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anastasia_sherman's review against another edition
1.0
The cover art is so gorgeous, but this is the MOST DISAPPOINTING read so far this year.
These are not dark retellings, they are very close and similar to the original source. There were some stories in there that were considered "dark", but not dark enough, nothing we haven't seen or heard.
The stories inside were mostly dull and boring, repetitive, some even feels a little bit misogynistic to me.
And what's up with the stories having the parents have a "happily ever after" even after they abandoned their children, beat them, tried to kill them and even in one story, ate their own child. "And they lived happily ever after". The f?
1 star, solely for the beautiful cover.
These are not dark retellings, they are very close and similar to the original source. There were some stories in there that were considered "dark", but not dark enough, nothing we haven't seen or heard.
The stories inside were mostly dull and boring, repetitive, some even feels a little bit misogynistic to me.
And what's up with the stories having the parents have a "happily ever after" even after they abandoned their children, beat them, tried to kill them and even in one story, ate their own child. "And they lived happily ever after". The f?
1 star, solely for the beautiful cover.
srogan88's review against another edition
3.0
I've been obsessed with owning this book ever since I first saw the beautiful cover. The beautiful purples and blues, the silver glimmers, the faces peeking out, and the spelling of "Faery" all begged me to buy it. And so I did.
But as they say, you really can't judge a book by its cover and that's very true in this case. The problem may be more that my expectations were incorrect. When it was advertised as "retellings" of classic tales, I expected drastic differences. Instead, many of the stories seemed almost line-by-line the same as the versions I've heard a hundred times before. There were plenty of new stories, but I never felt the magic I expected when I first glanced upon it's cover.
But as they say, you really can't judge a book by its cover and that's very true in this case. The problem may be more that my expectations were incorrect. When it was advertised as "retellings" of classic tales, I expected drastic differences. Instead, many of the stories seemed almost line-by-line the same as the versions I've heard a hundred times before. There were plenty of new stories, but I never felt the magic I expected when I first glanced upon it's cover.
mollyp's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
earlgreybooks's review against another edition
3.0
Like pretty much every short story collection ever, there were some of these I really liked and others that I didn't. At times, some of them seemed a little too close to the originals—I wanted something different!
ashleighm11's review against another edition
4.0
I loved this collection. It was a mixed bag, some were retellings and others were originals written specifically for this collection. Ultimately though, this was fabulous and I can't think of any stories that I didn't like - there were a few that were 3/5 but most were 4/5. This is a really great collection and I'd recommend it to anyone who likes fairy tales, or just something easy to read!
amalia1985's review against another edition
5.0
''Ungrateful man!'', thundered the creature. ''I have saved your life by letting you into my castle and to thank me you steal one of my roses, which I prize over everything!''
My introduction to the world of Carol Ann Duffy is Faery Tales (oh, I adore the old form of the word!), a collection of well-known fairy tales along with a few that aren't so popular. Duffy achieves a fascinating narrating voice, a mixture of old-school fairy tale language and contemporary dialogue and creates a flowing rhythm that breathes new life to well-loved childhood tales.
Snow White, Bluebeard, Rumpelstiltskin, The Musicians of Bremen. A beautiful rendition of my most favourite fairy tale, Beauty and the Beast, free form contemporary, pretentious ''messages''. The Emperor in The Emperor's New Clothes is given a more contemporary voice that marvelously demonstrates his stupidity.Ashputtel is a very beautiful and bloody version that comes close to the original by Giambattista Basile, a tale we all know as ''Cinderella''. The Lady and the Lion is a different, extended version of Beauty and the Beast with elements of another beloved tale East of the Sun, West of the Moon. Many may recognize this tale by the titleThe Singing, Springing Lark , a story that makes use of the motif of the wife that must overcome hardships to save her beloved.
Clever Hans is a tale that allows us to know a different version of Hansel and Gretel, without the witch and the gingerbread house. I was quite surprised by this one. The Juniper Tree is a haunting tale -unknown to me- that seems unsuitable for very young children. An exile stepmother kills her husband's son, cooks him and gives the pieces to the father. Quite a harrowing story, first written down by Philipp Otto Runge. Maiden Without Hands The is the tale of a princess who cuts her hands to stop the inappropriate advances of her brother but this is only one of her misfortunes. A story that would be the perfect Angela Carter fable minus the happy ending.
