A Wolf at the Door and Other Retold Fairy Tales

by Ellen Datlow (Editor), Terri Windling (Editor), Delia Sherman

These are not your mother's fairy tales... Did you ever wonder how the dwarves felt after Snow White ditched them for the prince? Do you sometimes wish Cinderella hadn't been so helpless and petite?

Prepare to see fairy tales from a completely new angle!

Genres: Fantasy, Short Stories, Fairy Tales, Anthologies, Young Adult, Retellings, Fiction

166 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2000

About the author

Ellen Datlow has been editing science fiction, fantasy, and horror short fiction for forty years as fiction editor of OMNI Magazine and editor of Event Horizon and SCIFICTION. She currently acquires short stories and novellas for Tor.com. In addition, she has edited about one hundred science fiction, fantasy, and horror anthologies, including the annual The Best Horror of the Year series, The Doll Collection, Mad Hatters and March Hares, The Devil and the Deep: Horror Stories of the Sea, Echoes: The Saga Anthology of Ghost Stories, Edited By, and Final Cuts: New Tales of Hollywood Horror and Other Spectacles.
She's won multiple World Fantasy Awards, Locus Awards, Hugo Awards, Bram Stoker Awards, International Horror Guild Awards, Shirley Jackson Awards, and the 2012 Il Posto Nero Black Spot Award for Excellence as Best Foreign Editor. Datlow was named recipient of the 2007 Karl Edward Wagner Award, given at the British Fantasy Convention for "outstanding contribution to the genre," was honored with the Life Achievement Award by the Horror Writers Association, in acknowledgment of superior achievement over an entire career, and honored with the World Fantasy Life Achievement Award at the 2014 World Fantasy Convention.

Reviews

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Instructions for reading this review.

1. This is optional. Go find a copy of A Wolf at the Door.
2. Read "Cinder Elephant" by Jane Yolen. Still opitional.
3. This is not optional. Stand up and do a happy dance while chanting -Jane Yolen Rocks! Jane Yolen Rocks! or Jane Yolen is Golden.


The best story in this collection without a doubt is Yolen's "Cinder Elephant". It is wonderful; it is brillant; it has a wonderful moral. Honestly, it is now my absolute favorite version of Cinderella ever. It is worth the price of the book. Honestly. Buy the book for that one tale.

This is not to say that the rest of the collection is bad. Overall, the stories are wonderful, if a little on the sugery side at times. It is after all, a children's collection. The second best story, and the story without any true fantasy elements is "Becoming Charise" by Kathe Koja. This story is simply about becoming who you are. It is a very touching story.

While the main theme of the collection is re-told fairy tales, the majority of the collection features female protagonists, so it is highly recommended for girls.

Most of the tales are geared for children; there are, however, two entries that seem slightly out of place. Gaiman's "Instuctions" is a beautiful poem, but it is hard to see a 8-12 year old liking it. Strange considering the book has those ages listed on the back cover. Maguire's "The Seven Stage a Comeback" is more of an adult story; in fact, it is an adult story. It is an interesting take on Snow White, but I don't see how children will connect or even understand all of it. Maguire's tale seems to be geared towards parents.

While the collection is geared towards children, some of the tales have darker tones. "Ali Baba and the Forty Aliens" is one of these. The ending is not entirely "happy ever after". Nix's re-telling of "Hansel and Gretel" has more of the flavor of his Sabriel, and is geared more towards older children.


The only false note in the collection is "The Kingdom of Melting Glances". This story seemed flat.

But remember-
JANE YOLEN ROCKS!

[Mir · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Right On, Red" by Carly Monardo. Why don't more people write fairy tales like this?

[Juushika · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cinderella is plus-sized, Jack's giant's wife tells the bigger side of the story, Hansel and Gretel stumble upon video game store, and Neil Gaiman provides instructions for surviving in a fairy tale: many of the selections from A Wolf at the Door are transparent fairy tale retellings with a single twist or a new setting, be it an ice age or aliens. They may catch the eye, but most of are empty and gimmicky with immature writing styles. There are some exceptions, and Gaiman's poem in particular is a gem, but on the whole A Wolf at the Door is a waste of time. I don't recommend it.

Many of the selections in this anthology get two things wrong: retold fairy tales and young adult literature. By fleshing out the tale with realistic characters and detail, and/or by taking a new and meaningful twist on an old story, retold fairy tales can be magical, thoughtful, altogether wonderful to read—but they often must have that something new, or compelling, or meaningful, in order to justify rereading a familiar story. But in A Wolf at the Door, the retellings are sometimes as bare-bones as the original tales and often take gimmicky twists on the stories which are either hollow or more attention-catching than meaningful. It's not enough to stick aliens into the story of Ali Baba, or to insist that "Moral: If you love a waist, you waste a love." These retellings may catch the eye, but few of them leave lasting impressions. To compound the problem, many feel not only like they're written for twelve year olds, but by twelve year olds. Most YA literature has an easy-reading writing style which makes it accessible to young audiences, but writers needn't talk down to their audience to achieve that accessability. Here, the writing styles exaccerabates bare-bones writing and gimicky twists, so most of these selections are cutesy and immature.

Not all of the stories fall victims of these weaknesses: Gaiman's "Instructions" is a brilliant and magical meta-fairy tale and my favorite in the collection, Cadnum's "Mrs. Big" feels empty but nonetheless has a clever voice and fresh take on the subject matter, Vaz's "The Kingdom of Melting Glances" is based on Portuguese legends which may be new for many readers, and Koja's "Becoming Charise" is an empowering story for black sheep despite hammering home its meaning and fairy tale aspects. As this collection is such a swift read, there's no harm in picking it up to read the better selections. But on the whole, A Wolf at the Door is a waste of time. There's potential in the collection's premise, but the selections are lackluster and some (like Sherman's clichéd "The Months of Manhattan" and Webb's gimmicky "Ali Baba and the Forty Aliens") are downright bad. Spend your time on other, better retellings. I don't recommend A Wolf at the Door.

[Rachel Svendsen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have always loved fairy tales, but it seems that my love for them is actually deepening with age. This collection of retold fairy tales did not disappoint. There was something special and beautiful about every one. Definitely an enjoyable read.

[Rhea · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars. The average rating was 2.4-ish, so rounding down to 2

As an avid reader of YA and Children's lit, I know how horribly wrong a anthrology of children's short stories can go. Typically, some of the contributors will be adult literature authors, and they'll think, "Children's stories? Easy peasy! All I'll need is 1) A lesson kids need to learn 2) A kid protagonist 3) A plot with stuff that interests kids." However, they come to a complication in the plot and think, "Oh, ok. Luckily I've got my friend the deus-ex-machina! Kids won't notice anyways." So, they end up with a bad story and get away with it.

Anyways, I hope this isn't such a collection.

I'll update as I read


The Bad


Ali Baba and the Forty Aliens by Janeen Webb
Rating: 1 star

I admit, the title made me lol, and I was hoping for some silly fun. However, the narrative was overly exposition-y, the story had no point (like, really. A bunch of random stuff happened.), and there were iffy messages. Ali steals gold, but just a little bit, so the narrator says that's perfectly fine and that Ali isn't greedy. Sure kids, stealing small toys is totally selfless of you! BTW, Ali is ten, dresses like a goth, and has one ear piercing? WTF?


Swans by Kelly Link
Rating: 1.5 stars

I almost skipped this one because I was very disappointed with one of her other stories. This story annoyed the heck out of me: the main character is 11, goes to 7th grade (which is for kids ages 12-13, and she didn't skip any grades), and sounds like she's seven. The setting was also confusing: apparently there was a middleschool, home ec., choir classes, but the MC was a princess, had a fairy godfather, and lived in a monarchy. What!? Also, the narrative was extremely exposition-y and overstuffed with excess information, the MC never solves her problems (she only prepares to solve them), and some things were never clear. Why did Emma stop speaking? Why was the stepmother turning the brothers into swans when she wasn't a witch?

However, this story had some cute, silly elements, and some kids might relate to the experience of having brothers. But skip this one.


