indirect sequel.

Poppy is a feisty and fun princess and I admired her willpower to be free and yet be a princess at the same time.  I felt so sorry for her and her sisters for what they endured and I was tickled by her friendship with Christian.  They are such a cute couple and I liked how their romance was allowed to grow naturally.

The twist on the Cinderella story was interesting and it felt more like an original fairy tale before the Grimms took hold.  It was darker and much eerier.  The Cinderella character, Ellen, had a similar background but there were no ugly stepsisters.  She is taken in by an evil witch who uses her to exact a revenge of sorts.  It was all very cool and the glass slippers were really horrible.  That was a great idea.

I look forward to reading more by Jessica Day George if all her books are like this one.

Provided by Traveling ARC Tours
Publish Date: May 25, 2010
Hogwarts: Charms
YA

Fairy Tale Re-Tellings: A Bibliography

Ash by Malinda Lo (Cinderella)

In the wake of her father’s death, Ash is left at the mercy of her cruel stepmother. Consumed with grief, her only joy comes by the light of the dyi...more In the wake of her father’s death, Ash is left at the mercy of her cruel stepmother. Consumed with grief, her only joy comes by the light of the dying hearth fire, re-reading the fairy tales her mother once told her. In her dreams, someday the fairies will steal her away, as they are said to do. When she meets the dark and dangerous fairy Sidhean, she believes that her wish may be granted.

The day that Ash meets Kaisa, the King’s Huntress, her heart begins to change. Instead of chasing fairies, Ash learns to hunt with Kaisa. Though their friendship is as delicate as a new bloom, it reawakens Ash’s capacity for love—and her desire to live. But Sidhean has already claimed Ash for his own, and she must make a choice between fairy tale dreams and true love.


Sisters Red by Jackson Pearce (Red Riding Hood)

Scarlett March lives to hunt the Fenris-- the werewolves that took her eye when she was defending her sister Rosie from a brutal attack. Armed with a razor-sharp hatchet and blood-red cloak, Scarlett is an expert at luring and slaying the wolves. She's determined to protect other young girls from a grisly death, and her raging heart will not rest until every single wolf is dead.

Rosie March once felt her bond with her sister was unbreakable. Owing Scarlett her life, Rosie hunts fiercely alongside her. Now Rosie dreams of a life beyond the wolves and finds herself drawn to Silas, a young woodsman who is deadly with an ax-- but loving him means betraying her sister and has the potential to destroy all they've worked for. 


Princess of the Midnight Ball by Jessica Day George (The Twelve Dancing Princesses)

Galen is a young soldier returning from war; Rose is one of twelve princesses condemned to dance each night for the King Under Stone. Together Galen and Rose will search for a way to break the curse that forces the princesses to dance at the midnight balls. All they need is one invisibility cloak, a black wool chain knit with enchanted silver needles, and that most critical ingredient of all—true love—to conquer their foes in the dark halls below. But malevolent forces are working against them above ground as well, and as cruel as the King Under Stone has seemed, his wrath is mere irritation compared to the evil that awaits Galen and Rose in the brighter world above. 

Fairest by Gail Carson Levine (Snow White) (Best in audio book format)

I was born singing. Most babies cry. I sang an aria. Or so I believe. I have no one to tell me the truth of it. I was abandoned when I was a month...moreI was born singing. Most babies cry. I sang an aria. Or so I believe. I have no one to tell me the truth of it. I was abandoned when I was a month old, left at the Featherbed Inn in the Ayorthaian villiage of Amonta. It was January 12th of the year of Thunder Songs.

The Fairy Lucinda has once again given a dreadful gift. THis time it's a mysterious magical mirror. The gift is disastrous when it falls into the hands of Aza, who never looks in a mirror if she can help it. In the Kingdom of Ayortha, Aza is most definitely not the fairest of them all. Many spurn her. Many scoff at her. She keeps out of sight.

But in the land or singers, Aza has her own gift, one she's come by without fairy intervention: a voice that can do almost anything, a voice that captivates all who hear it. In Ontio Castle, merry Prince Ijori is drawn to it, and vain Queen Ibi wants to use it for her own ends. Queen Ivi would do anything to remain the fairest in the land.

