A Tale Dark and Grimm

( 206 )

Overview

In this mischievous and utterly original debut, Hansel and Gretel walk out of their own story and into eight other classic Grimm-inspired tales. As readers follow the siblings through a forest brimming with menacing foes, they learn the true story behind (and beyond) the bread crumbs, edible houses, and outwitted witches.

Fairy tales have never been more irreverent or subversive as Hansel and Gretel learn to take charge of their destinies and ...

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A Tale Dark and Grimm

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More About This Book

Overview

In this mischievous and utterly original debut, Hansel and Gretel walk out of their own story and into eight other classic Grimm-inspired tales. As readers follow the siblings through a forest brimming with menacing foes, they learn the true story behind (and beyond) the bread crumbs, edible houses, and outwitted witches.

Fairy tales have never been more irreverent or subversive as Hansel and Gretel learn to take charge of their destinies and become the clever architects of their own happily ever after.

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  • A Tale Dark and Grimm
    A Tale Dark and Grimm  

Editorial Reviews

From Barnes & Noble

Brooklyn schoolteacher Adam Gidwitz offers imaginative new slants on children's classics in this new collection inspired by nine Grimm Brothers fairy tales. Never before have Hansel and Gretel had an adventure like this!

Publishers Weekly
Hansel and Gretel actually had their heads chopped off. Who knew? If that statement sends you scrambling for your favorite search engine, Gidwitz is savoring that reaction. And for readers who shriek with bloodthirsty delight, not skepticism, he has much more in store. Fracturing the folk tales of the Brothers Grimm, Gidwitz brings together old and new traditions of matter-of-fact horror. Hansel and Gretel become recurring characters in reworked versions of the Grimms' lesser-known tales, such as "Faithful Johannes" and "The Seven Ravens" (here, "The Seven Swallows"). The children are seeking a "nice" family after their father, no woodcutter but a king, pulls the aforementioned beheading stunt ("hey believed firmly in their little hearts that parents should not kill their children"). The perfect family proves elusive, and the children must extricate themselves from one outrageous situation after another--including, yes, a hungry old woman in an edible house. The rhythms and rhetoric of the prose are heavily influenced by verbal storytelling, which can on occasion strike a false note, but mostly add the intended wry wink to an audacious debut that's wicked smart and wicked funny. Ages 10–up. (Nov.)
Children's Literature - Jeannine Stickle
Hansel and Gretel serve as the connecting thread that runs through Gidwitz's enthusiastic and gory retelling of six Grimm fairy tales. The story begins with Hansel and Gretel as they are betrayed by their parents, who are a king and queen in this retelling. The brother and sister decide to run away on a quest to find better, kinder parents, and in doing so wind their way through other Grimm tales and have dangerous adventures such as plucking three golden hairs from the devil's head in order to escape from Hell, defeating a charming but evil wizard who eats little girls' souls, and saving their kingdom from a mysterious dragon. The story is told playfully by an enthusiastic narrator who tells the audience that fairy tales were often originally gruesome and exciting but have become boring as a result of censoring and sugar-coating, and the narrator's telling is humorous as well as gory and scary, sometimes simultaneously. Ultimately, this smart retelling is a story about forgiveness, and Hansel and Gretel are ultimately able to forgive their parents and love them despite their shortcomings. This is an engaging and clever novel that will be enjoyed by all children and parents who have always loved fairy tales as well as many children and parents who have never really enjoyed fairy tales before but are looking for a compelling and slightly scary read. Reviewer: Jeannine Stickle
Kirkus Reviews