The Mediocre


The Months of Manhattan by Delia Sherman
Rating: 2 stars

You have read this story before. Good girl is granted good luck, bad girl is jealous, tries to get good luck but is granted bad luck. Bad girl leans lesson and becomes nicer.

This story had potential. the author had a wonderful opportunity to explore the "bad girl's" side of the story, and why she is so mean. Heck, the author could have made the supposedly "good girl" act nice but be rotten inside, and the bad girl misunderstood and actually nice inside. Sadly, this never occurred, and left me disappointed.

This one isn't as bad as some of the others, so two stars.


The Kingdom of Melting Glances by Katherine Vaz
Rating: 2 stars

An amusing story. This is perfect for fairy-tale lovers, as this is essentially a new fairy tale. On the bright side, it was has a general feel of a fairy tale, the idea was interesting, and the storyline had many interesting elements. On the negative side:
1) The writing was at times graceful, but sometimes awkward
2) Some elements were just plain weird. The bacon plan? What? And the diamonds? I know this is a fairy tale, but that part was a totally weird deus-ex-machina.
3.) When all those innocent people fell to their deaths? That was so mean!
4.) Instalove. Yes, this is a fairy tale, but this one left a bad taste in my mouth because it was some sort of animal/human/plant instalove. The girl talks to a hummingbird for like 3 seconds, then when she later finds him on his deathbed, she professes her undying love to him.
5.) The plot had no general forward momentum. Typically in children's short stories, the main character has a goal they're trying to accomplish. In this story, the goal was vague and the stakes were low, so I'm not sure if non-fairytale loving kids would appreciate this one.


Mrs. Big by Michael Cadnum
Rating: 2 stars

Mrs. Big is one of those retelling's from the villain's perspective; in this case, the narrator is the giant's wife from "Jack and the Beanstalk."

The strength of this story lies in its details. Cadnum adds many creative "twists" on the original story; for example, the giants water their garden from "squeezed clouds." There is also some subtle humor in the story. ("I explained the importance of form over meaning, of nonsense over simple declaration...")

However, here lie the faults; Mrs. Big will be more appreciated by adults than children. First of all, the protagonist is an adult, which can make it hard for children to relate. Second of all, there isn't really a story - it mostly an account of events: first they needed a new home, then they bought it, then the giant started composing a new poem, then Jack came, the end. There is no real overarching story arc; no real conflict. The narrative is disjointed, summarizing events rather than showing it through scenes. And while the details can be clever and amusing, they don't add much to the story.

The weirdest thing about Mrs. Big is the apathy presented; the giantess tells us about stepping on people and "scrub[bing] girl-juice off [her] best wooden shoe" and having "bovine mush all over my instep. And she feels nothing for the people killed. Look, I believe parents should introduce the world's problems (such as world hunger, crime, death, etc.) to their children to increase the kid's understanding of the world. But this was pointless, presented killing people in an bizzarely humorous light, and could've been excluded with little to no change in the overall story.

So this was an okay piece, with some humorous twists. The problem is, only a few kids will appreciate it.


The Twelve Dancing Princesses by Patricia A. McKillip
Rating: 2.5 stars

This one is hard to rate. On one hand I liked it, but on the other, it was only because I never read the original fairy tale until after I finished it.

Dancing Princesses is well written, with exciting twists and a hint of mystery. The problem is, it's supposed to be a "twist" on a fairy tale, but... isn't. What McKillip did was take the old fairy tale, flesh it out a bit (develop scenes more, add tension, etc.), add a small spooky twist, and... that's it.

Only for those unfamiliar with the original.


Becoming Charise by Kathe Koja
Rating: 2.5 stars

On one hand, this is very forgettable, at least for me. I read it about two months ago, and while I remember a few details about most short stories I've read, I entirely forgot what this one was about. It's a typical "coming-of-age" novel, about a girl who, following the story of the Ugly Duckling, blossoms and becomes a swan.

But the story is well-written, with a positive (if trite) "be yourself!" message. Charise is a likeable character, the underdog outsider we all love to root for.

This is great for kids, but older readers should skip it.


The Seven Stage a Comeback by Gregory Maguire
Rating: ???

This is a poem, and to tell the truth, I don't know that much about poems. Yeah, I like them, but then again there are many bibliophiles who think Twilight is the best book ever written.

This one in particular is impossible for me to rate because it's not a traditional poem (like a sonnet, for example.) It has unusual formatting, some strange things here and there, and... well, I don't know how to describe it other than "unusual." This could be genius or just pretentious, pseudo-deep stuff, but I wouldn't know good experimental verse if it put on a sparkly tutu, wrapped Christmas lights around itself, and started dancing Gangnam Style.

And all that presents another problem; this isn't a children's poem. It's for parents. I suppose you could give it a try?



The Good


Hansel's Eyes by Garth Nix
Rating: 4 stars

Finally, a story I liked!

Hansel's Eyes is about Hansel and Gretel in an urban setting. The premise is absolutely ridiculous: what stepmom (even if she was evil and hated her kids) would chloroform her stepkids and abandon them in a dangerous neighborhood?

But the story is so much fun. The twists on the original fairytale are very funny (the witch's house is a videogame shop), the stakes are high, and the characters (who are very likable) feel like they're in real danger. Some elements are violent and scary; luckily, Nix glosses over details, which makes it age-appropriate. The story is well-imagined; it's one of those well-wrought tales where small details are important and come into play later. Plus, the very ending is exciting, sparking reader's imagination. This is a great story that can be enjoyed by both kids and adults.

There are, admittedly, a few little flaws. Another ridiculous part is in the ending, where Hansel looses one eye, but gets a magic green one instead. When Hansel and Gretel return home, their stepmom sees Hansel's green eye, and is so shocked she gets a heart attack and dies. SERIOUSLY, BOOK!?! OH COME ON! A HEART ATTACK? REALLY?

Anyway, this story rocks; absolutely recommended.


Falada: The Goose Girl's Horse by Nancy Farmer
Rating: 3.5 stars

What a delightful story!

This story's biggest flaw is the very tell-y voice it uses; we are told many things rather than shown. But once you get past the exposition-y voice, the narration is somewhat pleasant.

What Farmer did here was to build her story around The Goose Girl while making a few small modifications within the original fairy tale; the result has the fairy tale nestled within the bigger picture, which throws the original story into a new light. While this "new light" didn't blow my mind, it made me grin with delight.

The other aspects are fun. There is a bit of humor with Conrad (and his backstory is revealed!) Belinda's arc is predictable even for those unfamiliar with the original, but the "bigger picture" subverts it. The story's strength lies not in moments of excitement (like Hansel's Eyes) - rather, it is in the well-constructed story and in the clever details.

Great for both kids and parents. Recommended.


Instructions by Neil Gaiman
Rating: 3.5 stars

Gaiman sure loves his fairy tales, and it shows. The "Instructions" here are basically instructions on what to do if you are lost in a fairy tale.

It's at first a more step-by-step instruction, but then gets disjointed, offering random instructions for things. This is both a flaw and a strength; it's harder to follow but captures the excitement, the whirlwind of events that would happen if one was lost in a fairy tale.

I can easily imagine Young Me loving this. There are many instructions, mostly vague, that really spark the imagination. ("If an eagle gives you a feather, keep it safe") This one sentence would've set fire to the my imagination (actually it still does); are they giving it so you can call them when you're in need? Or is it a magic item that lets you take command of the wind? Maybe, if you cast it onto the earth, it will turn into tree that bears magic fruit, so you will be saved in a time of need! etc.

The best part is how Gaiman's poem skims the surface of fairy-tale worlds. It hints at adventures, at mysteries. It's up to readers to flesh it out, which makes it more real and personal than a 4-page poem ever could.

So. Like I said, I would've loved this when I was younger. Some kids, however, would likely find it boring; still, it's a worthy little read for both parents and their kids.


A Wolf at the Door by Tanith Lee
Rating: 3 stars

That was... cute.

This books is basically about subverting the "kiss the frog/bear/etc. to turn him back into a prince" troupe. Lee incorporates this into the story quite well, and it's fun to read.