Beastly by Alex Flinn (Beauty and the Beast)

I am a beast. A beast. Not quite wolf or bear, gorilla or dog, but a horrible new creature who walks upright – a creature with fangs and claws and h...more I am a beast. A beast. Not quite wolf or bear, gorilla or dog, but a horrible new creature who walks upright – a creature with fangs and claws and hair springing from every pore. I am a monster.

You think I’m talking fairy tales? No way. The place is New York City. The time is now. It’s no deformity, no disease. And I’ll stay this way forever – ruined – unless I can break the spell.

Yes, the spell, the one the witch in my English class cast on me. Why did she turn me into a beast who hides by day and prowls by night? I’ll tell you. I’ll tell you how I used to be Kyle Kingsbury, the guy you wished you were, with money, perfect looks, and a perfect life. And then, I’ll tell you how I became perfectly beastly


Briar Rose by Jane Yolen (Briar Rose/Sleeping Beauty)

Ever since she was a child, Rebecca has been enchanted by her grandmother Gemma’s stories about Briar Rose. But a promise Rebecca makes to her dying grandmother will lead her on a remarkable journey to uncover the truth of Gemma’s astonishing claim: I am Briar Rose. A journey that will lead her to unspeakable brutality and horror. But also to redemption and hope.

Teaser Tuesdays - Princess of Glass

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along!
Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

The crowd parted before her, making her escape dramatic and also quite fast.
     Which was good, because as the clock ticked closer to midnight, something was happening to her shoes...

p.103 Princess of Glass ARC
Jessica Day George

Once Upon a Marigold (audio)

It was a very cute book aimed at the younger set (grade 5-9).  I liked it a lot, but I would have loved it when I was 10!  Christian runs away from his family when he is seven and lives with a troll who at first is not too happy about it but grows to love Christian like a son.  When Christian is around 18, he begins to P-mail (that's pigeon mail) with the princess who lives across the river and they become best friends.  When he becomes a servant at the castle and discovers a nefarious plot, he runs right into trouble to save Marigold and her father.


Once Upon a Marigold is not based on any fairy tales, but is definitely a fairy tale in its own right.  It's a very sweet story with lots of fun elements including trolls, giants, evil mothers, magic and a curse.  The ending's a bit of a cop-out but it sets up the sequel.

Ash

In a modern telling of Cinderella, Ash is subjected to the humiliations of becoming a servant to her stepmother when her father dies.  In her grief and desolation she wishes to be taken away by the fairies, but when she meets the King's Huntress, her wishes begin to change.

"As the people swayed and stamped and sung their way around the bonfire, Ash knew that this was what the fairies were always hunting for: a circle of joy, hot and brilliant, the scent of love in the deepest winter...How it must disappoint them; that they would never be human." p.247

Honestly, you know, the Cinderella tale has never been one of my favorites¹.  She is usually so weak and pathetic, very accepting and tra la la about her situation, just putting up with her stepfamily's abuse.  But Ash gave me a different insight.  It is about an abused girl who can't just walk away.  She has no one else and is usually young when her father dies so there is no where to go.  Abused children are helpless because they have no idea how to save themselves.   While Ash is not physically abused (well, not really) she is definitely mentally abused by her stepmother once her father dies.  Made to work in the kitchens and become their servant to pay off her father's debts, Ash has no way to escape this situation.  So she wishes and prays for the fairies in the forest to take her away where it would be better to serve them for many lifetimes than to serve her stepmother for one human lifetime.  So she actively seeks out the fairies, when conventional wisdom tell her that it is a dangerous thing to do and meets Sidhean, a beautiful fairy who befriends but does not take her into his world.  It is when she meets Kaisa, the King's Huntress, that she begins to change her world for herself. 

Teaser Tuesdays - Ash

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along!
Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page3


I cheated and did 3 this week.

"Ash stood at the front door and watched the carriage roll away with her stepmother and stepsisters inside, and then she shut the door after them. The house was silent. She took her cloak and went out the kitchen door and did not look back."

pg. 64 Ash - Malinda Lo

Teaser Tuesdays - Beastly

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along!
Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

Because what would happen me if he couldn't fix it? I didn't believe for one second in Kendra's second chance. If my father couldn't fix it, I was finished.

p. 54 Beastly - Alex Flinn

Teaser Tuesdays - The Stepsister Scheme

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along!


My teaser:

"Danielle jumped. Standing on the road beside Talia was a little blue man with oversized pointed ears and a tangled nest of black hair: a goblin."