Why do cats chase rats? The answer can be found in The Chinese Zodiac Circle and a very tense competition between the animals. A delightful tale. We also find The Little Red Cap -always creepy and strange, this tale...- and The Pied Piper of Hamelin, a favourite tale of my younger students. Every junior class adores this one and the fascination is still growing strong after 12 years.
Beautiful, old-fashioned illustrations by Tomislav Tomić and an array of beloved and more obscure tales make this an essential read for the collector of childhood stories.
My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com/
My introduction to the world of Carol Ann Duffy is Faery Tales (oh, I adore the old form of the word!), a collection of well-known fairy tales along with a few that aren't so popular. Duffy achieves a fascinating narrating voice, a mixture of old-school fairy tale language and contemporary dialogue and creates a flowing rhythm that breathes new life to well-loved childhood tales.
Snow White, Bluebeard, Rumpelstiltskin, The Musicians of Bremen. A beautiful rendition of my most favourite fairy tale, Beauty and the Beast, free form contemporary, pretentious ''messages''. The Emperor in The Emperor's New Clothes is given a more contemporary voice that marvelously demonstrates his stupidity.Ashputtel is a very beautiful and bloody version that comes close to the original by Giambattista Basile, a tale we all know as ''Cinderella''. The Lady and the Lion is a different, extended version of Beauty and the Beast with elements of another beloved tale East of the Sun, West of the Moon. Many may recognize this tale by the titleThe Singing, Springing Lark , a story that makes use of the motif of the wife that must overcome hardships to save her beloved.
Clever Hans is a tale that allows us to know a different version of Hansel and Gretel, without the witch and the gingerbread house. I was quite surprised by this one. The Juniper Tree is a haunting tale -unknown to me- that seems unsuitable for very young children. An exile stepmother kills her husband's son, cooks him and gives the pieces to the father. Quite a harrowing story, first written down by Philipp Otto Runge. Maiden Without Hands The is the tale of a princess who cuts her hands to stop the inappropriate advances of her brother but this is only one of her misfortunes. A story that would be the perfect Angela Carter fable minus the happy ending.
Why do cats chase rats? The answer can be found in The Chinese Zodiac Circle and a very tense competition between the animals. A delightful tale. We also find The Little Red Cap -always creepy and strange, this tale...- and The Pied Piper of Hamelin, a favourite tale of my younger students. Every junior class adores this one and the fascination is still growing strong after 12 years.
Beautiful, old-fashioned illustrations by Tomislav Tomić and an array of beloved and more obscure tales make this an essential read for the collector of childhood stories.
My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com/
booknerd85's review against another edition
4.0
I really liked this book. The stories were fun and the drawings were nice. A few of the faery tales were not finished, which was a bit frustrating, and some seemed strange and probably very local (as in you need to be English to understand them), but in general the book was just very well written.
myshelvesfullofbooks's review
3.0
The cover is absolutely georgous!
But it is kind of a shame, because the inside is dull and boring. These are NOT dark retellings, these are just the same I heard when I was younger, some were new for me, but these weren't dark either.
I really don't like this.. I was so excited about the dark retellings that I did enjoyed it less than I wanted. I finished it and I will keep it, because of its stunning cover. But I probably won't pick it up again.
Don't sell it as a "dark" book if it is not dark and I could read it to my kids (whom I don't have yet). At least I can still look at the pictures inside of it and not get "angry" because they are pretty.
Three stars, because I did enjoy it till up a certain point, but I had expected it so much more.
But it is kind of a shame, because the inside is dull and boring. These are NOT dark retellings, these are just the same I heard when I was younger, some were new for me, but these weren't dark either.
I really don't like this.. I was so excited about the dark retellings that I did enjoyed it less than I wanted. I finished it and I will keep it, because of its stunning cover. But I probably won't pick it up again.
Don't sell it as a "dark" book if it is not dark and I could read it to my kids (whom I don't have yet). At least I can still look at the pictures inside of it and not get "angry" because they are pretty.
Three stars, because I did enjoy it till up a certain point, but I had expected it so much more.
steph_demel's review
2.0
Laced with Duffy's trademark acerbity, these fairytale re-tellings (and selected original tales) make for a light, amusing read. I expected more of the beautiful use of language and arresting metaphors that characterise Duffy's poetry but, alas, these were not often in evidence here. In fact, these re-tellings often were so close to the original source material that their purpose remains slightly unclear to me. I suspect I would have enjoyed this more if it had been poetry rather than prose. Therefore, I continue eagerly to await the paperback release of her new poetry collection, "Sincerity".
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