The problem with this one is that it's implausible. This supposedly takes place during the new Ice Age, but technology and the English language is basically the same. But Lee overcomes this flaw by adding amusing details (lions!)

Pleasant enough.


Cinder Elephant by Jane Yolen
Rating: 4.5 stars

Several reviewers said this the best story, and how right they are!

Cinder Elephant has so much awesome in it it's hard to know where to begin. It's a retelling of Cinderella, with Cinderella being plus-sized. Eventually, the prince falls in love with Elly not because of her beauty but because of her smarts.

The whole story is brimming with charm, told with wit and cleverness. The twists on the original are brilliant. There are some sections that literally made me laugh out loud. It's a wonderfully-told story, and I'm so glad I read it.

The only criticisms I have are nitpicks:

1) Tennis, golf, baseball, and basketball in a medieval-ish kingdom?
2) The instalove. Grr.
3) A few parts seem a wee bit rushed
4) Elly being swept up into the air just because she was wearing a feather dress? Really?

Here is a sample from the beginning.

There was once a lovely big girl who lived with her father in a large house near the king's park.

Her mother had been called Pleasingly Plum. Her grandmother had been called Round and Rosie. Her great-grandmother had been called Sunny and Solid.

Here's another one one:

"I am not in love," said Prince Junior.

"Doesn't matter," said the king.

"I am not even in like," said Prince Junior.

So these might seem like just two little excerpts when taken by themselves, but the story is filled with them - every page you come across two or even three humorous bits. It's hilarious and brilliant and you should read it.

A great story and totally worth your time.


Overall, this collection was decent: it has a few gems, and if you avoid the bad stories, it's totally worth your time.

[Anne Patkau · Rating 5 out of 5]

From nearly traditional to far from the inspiring base, 13 authors sprout new lives from old hearts. I will seek more, to set individual works on Favorite shelf, from 5* authors met here. I hope an illustrated version comes out, even if tiny, like Angela Barrett's chapter headers in Amy Schlitz's The Night Fairy. However text stimulates imagination enough to visualize ourselves.

1 The Months of Manhattan by Delia Sherman
5* Magical bad luck teaches old lesson in new way. Fun from NYC expert.
"Liz Wallach was a pretty good kid", happy living with divorced dad in NYC (New York City) Upper West Side, until a painting comes to life in a forgotten corner of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and wishes her "Good luck", triggering envy of whiny new older step-sister Beth Dodson.

Cosmopolitan cast of 12 seasons ask each girl how they like every season, reward Liz's enjoyment, punish Beth's complaints with "The luck you have asked for is yours". Happy ending because Beth slowly learns to find joy and "become a pretty good kid".

2 Cinder Elephant by Jane Yolen
5* Hilarious take on Disney. "Moral: If you love a waist, you waste a love."
Ellie, "lovely big girl" is persecuted by thin voices and smiles of new step-mother who "took three tries to throw a shadow", and daughters Reen and Reed. Prince Junior throws a dance ball, not "footballs and baseballs and tennis balls". Rhyming birds bring Ellie a dress of feathers, and shoes of twigs that collapse. She looks like a "big fat hen sitting on a nest"; "the expression "birdbrain" was invented by someone who knew quite a bit about birds". Prince and Ellie find common likes and dislikes - moth-balls.

Although the twig shoe becomes a real nest, he recognizes her sweet face through bird-watching binoculars, and she knows "sialia sialis" means Eastern Bluebird in Latin. Naturally, "they kissed". After, the "skinnies" refuse invitations to the palace. "Their lips were too thin to ask forgiveness, and their minds too mean to understand love."

3 Instructions by Neil Gaiman
4* In rhythmic but not rhyming verse, how you should proceed safely through traditional tale.
Behave - polite, generous, kind, wary - and "Ride the wise eagle".

"When you reach the litle house" where you began, now "much smaller .. go home. Or make a home. Or rest."

4 Mrs Big: Jack and the Beanstalk by Michael Cadnum
4* Close to usual, but from perspective of critical wife whose loving mild gardener husband aspires to poetry, and ending remains open.
"Sometimes I complained too much, but there was a lot to complain about" especially when pesky fast "human flea .. like a weevil .. leaping-lad" Jack invades their sky retreat for gold dust.

After Giant falls, wife seeks pedler who sold them and Jack sky-high bean seeds, for surely such sorcery could bring him back.

5 Falada: The Goose Girl's Horse by Nancy Farmer
5* Another shifted point of view, vain silver horse exiled from Elfland because changeling Conrad 8 is spoiled brat and bully.
Entrusted to carry foolish Belinda, he grows bony, dusty and dirty when demoted to mill grinder after horrible servant Dagmar on black horse poses as princess to marry Prince Humbert.

Belinda grows confident after goose farmers teach her practical skills, finally tells king truth. He sends black horse and Dagmar back to goblin land, marries Belinda to second prince, Herkimer "a much better character".

6 A Wolf at the Door by Tanith Lee
5* Switcheroo in time of Ice Age, cameras, and talking orange-maned neighborhood lions who ask "Hallo, wot ya got?".
In summer vacation, Glasina 14 brings home starving wolf, and dad agrees he seems under a spell - breaks dishes, ruins her mother's shirt by wearing.

Afraid of usual marriage ending, still sympathetic Glasina kisses clumsy wolf on one cheek, while lioness kisses other, turning wolf into lion who "Knew I had friends here somewhere".

7 Ali Baba and the Forty Aliens by Janeen Webb
4* Moral: greed punished by death, or worse.
Alberto Barbarino 10, goth loner "nearly an adult", fossicks in abandoned 1850s Australian gold mines, sees aliens enter cave.

Older brother Dean greedy for more, stays longer, never seen again. With gold, Ali buys desire, black leather jacket. "But he doesn't wear it much".

8 Swans by Kelly Link
4* Emma stops narrating before we know what happens to swans.
Princess Emma Bear 11, cannot talk since her mother, expert quilter, died last year. Her new step-mother hates noise, points her pinkie finger at six noisy brothers, turning them into swans, but father disbelieves.

When king, school, everyone transformed, Emma points, yells "WHAT?", and turns queen back into bird. Research advises sewing nettle shirts, but Emma starts to quilt blue patchwork to size of gym floor, wide-winged white birds on one side, little white shirts on the other.

9 The Kingdom of Melting Glances by Katherine Vaz
2* Sad. Confusing. Two Portugeuse legends are mixed together and augmented, to explain why we melt (feel joy) if we "glance deeply at lilies and into water". More likely to read more legends than Vaz.
In dry California Rosa's mother misses Portugal by the sea, where she met husband. Rosa loves bathing in lakes, sisters do not, "buzzing and teasing" the red lily birthmark on her face. Parents melt away in mutual love, "for tears of joy".

In golden palace, wishing to nurse hummingbird injured by razor blades in bathing bowl from wicked sisters, Sun's mother advises Rosa to put fatty bacon up her sleeves. Sisters copy, so dance floor greasy; they slide off with the rest of the mess, chopped by stars into mosquitoes. Salty tears heal bird; Rosa melts into lily in earth garden with parents.

10 Hansel's Eyes by Garth Nix
4* Science as magic. Candy updated to video games. Scary - before Frankenstein, now organ theft and transplants. Ending suggests sequel "that is all another story ..."
Chloroformed and dumped by stepmom "Hagmom" and their weak father, Gretel's innate magic protects her but not younger Hansel 10 from hypnotic video game arcade.

After witch teaches Gretel spells and takes Hansel's blue eye for her own, Gretel booby traps freezer room with liquid nitrogen, transplants cat familiar's green eye to Hansel's socket. Back home, pair have new powers against enemies.

11 Becoming Charise by Kathe Koja
4* Real. Believable. Optimistic. A tiny hope can make a big difference to anyone, especially one small.
Charise, friendless bullied "Geekstein", idolizes Einstein who left school at 15, is offered recommendation to elite Bayley Academy by Gr 7 science teacher Mr Mahfouz.

Aunt Tamara refuses, but Mr Mahfouz offers extra help to enable application next year. The ugly duckling "never was a duckling in the first place".

