Grimm's Complete Fairy Tales

Book Preview:
With the words “Once upon a time,” the Brothers Grimm transport readers to a timeless realm where witches, giants, princesses, kings, fairies, goblins, and wizards fall in love, try to get rich, quarrel with their neighbors, and have magical adventures of all kinds—and in the process reveal essential truths about human nature.
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When Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm set out to collect stories in the early 1800s, their goal was not to entertain children but to preserve Germanic folklore—and the hard life of European peasants was reflected in the tales they discovered. However, once the brothers saw how the stories entranced young readers, they began softening some of the harsher aspects to make them more suitable for children.
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A cornerstone of Western culture since the early 1800s, Grimm’s Fairy Tales is now beloved the world over. This collection of more than 120 of the Grimms’ best tales includes such classics as “Cinderella,” “Snow White,” “Hansel and Grethel,” “Rapunzel,” “Rumpelstiltskin,” “Little Red Riding Hood,” and “The Frog Prince,” as well as others that are no less delightful.
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My Opinion:

I have been reading this book for awhile now but I didn't want to post about it until I was completely finished reading all of the tales it contains. Of course it had the classics that everyone loves. It also had some other tales that probably should NEVER have been written down; way to creepy and wrong for my taste. But over all I enjoyed hearing some not so well known tales. I do want to say that if you get this book and are planning to read it to your family/kids make sure you read the stories first so you don't expose them to something that you may not want them to know. Another thing that I should mention is that the picture provided is the newest model out for the book and it includes pictures. So that might be something extra fun for you to enjoy.

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(Picture from Barnes and Noble Site)

The Wide-Awake Princess

Written by: E. D. Baker

THIS BOOK IS GREAT! This author also wrote the Tales of the Frog Princess. I have really enjoyed all of her books and how she finds fun new ways to look at the old classic fairy tales. If you got a chance to read the other books, and also loved them, then you are sure to love this book just as much. Here is what awaits you in this book.

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In this new stand-alone fairy tale, Princess Annie is the younger sister to Gwen, the princess destined to be Sleeping Beauty. When Gwennie pricks her finger and the whole castle falls asleep, only Annie is awake, and only Annie—blessed (or cursed?) with being impervious to magic—can venture out beyond the rose-covered hedge for help. She must find Gwen's true love to kiss her awake.

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But who is her true love? The irritating Digby? The happy-go-lucky Prince Andreas, who is holding a contest to find his bride? The conniving Clarence, whose sinister motives couldn't possibly spell true love? Joined by one of her father's guards, Liam, who happened to be out of the castle when the sleeping spell struck, Annie travels through a fairy tale land populated with characters both familiar and new as she tries to fix her sister and her family . . . and perhaps even find a true love of her own.

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(Picture from Barnes and Noble Site)

Beastly by Alex Flinn

Beastly
This a great modern twist on the classic Beauty and Beast. It is told from the Beast point of view, and takes place in New York City. It is a great boy for guys to read, and it is fun. It is a easy quick read, and has great characters. There are some sketchy parts at the beginning, but it is not graphic or inappropriate.
I love how the Beast transform, and how he goes through a process. "Beauty" also goes through a process. It has a great lesson in it for all. I would have loved give this to some "Beasts" that I know.
At my school we have a Book club with students and teachers at lunch. The students really enjoyed the book. We had several boys who loved it.

Here is an excerpt from the back of the book:
"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."

Princess of the Midnight Ball

Maybe I'm just a sucker for fairy tales, but I loved this book. Quick, easy read and so good. I'd never read anything by Jessica Day George before, but I'm definitely going to be looking for more of her books. It's her take on the Twelve Dancing Princesses by the Grimm brothers. I hope you like it!


A tale of twelve princesses doomed to dance until dawn… 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.
(As always thanks to Barnes & Noble website for the synopsis and picture.)