Fairy tales for the horror set blend themselves into one intact thread that's satisfying enough to overcome an intrusive narrator. The storyteller's voice (presented in bold type) opens by asserting that original Grimm tales are "awesome," "violent and ... bloody," while "all the versions of the stories you've heard [are]... mind-numbingly boring" due to sanitization. It's an odd premise for a piece whose audience is surely aware of many fractured fairy tales that are dark and/or awesome. The narrator contributes unnecessary platitudes, but on the plus side, savvily warns when little kids should leave the room, effectively cautioning big kids that upcoming content is sad or gory—and it really is. Heads are lopped off, blood flows, men reach down girls' throats and pull out their souls. Old Grimm tales and Gidwitz's original additions weave together into one arc, with fiercely loyal siblings Hansel and Gretel at the heart. The narrator's presence lessens; action and emotion deepen; funny gross-outs pop up amid serious violence; and everything builds to one painful and triumphant catharsis. (Fractured fairy tale. 10-13)
Marjorie Ingall
…unlike any children's book I've ever read…Heavy. And yet…really, really funny…The tone ricochets between lyrical and goofy…And it all works. As the story progresses, it gets less and less faithful to the source material and becomes its own increasingly rich and strange thing…My 8-year-old daughter, a tough critic who doesn't like scary books, read A Tale Dark & Grimm three times, back to back. She was enchanted, not terrified. And no wonder. A Tale Dark & Grimm holds up to multiple rereadings, like the classic I think it will turn out to be.
—The New York Times
School Library Journal
Gr 4–7—The Grimm folk and fairy tales have never been for the fainthearted, and neither is Adam Gidwitz's novel (Dutton, 2010). Traditional folktales collected by the Brothers Grimm have been recast with Hansel and Gretel providing the connection between them. The account for which the siblings are best known (the one with less than caring parents and a house made of sweets inhabited by a child-eating adult) is recognizable as are nuggets of other familiar tales, but each has been reinvented with a particular, sometimes peculiar twist. The stories come to life through the unique voice and fine pacing of Johnny Heller. He assumes various accents for different characters, and as narrator, inserts himself to warn listeners when a part gets really dreadful. Chapters end with cliffhangers (of sorts), sure to please those who enjoy grisly tales, gruesome events, and righteousness rewarded.—Maria Salvadore, formerly Washington DC Public Library
School Library Journal
Gr 4–7—The Grimm folk and fairy tales have never been for the fainthearted, and neither is Adam Gidwitz's novel (Dutton, 2010). Traditional folktales collected by the Brothers Grimm have been recast with Hansel and Gretel providing the connection between them. The account for which the siblings are best known (the one with less than caring parents and a house made of sweets inhabited by a child-eating adult) is recognizable as are nuggets of other familiar tales, but each has been reinvented with a particular, sometimes peculiar twist. The stories come to life through the unique voice and fine pacing of Johnny Heller. He assumes various accents for different characters, and as narrator, inserts himself to warn listeners when a part gets really dreadful. Chapters end with cliffhangers (of sorts), sure to please those who enjoy grisly tales, gruesome events, and righteousness rewarded.—Maria Salvadore, formerly Washington DC Public Library
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Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9780525423348
  • Publisher: Penguin Group (USA) Incorporated
  • Publication date: 10/28/2010
  • Pages: 192
  • Sales rank: 84,082
  • Age range: 9 - 12 Years
  • Lexile: 690L (what's this?)
  • Product dimensions: 6.92 (w) x 11.80 (h) x 0.94 (d)

Meet the Author

Adam Gidwitz

Adam Gidwitz is an elementary school teacher and storyteller who lives in Brooklyn, New York.

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Customer Reviews

Average Rating 4.5
( 206 )
Rating Distribution

5 Star

(159)

4 Star

(29)

3 Star

(5)

2 Star

(6)

1 Star

(7)

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See All Sort by: Showing 1 – 20 of 206 Customer Reviews

  • Posted June 4, 2011

    Awesome Book- A little bloody

    Have you ever wondered what Hansel and Gretel were like before and after the Candy House? You probably haven't- but it's a good start to a review... The point is, this story goes beyond "happily ever after" and before "once upon a time".
    There is a little blood in this outstanding and creative version of Hansel and Gretel. Gidwitz adds a little humor with his side comments that he adds, and I really like the way it's written. I recommend this to everyone. Okay, maybe not everyone. Kids should not read this, or they might get the idea that if you cut your finger off, you can use it as a key. And that once you get you're head cut off, it's highly possible for it to get reattached.
    Love this book so much and think Adam should do this with other fairy tales.