12 The Seven Stage A Comeback by Gregory Maguire
3* Tragic. Non-rhyming verse conversation ends "Ohh" for each dwarf but decreases till only one left.
Mourning loss, one dwarf narrates their search for Snow White, carrying a bite of apple preserved in her glass coffin, to persuade her return.

Snow sings happily in the orchard to her swaddled babe; they "sing you all our love before we pass"; the spring breeze reminds her of "a dream I must have had".

13 The Twelve Dancing Princesses by Patricia A. McKillip
5* Named for flowers Aster to Mignonette, a little light humor sprinkled on old bones. Will proposed match hold?
Impoverished generous home-bound soldier Val, following Gaiman's "Instructions", lost in forest, feeds and heeds hungry old woman.

Old: "Did you win the battle?"
Val: "So they say. I could not see, from where I stood, that winning was much better than losing."
Old: "How would you like to be king?"
Val: "Better than being a beggar."

To he who finds where 12 princesses go dancing every night, their father promises "his kingdom and a daughter".

Oldster magics Val's dusty cloak for invisibility. They dance with dead princes of the underworld, tomorrow night to be married and stay forever. The spell breaks when Val tells. Too easy. Happy ending "There were worse things .. than .. a kingdom and a choice of flowers from A to M.", but Aster exchanges warm glances.

[Lindsay · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was disappointed by this book, and didn't find the revamped fairy tales very enjoyable. The tales that followed closely their better known counterparts were acceptable, but brought nothing new to the table.


Worth Reading:
"Instructions" by Neil Gaiman - Props to Gaiman for this creative poem. It was a light-hearted read.
"The Seven Stage a Comeback" by Gregory Maguire - Perhaps the most ambitious of them all. Another poetic endeavour that is worth a look.
"Cinder Elephant" by Jane Yolen - "Moral: If you love a waist, you waste a love"
"The Kingdom of Melting Glances" by Katherine Vaz - This came from a story I hadn't heard before; I enjoyed it.
"Hansel's Eyes" by Garth Nix - Nix doesn't disappoint.

These Were Okay...
"Falada: The Goose Girl's Horse" by Nancy Farmer
"A Wolf at the Door" by Tanith Lee - A lion in wolf's clothing. The story was alright, but not terribly memorable.

There's Nothing New Here...
"The Months of Manhattan" by Delia Sherman
"Swans" by Kelly Link - A retread.
"The Twelve Dancing Princesses" by Patricia A. McKillip

Don't Bother
"Mrs Big: 'Jack and the Beanstalk' Retold" by Michael Cadnum
"Ali Baba and the Forty Aliens" by Janeen Webb
"Becoming Charise" by Kathe Koja - This "Ugly Duckling" tale felt incomplete. Good moral, but I completely missed the fairy tale aspect.

[H. Givens · Rating 4 out of 5]

Memory is a funny thing... I remembered one line out of this whole book, and it's not even here. But it's still great. Not every story is anything special on its own, but there are a lot of wonderful authors combined here, and together all the stories make a collection that's slightly magical and a bit creepy and everything fairy tales should be.

[Syd · Rating 3 out of 5]

pretty good. interesting 4 the short stories in there. it looks creepy on the cover, but it's not 2 bad actually

Recommended ages 11 & up.

[Dave · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short collection of largely modern retellings of fairy stories. While none are bad particularly, none really stand or manage to shine new light on the tales, although Patricia McKillip's version of the twelve dancing princesses is rather lovely.

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent collection of urban fantasy, inspired by classic fairy tales.

Garth Nix’s dark sci-fi take on Hansel and Gretel is one of my favorites.

[Courtney · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Wolf at the Door and Other Retold Fairy Tales is a collection of fairy-tales retold by such famous fantasy and science fiction writers as Neil Gaiman, Garth Nix, Gregory Maguire, and more. This book contains Gaiman's "Instructions" and 12 retellings of old favorites like Cinderella and The Twelve Dancing Princesses. I found these short retellings to either be a hit or miss. There were some I enjoyed, while others were just strange and poorly executed. There were many dark twisted tales, and I'm surprised this book is primarily for children. But why should I be surprised considering some of the animated movies I used to watch as a kid? I guess the best way to go about this is to review these individually. I'll try to make it short and sweet.

1. "The Months of Manhattan" by Delia Sherman - A retelling of an obscure Russian fairy tale "Twelve Months," "The Months of Manhattan" was one of my favorites of the collection. Taking place in New York, the tale is about one sister who is kind and well-behaved and her stepsister who is rude and temperamental. Both girls meet the personified twelve months in a painting in the MET, and they are both given the luck they deserve. The tale teaches a wonderful lesson about being polite to others. I thought the story was well-done and imaginative.

2. "Cinder Elephant" by Jane Yolen - "Cinder Elephant" is a Cinderella retelling, and it was my favorite in the collection. In this version, Cinderella is not small or petite. In fact, she's quite big and has huge feet (well, 9 1/2 wide, which is actually my size, minus the wide part). Her stepmother and stepsisters are all extremely thin and have thin names. I found this retelling to be one of my favorite Cinderella retellings of all time. I loved how inventive it was, with the grass (not glass) slippers and the birdwatching prince. I think this retelling alone is worth reading this book, even if you don't like any of the others.

3. "Instructions" by Neil Gaiman - I've actually read "Instructions" before in The Poets' Grimm. My English professor lent me the book, and her poem was in the collection along with Gaiman's. "Instructions" is a list of advice for anyone that finds themselves in the midst of a fairy tale. Don't eat or drink anything. Help any old woman. And so on. I thought it was brilliantly done, and I enjoyed it immensely.

4. "Mrs Big: Jack and the Beanstalk Retold" by Michael Cadnum - This story is obviously a retelling of Jack and the Beanstalk, but it is told from the POV of the giant's wife, Mrs. Big. For once, the reader sympathizes with the giants who did nothing wrong. They were minding their own business when Jack climbed up the beanstalk to their home and stole some of their treasure. It was a sweet, touching tale, showing how much Mrs. Big and Mr. Big loved each other and also showing that they were harmless giants. It was interesting to have the tale told from an entirely different POV.

5. "Falada: The Goose Girl's Horse" by Nancy Farmer - I was disappointed in this retelling of the Grimm fairy tale The Goose Girl. Told from the POV of Falada, the goose girl's magical talking horse, we see a whole different side of the story. Unfortunately, I wasn't impressed. It brought nothing new to the tale, and I was happy it was blissfully short.

6. "A Wolf at the Door" by Tanith Lee - "A Wolf at the Door," the retelling that gave this book its name, is set in the next Ice Age. In this Ice Age, animals have evolved and are able to talk, increasing their chances of survival. Glasina and her father are content with talking only to the lions, who never say too much, but one day an overly talkative wolf comes along. They allow the wolf to stay as a guest in their house, but he is a very untidy guest, constantly breaking things. Both of them worry that the wolf is actually a human, and that Glasina will have to kiss him to change him back and then marry him. But all she wants to do is go to college! The tale had potential for amusement, but instead, I just found it very strange and it wasn't one of my favorites.

7. "Ali Baba and the Forty Aliens" by Janeen Webb - From the title, you can tell this one is a retelling of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves. This story introduces science fiction into the mix. This was another tale that had potential but fell flat. Ali Baba loves to explore the abandoned gold mines near his house. Then one day, he finds a mine he's never seen before with a door that will not open, except to a certain pair of words. He discovers the mine is the hideout of forty aliens, and they are collecting specimens and minerals. This tale ended abruptly, and left me feeling unsatisfied. Not to mention, the aliens only appeared once and the family never seemed to care that the brother disappears.

8. "Swans" by Kelly Link - Link's "Swans" is a Six Swans retelling. Emma hasn't uttered a single word since her mother's death. Her father remarries a very unusual woman that was found wandering the zoo unclothed. Emma's stepmother despises any noise, and Emma's six brothers are very noisy. Without intending to, the stepmother turns each of them into swans, leaving silent Emma to witness it all. Before she knows it, her stepmother's enchantments spiral out of control. While it didn't particularly stand out, I found "Swans" slightly amusing, and I liked how the tale was told from a child's POV.

9. "The Kingdom of Melting Glances" by Katherine Vaz - This tale was just a mind-f**k. "The Kingdom of Melting Glances" borrows elements from two Portuguese fairy tales. There's a bath of razor blades, a prince as a bird, and a dance floor covered in bacon grease. I wish I could say I found this wild tale entertaining, but I really thought it was just confusing and random.

10. "Hansel's Eyes" by Garth Nix - Probably the most gruesome of all the retellings, "Hansel's Eyes" takes place in the city and is a twisted version of Hansel and Gretel, taking after the Grimm original. After their stepmother drugs them and their father dumps them in an alley in another attempt to get rid of them for good, siblings Hansel and Gretel come across a Sony Playstation store with candy and soda machines. While Hansel falls under the spell of video games, Gretel is not fooled, and the witch that runs the shop offers Gretel a deal. If Gretel becomes her apprentice in witchcraft, the witch will only take Hansel's eyes. If she refuses, she will kill them both for their organs. I found this dark retelling creepy and enchanting. It is definitely one that will send shivers down your spine.

11. "Becoming Charise" by Kathe Koja - This is probably the worst retelling of "The Ugly Duckling" that I have ever read or will read. This is mainly because of the abrupt ending and the fact that it didn't seem like a retelling at all. Charise doesn't fit in with any social group. Though she is obsessed with Einstein, she doesn't feel like she belongs with the geeks. She doesn't gain confidence until she realizes she has it in her to be a swan. I felt like the ugly duckling becomes a swan part didn't come in until the end, and then, it was only a few words of advice from a teacher who wanted Charise to reach her full academic potential. Then suddenly, Charise felt all better and the story was over. It could have been done so much better.

12. "The Seven Stage A Comeback" by Gregory Maguire - "The Seven Stage A Comeback" is a song sung by the seven dwarves after Snow White leaves them for her prince. It is sung in numbered parts, each one corresponding to one dwarf. Finally, the reader sees how forlorn and lost the dwarves are after Snow White goes away, forgetting all about them. They are drowning in despair. They decide to go after her and bring her back by force until the sight of something changes their mind. I actually enjoyed seeing things from the dwarves' perspective, as I had never even considered what it would be like for them after Snow White had left.

13. "The Twelve Dancing Princesses" by Patricia A. McKillip - While this traditional retelling was a little too faithful to the original, I did enjoy the writing and there was a darker twist. A king promises a soldier his kingdom and one of his twelve beautiful daughters as his wife if he can discover where they go each night. The soldier tricks the girls and follows them to the underworld, watching as the girls dance with twelve dead princes. I loved this ghastly version, and the oldest sister took a more prominent role than usual.

A Wolf at the Door had a much more sinister tone than I was expecting for a book that is supposedly for children. While happily ever afters did exist, they often came at a price. I would have been happier with this book if it had stuck only to traditional fairy tales, and I would have liked to have seen other authors in here, such as Robin McKinley. While there are a couple of gems in here and a few so-so tales, there were some that I could have done without. Overall, it was certainly an intriguing read.

[Suzanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I devoured this anthology many times as a kid. It has stayed with me through several moves and life changes. Twenty years later, I thought I would revisit the individual stories afresh to see how they hold up. I tried to stay objective and not allow nostalgia to judge, although I'm still only human.

What I found most interesting upon re-reading was that 1) my tastes as a child were mostly spot-on, and 2) there is an almost startling amount of literary prose that I rarely see in kidlit these days. Masterful sentences abound, such as:

The hurt was the same, a dark, dry ache not in her center but deeper, as if she were a kind of funnel, and the emptiness before the bottom was part of the hurting, too.
(from "Becoming Charise" by Kathe Koja)

The stories are uneven in tone. Some are funnier, some are grimly serious, some are more fantastical or supernatural, some take place in the past or alternate universes while others are contemporary.

The simplest story, by far, is "Cinder Elephant" by Jane Yolen. It is a straight-forward parody of Cinderella, the shallowness of which is ironic since it is entirely about perception (of bodies).

The two stories I liked the least as a kid, and still think are sub-par in comparison with the rest, are "Ali Baba and the Forty Aliens" by Janeen Webb, and the title story, "A Wolf At The Door" by Tanith Lee. I recall reading them over and over, looking for the joke. I was certain I was missing something. Turns out they're just not very funny. This is especially disappointing since the former is the only story in the anthology based on a non-European tale. Also, the moral of The Forty Aliens is "it's okay to be a horrible brat so long as there is someone worse nearby to catch consequences for you." I'm not a fan.

"Mrs. Big" by Michael Cadnum and "Falada" by Nancy Farmer are semi-faithful retellings of Jack and the Beanstalk and The Goose Girl, respectively - except from different points of view. Turns out the giant's wife is fond of word play, and Falada the horse is from Fairyland. These retellings work much better if the reader is familiar with the original stories but are still enjoyable nonetheless.

An entirely faithful retelling is "The Twelve Dancing Princesses" by Patricia A. McKillip. On the surface it adds nothing new to the tale, but lovely prose and plenty of emotional stakes elevate it from mere repetition to a wonderful story in its own right. I didn't give it enough credit as a kid.

"The Seven Stage a Comeback" by Gregory Frost is more of a poem than a story (and was later adapted as a stage play). It depicts the seven dwarves grieving after Snow White goes off with her prince - there are funny lines and deeply moving lines.

"The Months of Manhattan" by Delia Sherman is a bit fluffy, but that isn't a bad thing in fairy tales for children. It is similar to Neil Gaiman's "October in the Chair" (written six years later) in that the months of the year are personified, although when it comes to what fairy tale "The Months of Manhattan" is based on, my guess is "Diamonds and Toads" by Charles Perrault. I love that the "bad" girl of the story gets - and takes! - a shot at redemption.

"The Kingdom of Melting Glances" by Katherine Vaz is, according to the author, a mix of two Portuguese folktales. As a child, I missed about half the themes and symbols because I thought it was too abstract and surreal. As a grown-up, it is still surreal, but very grounded in concrete images. The ending still feels bittersweet.

"Swans" by Kelly Link explores a girl's emotions around her mother's death and her father's remarriage... to a rather strange woman. The girl's observations of her family and life are often funny. The ending is ambiguous (which is characteristic of Ms. Link's work), yet hopeful (which is not).

"Hansel's Eyes" by Garth Nix might be my favorite retelling of Hansel and Gretel. It's the good kind of shivery-scary and the kids are badass by the end. This is the only piece in the whole collection that I wanted - and still want! - expanded into a larger story, hopefully with a sequel.

"Instructions" by Neil Gaiman was my introduction to his work, though I didn't realize this for several years. This poem was later adapted into a picture book, beautifully illustrated by Charles Vess. Not only did I memorize it at one point, I also wrote two poems imitating it. Rereading as an adult, I discovered even more details and insights which delight me.

"Becoming Charise" by Kathe Koja was exactly what I needed to read as a kid. The line "too wild for the smart kids, too smart for the wild kids" resonated more deeply than I realized at the time. The main character, smart and wild and so alone in her school, was almost perfectly designed to help me feel less alone. This is the story I might be the most biased about; I clung to its message like my sanity depended on it. It is not based on Hans Christian Andersen's "The Ugly Duckling" so much as referential to it: Charise does not turn into a swan, but she understands the metaphor of it. The journey, difficult or smooth, matters less than the person on the journey. The point is to be your true self.

There are so many beautiful, poignant, funny, memorable stories in this anthology. I just wish I could say they were all wonderful, instead of merely most.

[Michael Murphy · Rating 3 out of 5]

An uneven collection of re-told fairy tales.