    28 out of 30 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted December 26, 2011

    Anonymous

    This is the best book ever! It is bloody and funny. I recommend. This is no ordinary fairytale. It is for all ages to enjoy.

    19 out of 24 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted December 25, 2011

    unknown

    I loved this book. I have to be honest when i picked it up to read i didnt think it would be good but the book surprised me. I absolutley loved it. I recomend it to anyone.

    15 out of 16 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted December 26, 2011

    Love the book

    It is so exsiting it makes me think what is around the corner

    13 out of 20 people found this review helpful.

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  • Posted October 2, 2011

    A tale of a dark grimm.

    If you like bloody adventres you will like this.

    12 out of 22 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted February 1, 2012

    Woah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    Best book ever! The author is so DETAILED! the story is so WONDERFUL! a must read! And think about it! I am only eleven and I did not get grossed out when hansel cut off his fathers head!

    9 out of 12 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted December 24, 2011

    Love it!!"

    If your lookin for a funny, scarry, and something not for your younger sister than you've come to the right book :)

    9 out of 12 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted December 21, 2011

    Awesome

    It is really good and i think u people should read it.

    9 out of 16 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted December 5, 2011

    Pretty good

    Do not read this book late at night !

    9 out of 15 people found this review helpful.

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  • Posted October 18, 2011

    What it's about

    A Tale Dark and Grimm is about a girl name Gretel and a boy name Hansel who runs away from thier home into the wild. While they are in the wild all by thier selves they meet strange people such as a witch, a father who turns his kids into birds, and many more. I think that this is a really good book because its very interesting.

    6 out of 7 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted January 12, 2012

    Read. The. Book.

    This is the best book ive read in a while. I dont tyically read fairy tales, but this is just plain great!! Read it!

    5 out of 7 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted January 29, 2012

    Wow

    I absolutely love this book. It is really not like hansel and gretel but it is so good! It can be a little describtive but thats what makes it good! Starting from the beginning people are dieing and heads are getting chopped off! But its ok all the good people come back to life.... i think..... i have to finish my last few pgs! You should read it!

    4 out of 6 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted December 20, 2011

    A tale dark and grimm

    Gory in some parts but mostly the narrative is anoying with all those'the end, wait no, not reallys' and the 'gosh its just to bloody, hire a baby ditter already' parts.

    3 out of 10 people found this review helpful.

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  • Posted October 11, 2011

    Bloody Book

    This book is amazing. Even if I am a young girl who is scared if everything this book shows me that even if you are young you could be brave. I love the fact that he also put what he thinks and he gets readers eye. I finish this in two days and it was my birthday I read this. Everyone could read this. I still cant get over my fear of anything just like Gretel that super brave girl. No wonder they don't want us to know the real stories about these fairytales.

    3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted November 30, 2012

    Great book!

    This was a great book. It would be a good story to read with your older children or with a class. They are many places for comparing to the other versions of Hansel and Gretel.

    2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted November 22, 2012

    Big toe chop

    I give this 5 stars because im from china and this is the first american book i have ever read but i think its distugisting ti younger viewers

    2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted January 20, 2012

    A nice story

    This book is a good one. I would recomend 2 10+. Volint

    2 out of 7 people found this review helpful.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted January 7, 2012

    Tale of dark and Grimm

    It's a great book. It has some mystery, violence and drama. I would not read this book to little kids. The thing is, the author stops the book and always says if there's littlr kids in the room, get a babysitter or something like that.

    2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

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  • Posted September 30, 2011

    LOVE IT!!!

    Ok, so I have read this book 4 times so far, and I cant get enough of it. Not only is it completely gory and AWESOME but it puts a dramatic twist on the tales that you.... thought you knew. The narrator is funny, bringing the story together with a carisma of sarcasm and personality. So, face it. Buy the book. Its worth the incredibly nice price. Life changing.

    2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

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  • Posted September 4, 2011

    Great book it has a great plot and i love the chapter a smile as red as blood!!!

    2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

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