[Cecilia · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Remember your name.
Do not lose hope - what you seek will be found.
Trust ghosts. Trust those that you have helped
to help you in their turn.
Trust dreams.
Trust your heart, and trust your story.
When you come back, return the way you came.
Favors will be returned, debts will be repaid.
Do not forget your manners.
Do not look back.
Ride the wise eagle (you shall not fall)
Ride the silver fish (you will not drown)
Ride the gray wolf (hold tightly to his fur)."
"Instructions" by Neil Gaiman

This delightful anthology is made up of a variety of retold fairy tales in the form of stories and poems, including the one quoted above. The authors are all talented and create their own spin on the familiar fairy tales. Some of these retellings are stronger than others, but they all take a different approach to the folktale. There's a retelling for everyone to enjoy because they each have their own unique spin and tone. No single story is alike, and for that reason I feel it necessary to rate each retelling with a brief summary and explanation.
I will be giving asterisks by each title to rate them from a scale of 1 (poor) to 5 (excellent).

Audience: Upper Elementary (9-11 years old)

=Contents=

Introduction by Terri Windling and Ellen Datlow (*****)
This short introduction talks about the darker origins of fairy tales and other sorts of folktales. It discusses how they originally were not meant just for children or as light-hearted as their Disney counterparts but were scarier with more interesting protagonists. The villains would usually suffer in some way. Monsters would lurk in the dark. The authors in the anthology also loved these stories but created a new take on it for newer generations. It also makes recommendations for other collections: Spells of Enchantment, edited by Jack Zipes; Strange Things Sometimes Still Happen, edited by Angela Carter; and Favorite Folk Tales From Around the World, edited by Jane Yolen.

"The Months of Manhattan" by Delia Sherman (****)
This story deals with two girls of the same age (around 10) who are step-sisters. Liz Wallach is kind and optimistic while Beth Dodson is rude and whiny. Liz needs to write a report on a museum exhibit and her stepmother takes her for a short time. While trying to find the exhibit, Liz becomes lost and comes across a painting. The figures in the painting, all named after a month of the year, ask her questions and every time they ask her about a month's bad qualities, Liz responds positively. Impressed, the figures bestow good luck to her. Now, Beth realizes what happened to Liz and forces her to take her. Unlike Liz, Beth responds negatively and is bestowed with bad luck. Moral of the story: see the good in things and good things will come to you.

"Cinder Elephant" by Jane Yolen (**)
This is a rather silly take on Cinderella. In it, Cinderella is fat and her step-sisters are skinny. The prince has glasses and is more into sports than running a kingdom. The birds were extremely silly, and the glass slipper was actually made of twigs. It was a cute satirical story, but some parts were just too silly for my taste.

"Instructions" by Neil Gaiman (*****)
Neil Gaiman is a masterful storyteller and it translates well into this poem. This poem is literally instructions on what to do and what not to do if you are somehow in a fairytale. It's beautifully written with allusions to multiple fairytales and folktales peppered in every line. Now I wish I can find a version of the poem with notes on what fairytales had been alluded because I could not identify them all.

"Mrs. Big: 'Jack and the Beanstalk' Retold" by Michael Cadnum (****)
This story is told in first person perspective and recounts the events leading up to the well-known tale. Mrs. Big loves her husband but is dismayed that he is a gardener instead of a Raving Giant, a terror like her great uncle. He is also a poet, but not a very good one (her father was an amazing poet). This story reads more of a wife's perspective on marriage and her experience as a supportive partner (she kept giving him constructive criticism on his "Fee, Fie, Foe, Fum" chant but it wasn't always well-received) but it does eventually lead up to the husband's death. It's actually quite sad.

"Falada: The Goose Girl's Horse" by Nancy Farmer (****)
Now this story is interesting because it is told through a different perspective: not of the princess but of the fairy horse that assists her. Falada is a fairy horse ousted from Elfland by the Queen for kicking off a human boy the fairies had stolen. She is tasked with taking Princess Belinda to the next kingdom for her marriage, but things go awry when a goblin, Dagmar, takes her place. Belinda becomes a servant that looks after geese and Falada is forced to hard labor. However, Belinda becomes a stronger character and grows into her being. Eventually, Belinda marries the other prince, and Falada is allowed back into Elfland for succeeding in her task.

"A Wolf at the Door" by Tanith Lee (*****)
Glasina is a fourteen-year-old girl with some very redeeming qualities: not only is she kind, she is educated and independent. She wants to finish school and travel. Here lies the problem: she brings home a wolf that acts a little TOO human (an annoying human), and according to the stories she has to kiss and marry him. After all, he is probably under a spell, right? The twist in the end (and the reason why this story got five stars) was that a female sea lion kisses the wolf at the same time as Glasina. He becomes a male sea lion instead. This satire was very well done and I love how meta it was in that Glasina was aware of fairy tales and the rules.

"Ali Baba and the Forty Aliens" by Janeen Webb (***)
Ali Baba (or, Alberto Barbarino) is the son of a family that runs an Italian restaurant. He's a bit of the black sheep of the family for being a loner and wearing all black. He has an older brother named Dean who is greedy and a bully. One day, Ali sees aliens enter a hidden mine and he follows after. He takes only a bit of the treasure so he can finally buy his black leather jacket. However, Dean finds out and forces Ali to take him to the mine so he can steal as much as he can fit in bags and bags. Dean disappears and is never found again. Moral? Don't be greedy.

"Swans" by Kelly Link (****)
Another first person perspective story, "Swans" is about a girl named Emma Bear whose father, a king, remarries a strange woman after the passing of his wife. Stricken by grief, Emma has not spoken a word since her mother's death and this fact alone is what saves her from being turned into a swan by her stepmother who turns out to be a strange bird. It was a sweet story with Emma using the skills of stitching that her mother taught her in order to begin working on a counterspell.

"The Kingdom of Melting Glances" by Katherine Vaz (***)
A retelling of two Portuguese legends, "A Paraboinha de Oiro" and "A Cara de Boi," this story tells of a sweet girl named Rosa whose parents melted into each other because of their strong love. Unfortunately, her evil sisters, Ana and Isabel, are cruel to her, and when a little hummingbird comes to Rosa's water, they leave razorblades and severely hurt him. Rosa goes through magical trials to find the little hummingbird again because she loves him. Rosa becomes a lily because of her powerful love for the hummingbird, and that is why hummingbirds are called beija-flor, "kiss-flower." Oh, and the sisters get chopped up into mosquitos when they fell out of the sky. This story was beautifully written, but it wasn't my taste. It definitely was the most "fantastical" of all the stories included in this anthology.

"Hansel's Eyes" by Garth Nix (*****)
This is one of my absolute favorites of the retellings, but I always have been a fan of Garth Nix. This follows the Hansel and Gretel story. However, it's more modern in its setting. Instead of a candy house, the witch uses an old video game store and keeps Hansel captive to sell for body parts. Gretel has a bit of a witch in her. The witch takes her in as an apprentice and Gretel plays along in order to keep Hansel alive. Eventually, they defeat the witch using their wits and Gretel's magic. Hansel already lost an eye to the witch and it is replaced by the witch's familiar's eye, which also leaves him magical. This story is dark but it's so well done. It definitely leaves the reader wanting more.

"Becoming Charise" by Kathe Koja (*****)
An "Ugly Duckling" retelling, this story is sweet. It follows Charise, a very bright girl who idolizes Einstein but somehow doesn't belong in her school. All she wants is to "become" like a caterpillar becomes a butterfly. She has no friends and is bullied, but her teacher sees her potential and tries to have her enrolled in a better school. However, her aunt declines much to Charise's distress. Despite her pain, Charise realizes that she is the ugly duckling - she was always meant to become a swan no matter what she did. The story ends with her drawing herself as an adult with giant swan wings, accomplishing her dreams.

"The Seven Stage a Comeback" by Gregory Maguire (****)
So this poem was confusing to read at first, but every number on the left is a dwarf and the accompanying stanza is their dialogue. This is their thoughts and scheme after Snow White is saved by the prince. Distraught with grief, the dwarves (except for 7) are determined to get the apple back in her and have her inside the glass coffin to keep her beauty to themselves. It is a very dark poem and I was definitely surprised when I realized that the dwarves planned on "killing" Snow White all over again, but it goes with the traditional view of the fae: they're not benevolent and only want beautiful things, no matter the cost.

"The Twelve Dancing Princesses" by Patricia A McKillip (*****)
I won't summarize this story too much because it pretty much follows the same story. However, in this retelling, the princes that the princesses dance with are actually dead. Yes. Dead. The land they go to dance in is the Underworld and our hero, Val, manages to save them in time. If they had danced one more night, the princesses would never be allowed to leave the Underworld and become dead brides. It's extremely creepy and it kept me reading. It definitely gave me the same tone as Scary Stories to Tell In the Dark, which is a cult classic in elementary school libraries across America. I think this would be well received.

[Sandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Months of Manhattan ****
by Delia Sherman
I really enjoyed this fun story.

Cinder Elephant ****
by Jane Yolen
A size inclusive Cinderella story.

Instructions *****
by Neil Gaiman
Excellent info if you are ever in fairy lands.

Mrs. Big ****
by Michael Cadnum
Funny giant story.

Falada ****
by Nancy Farmer
The goose girl's horse.

A Wolf at the Door *****
by Tanith Lee
Funny! Is this a frog prince story?

Ali Baba and the Forty Aliens ****
by Janeen Webb
Interesting take.

Swans *****
by Kelly Link
I really enjoyed this one.

The Kingdom of Melting Glances ****
by Katherine Vaz
So different!

Hansel's Eyes *****
by Garth Nix
Great Hansel and Gretel story!

Becoming Charise ***
by Kathe Koja
Ugly Duckling

The Seven Stage a Comeback ****
by Gregory Maguire
The 7 dwarves try to get Snow White back.

The Twelve Dancing Princesses ******
by Patricia A. McKillip
This has always been my favorite fairy tale and this retelling is amazing!

[Cupof Tea · Rating 3 out of 5]

The stories I liked the best usually had animals as main characters, like Falada: The Goose Girl's Horse, and A Wolf at the Door. Also the more urban fantasy take on smart little girls in The Months of Manhattan and Becoming Charise I liked for the characters. Swans, for the setting, with a castle full of quilts.

I was not a fan of the poem by Neil Gaiman really.

I admit I had to back and look through the book to figure out the ones I liked the best. None of the stories were that memorable. Overall a fast read but I wasn't blown away.

[Rain Misoa · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fantastic collection of fairy-tale retellings!

To read my full review, click here.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great collection of alternatively told fairy tales. I especially like Sherman's 12 months of New York.

[Alexa · Rating 4 out of 5]

More from nostalgia than anything.

[Anna · Rating 2 out of 5]

:/

★★☆☆☆ The Months of Manhattan (The Twelve Months) - Delia Sherman
The twelve months of the year come to Liz's aid and help her complete her school assignment inside the Metropolitan Museum. I thought this was a retelling of Frau Holle at first! I mean, it wasn't bad... but it wasn't good either.

★☆☆☆☆ Cinder Elephant (Cinderella) - Jane Yolen
Did we really finally get an explicitly overweight fairytale heroine, only to skinny-shame the stepsisters? Not that I cared about this abstract retelling in general.

★★☆☆☆ Instructions - by Neil Gaiman
Some advice in lyric form on how to survive a fairytale, but not as innovative as one would expect from a big-name author such as Neil Gaiman.

★★★☆☆ Mrs. Big (Jack and the Beanstalk) - Michael Cadnum
The tale retold from the perspective of the giant's wife! I liked this take on day-to-day problems of enormous people, but the ending not so much.

★★★☆☆ Falada (The Goose Girl) - Nancy Farmer
The Goose Girl is one of my favourite lesser-known fairytales from the Grimm Brothers' collection, because I grew up watching the classic movie adaptation and being creeped out by the talking horse head. Seen through the eyes of the horse itself, it's much more fun!

★☆☆☆☆ A Wolf at the Door - Tanith Lee
No, just no. Of course I wanted to read the anthology because of this author's contribution, but no thanks. This retelling takes place in a post-apocalyptic, climate-changed world, where a girl finds a wolf with strangely human behaviour and takes him in, and while this might sound cool at first... I don't know what it is about Tanith Lee's more sci-fi stories - they're simply weird, and I disliked this one in particular.

★☆☆☆☆ Ali Baba and the Forty Aliens (duh) - Janeen Webb
The title says it all, but this Ali Baba is set in Australia and doesn't make sense.

★☆☆☆☆ Swans (The Wild Swans) - Kelly Link
Another big name that didn't deliver - why are so many of these short stories set in a vaguely modern world, with middle-school protagonists?

★☆☆☆☆ The Kingdom of Melting Glances (Portuguese fairytales) - Katherine Vaz
I was so intrigued by the promise of fairytales from outside my horizon, but this was - again - a mess to me.

★☆☆☆☆ Hansel's Eyes (Hansel & Gretel) - Garth Nix
Am I being to harsh? Gretel is promised to be trained as a witch in exchange for her brother's eyes, but here's another one of those dystopian-futuristic (?) settings that really get my goat.

★☆☆☆☆ Becoming Charise (The Ugly Duckling) - Kathe Koja
This isn't even a retelling - just a middle-school story referencing the fairytale.

★★★☆☆ The Seven Stage a Comeback (Snow White) - Gregory Maguire
A sequel to Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs, where the boys try to get their princess back, in the form of a poem.

★★★★☆ The Twelve Dancing Princesses - Patricia A. McKillip
Thank god, Patricia saves the anthology with her retelling - which has the princesses dancing with decaying dead princes in the underworld every night! Yes! Otherwise this is no hot take on the classic fairytale, what a pity.

My calculator says that makes an average of depressing 1,84 stars, and I'm rounding that up to two. Of course anthology stories are always a hit or miss, but these... oh boy, they missed the mark by miles. I believe that some of them could have profited from some extra pages, but this book was nowhere near the dark fairytale aesthetic that the cover promises.

[Kest Schwartzman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this up because I've only ever read one thing by Katherine Vaz and I loved it, and this book had a short story of hers. In general, I'm really not a fan of these collections of retellings of fairytales; not that I don't like retellings of fairytales, but... well... there's often a lack of curation.
This collection is shorter than the ones I have avoided. It's also stronger. These two things are likely related.

With no further ado:
The Months of Manhattan- Delia Sherman: three stars. nothing spectacular, but cute

Cinder Elephant- Jane Yola: five stars, for the stupid bluebirds alone. The rest of the story? nothing spectacular, but cute, but hell those damned birds..... I recognize those birds.

Instructions- Neil Gaiman: one star. this is both the most pretentious and the least interesting story in the collection. I'm not a huge fan of gaiman, but he can do a LOT better than this. I'm guessing he forgot a deadline.

Mrs. Big "hack and the Beanstalk" retold- Michael Cadnum: four stars. plus a whole extra star for the giant apologizing to his wife by using her suggestion in his rhythm, so five stars. This story doesn't, as a whole, deserve five stars, but that was just the sweetest line.

Falada The Goose Girl's Horse- Nancy Farmer: two stars. Retelling a story but from the point of view of a sassy animal is trite, and nothing in this story transcended the genre. If you really loved the donkey in Shrek, you'll love it.

A Wolf at the Door- Tanith Lee: four stars. Cute. A nice representation of the loving and awkward relationship between a father and daughter.

Ali Baba and the Forty Aliens- Janeen Webb: one star. The title is by far the best part of this story. The rest of it is awful, which is a shame.

Swans- Kelly Link: four stars. The thing that frequently gets forgotten in retelling fairytales is the pathos that they are really about. They're not about happy endings. They're about children who really mostly don't care when their brothers are turned into swans.

The Kingdom of Melting Glances- Katherine Vaz: five stars. This is the story I picked up the book for, and it did not disappoint. It is as dreamy and weird and unexplainable and beautiful as the novel I had previously read by her. Except shorter. And with less sex. Both for obvious reasons. But the language! it's just stunning. Read twice.

Hansel's Eyes, Garth Nix: five stars. I have a weakness for strong, loving relationships between siblings. This story is pretty dark; maybe darker than the Grimm brothers, in that it's not just the witch and the stepmother, but Gretal's own desire for strength that is a threat.

Becoming Charise- Kathe Koja: two stars. You can't fool me. This short story was already written, and then you found a fairytale you could pretend it was based on.

The Seven Stage a Comeback, Gregory Maguire: five stars. I have read two (why? that's a separate post) books by this man, and sorta hated them both. I considered skipping the story, but it was short, and I figured I might as well. Turns out that whatever it is that annoys me so much in his full length work just didn't come into play here at all. This was beautiful.

The Twelve Dancing Princesses, Patricia A. McKillip: one star. Pick up your favorite translation of Grimm (I recommend the translation by Zipes). This is the exact same story; any additions do not actually add to the story in any meaningful way.

[McKenzie Richardson · Rating 3 out of 5]

For more reviews, check out my blog: Craft-CycleI love retellings, especially fairy tale retellings. I have a whole shelf on Goodreads dedicated to retellings and parodies. However, this one was kind of a let down. With big names like Neil Gaiman, Nancy Farmer, and Gregory Maguire, I thought I was in for an amazing trip into fairy tale retelling-dom. Unfortunately, most of the stories fell flat for me. Many of the authors took most of the magic out of the stories, creating a version of the story set in modern or quasi-modern times. This essentially took everything I love about fairy tales out of the actual fairy tale. I love reading about far off places in times long past with elements of strange magic. So these modern, realistic tales kind of took all the fun out of reading fairy tales. I did like a few of the pieces. Nancy Farmer's "Falada: The Goose Girl's Horse" was my favorite. I liked the changes she made to the original story. I also thought Michael Cadnum's "Mrs. Big" and Garth Nix's "Hansel's Eyes" had unique and interesting retellings. And Neil Gaiman's "Instructions" was a cute way of tying together a bunch of stories. But many of the stories just felt a little boring to me. Not enough fairies in said fairy tales. Not sure if it's because it was written 18 years ago or if the authors just tried simplifying their stories too much for their target audience, but I did not like this book as much as I thought I would. It was still decent with some interesting ideas in it so I still gave it 3 stars. Unique mash-up of sci-fi, fantasy, and realism.

[Ada]

I have had this book on my TBR since three Goodreads accounts ago. After 15+ years, I’ve finally gotten my hands on a copy.

And it has given me three hours of glorious nostalgia. It feels like the books I used to get from my elementary school teachers’ classroom libraries, printed on that specific type of paper that was used for all those affordable scholastic printings, like Goosebumps and Animorphs? The sort of paper that started looking water-stained after a year of passing through many hands and was turning to dust at the edges but still holding together so well when it finally reached mine? I was unsurprised to see Jane Yolen, Tanith Lee and Garth Nix in here. I was a lot more surprised to see Kathe Koja, though. While the first few were staples in my childhood, the latter was very much a part of my edgy high school horror reading, lol. Speaking of which, Neil Gaiman’s got a story in here too.

Nostalgia aside, the short tales are tongue-in-cheekily charming and worth recommending if you’ve got someone in your life who is a fan of Jessica Day George or E.D. Baker or Diana Wynne Jones. The sort of gently fractured and cleverly reinterpreted fairytales that make for excellent bedtime stories or lighthearted reading after college exams. It only took three hours to get through because I was rereading a bunch of the stories.

But fantasy purists should be cautioned that many stories echo Steven King’s propensity for inserting bits of pop culture and Americana into the fabric of the settings. Evil stepsisters shop at the mall, outsiders sport 90s goth-chic, Hansel and Gretel are seduced by cola and consumer electronics instead of candy…that sort of thing:)

[Angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read slightly over half of the stories:
Hansel's Eyes by Garth Nix - 4.5 stars; read this! it's in lots of collections, ages 10+

The 12 Dancing Princesses by Patricia McKilip - 3 stars; the two main characters and the enchantment have names, very true to popular retellings, ages 9+

Swans by Kelly Link - 3 stars; if you see a Kelly Link story, you read it, ages9+

Falada: The Goose Girl's Horse by Nancy Farmer - 4 stars; retold from Falada's POV with additional information included, ages 8+

A Wolf at the Door by Tanith Lee - 4 stars; funny and originally set, not dark, ages 9+

The Seven Stage a Comeback by Gregory Maguire - I don't care for Gregory Maguire's work at all, but keeping thinking that I might, someday. Nope. Not today.

Instructions by Neil Gaiman - This doesn't count toward the rating because Charles Vess illustrated a picture book of just this poem and it's the best. You should read that, because Charles Vess*. This too, like the Nix, is in lots of collections.

The stories I did not/have not yet read are: Cinderelephant, The Months of Manhattan , Mrs Big: "Jack and the Beanstalk" Retold, Ali Baba and the Forty Aliens, The Kingdom of Melting Glances, and Becoming Charise.


*same goes for STARDUST

[Nightshade · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hits and misses all around. I am not the target audience for this as it is for younger readers although the introduction would have you believe these would be darker retellings akin to the original Grimms. I was not overly fond of the fairy tales being retold in a modern setting but I am sure children can relate to some of the protagonists and their feelings about siblings, school and not fitting in.

My favourites were
"Instructions" by Neil Gaimen
"Falada:The Goose Girls Horse" by Nancy Farmer
"The Kingdom of Melting Glances" by Katharine Vaz

I liked the "Twelve dancing princesses" by Patricia A Mckillop as a straightforward retelling but found it a bit regressive.

I was liking the somewhat darker tone of "The Seven Stage a Comeback" by Gregory Maguire but did not like the ending at all. Apparently motherhood and babies save the day.

"Cinder Elephant" by Jane Yolen focuses overly much on appearances, replacing one form of body shaming for another. As a woman who has struggled with weight and body issues since I was a child, I found it in poor taste. I do expect more of Jane Yolen as I have enjoyed some of her poetry. I still want to explore more of her short stories.


I actively disliked
"A Wolf at the Door" by Tanith Lee
"Ali Baba and the Forty Aliens" by Janine Web

[Ashley · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was difficult for me to settle on a 3 star rating. How can you rate an entire collection of different stories, all by different authors, using this system? It seems unfair. Ultimately, some of these fairy tales were wonderfully retold, others were just short of awful. The last couple stories were my favorite, with a special attachment to The Seven Stage a Comeback (a retelling of Snowhite and the Seven Dwarves). I also enjoyed Becoming Charise, Twelve Dancing Princesses, Hansel's Eyes, Instructions, and Mrs. Big: Jack and the Beanstalk Retold. Because the retellings I thoroughly enjoyed from beginning to end made up less than half the book (6 out of 13 stories/poems), I had to give the collection 3 stars.

[Genelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Most of the retold fairytales sucked - I would have preferred to just read the original. However, there were a couple stories that really stood out to me. 'Instructions' by Neil Gaiman is extremely clever and details what to do if you ever find yourself in a fairytale. I wasn't surprised, it coming from the author of Coraline. The other one was 'The Seven Stage a Comeback' by Gregory Maguire, author of Wicked. I loved the unique style in which it was written and it had an interesting premise, telling the story of Snow White from the dwarves' point of view AFTER she is taken away by the prince.

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very much For Children in a way that I know would have annoyed me as a kid, but there were some standouts! Kelly Link's story was naturally my favorite, and I liked that Gregory Maguire's did something interesting with form. Between his story, White as Snow, and Snow Glass Apples, I guess Snow White is growing on me lol.

I always come out of an anthology hoping for at least one new (to me) author whose work I want to look up, and Patricia McKillip's story was that for me. LOVED hers!

And I liked that the retelling of The Goose Girl had the prince genuinely fall for his imposter bride and decide not to give her up. Love a man who stands with his cancelled wife.

[Cindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Copyright 2001. This is a book of reworked fairy tales, most updated to present day.
I've heard of Neil Gaiman, Jane Yoder, & Gregory Maguire, but not the others. Middle grade & up, might be too intense for younger readers.

So, all of these stories were pretty good IMO. I liked "Becoming Charise" & "Cinder Elephant".
"A Wolf At The Door" & "The Seven Stage A Comeback" are weird, but readable.