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3.62 AVERAGE
3.62 AVERAGE
Solid fantasy stories with a basis in faery tales. Slightly cleaner and less 'gritty' than many more recent faery tale adaptations, but a nice read for all that. I did find that there was a strong undercurrent of gender essentialism, although that may be that I've been reading some pretty cluey stuff lately, and that this just reflects poorly in the light of that other reading.
It is all very well to say that all princesses are good and beautiful and charming; but this is usually a determined optimism on everybody's part rather than the truth. After all, if a girl is a princess, she is undeniably a princess, and the best must be made of it; and how much pleasanter it would be if she were good and beautiful. There's always hope that if enough people believe as though she is, a little of it will rub off.
Once again, a lovely fairytale retelling (in this case two) by Robin McKinley.
Once again, a lovely fairytale retelling (in this case two) by Robin McKinley.
Either I liked Robin McKinley better as a kid or her short stories just aren't as good.
The first story was by far the weakest though, so if you don't like it maybe just skip it.
The first story was by far the weakest though, so if you don't like it maybe just skip it.
DNF @ 60% I tried, I really did. Robin McKinley’s “Beauty” is one of my favorite retellings and I will always love her for it. But I tried slogging through this one and by the time I got to 2 weeks without feeling like it was picking up, I couldn’t do it any longer. I’ll move on and read something else of hers, but I couldn’t finish this one.
Beautiful language with interesting stories but I didn't find them captivating
Why haven't I read more Robin McKinley? She is uniformly excellent as a writer, and it doesn't even really feel like I'm reading a "kid" book. These were riffs on fairy tales we all know, told from a slightly askew viewpoint, but mostly familiar. Nice.
This is a collection of four short stories: “The Stolen Princess,” “The Princess and the Frog,” “The Hunting of the Hind,” and “The Twelve Dancing Princesses.” Two are new stories, and two are retellings, something that McKinley excels at within the YA field.
“The Stolen Princess” follows twin princesses: one stolen by the faeries and one, Alora, left to rule her parents’ kingdom. Alora’s daughter, Linadel, is also stolen by the faeries, and instead of never being heard from again, falls in love with the faerie prince and brings him back with her to her parents’ land. Thus two kingdoms, one hidden in shadow and mystery, are joined.
“The Princess and the Frog” is very short, no more than a dozen pages, and tells how an enchanted frog saves an entire kingdom from the evil magics of a neighboring prince.
“The Hunting of the Hind” is a hunting tale, where a beautiful golden hind enchants all who hunt her. The prince hunts her, and falls under her spell, bedridden and taken to incoherent rambling. His stepsister, Korah, decides to hunt the hind to try and break the spell, and finds a far greater enchantment for the breaking.
“The Twelve Dancing Princesses” is a retelling of the classic fairy tale, where twelve princesses are spelled into dancing all night and reducing their shoes to tatters. Many answer the king’s desperate plea to anyone in the kingdom that can discover the secret, but none can solve the mystery. In RM’s version, a middle-aged soldier hears the tale, and meets an old woman who gives him a unique tool for following the princesses to the fantastic castle where they dance their nights away.
http://starlightbookreviews.wordpress.com/2010/07/05/review-%e2%80%9ca-door-in-the-hedge%e2%80%9d-by-robin-mckinley/
“The Stolen Princess” follows twin princesses: one stolen by the faeries and one, Alora, left to rule her parents’ kingdom. Alora’s daughter, Linadel, is also stolen by the faeries, and instead of never being heard from again, falls in love with the faerie prince and brings him back with her to her parents’ land. Thus two kingdoms, one hidden in shadow and mystery, are joined.
“The Princess and the Frog” is very short, no more than a dozen pages, and tells how an enchanted frog saves an entire kingdom from the evil magics of a neighboring prince.
“The Hunting of the Hind” is a hunting tale, where a beautiful golden hind enchants all who hunt her. The prince hunts her, and falls under her spell, bedridden and taken to incoherent rambling. His stepsister, Korah, decides to hunt the hind to try and break the spell, and finds a far greater enchantment for the breaking.
“The Twelve Dancing Princesses” is a retelling of the classic fairy tale, where twelve princesses are spelled into dancing all night and reducing their shoes to tatters. Many answer the king’s desperate plea to anyone in the kingdom that can discover the secret, but none can solve the mystery. In RM’s version, a middle-aged soldier hears the tale, and meets an old woman who gives him a unique tool for following the princesses to the fantastic castle where they dance their nights away.
http://starlightbookreviews.wordpress.com/2010/07/05/review-%e2%80%9ca-door-in-the-hedge%e2%80%9d-by-robin-mckinley/
McKinley's writing is reminiscent of an earlier era, like Mirlees' Lud-in-the-Mist. And it's incredible. I love fairytales, maybe even a little too much, but these are pitched so fantastically and the voice is so unusual that it draws you straight into the stories.
Shout out to her mentioning greyhounds in the The Princess and the Frog as a nod to Deerskin, my favourite of her books even if it is profoundly upsetting.
Shout out to her mentioning greyhounds in the The Princess and the Frog as a nod to Deerskin, my favourite of her books even if it is profoundly upsetting.
A collection of retelling of fairy tales, McKinley once again charms her readers with new viewpoints and new additions to age old classics.
I enjoyed some of these stories, but not all. Some of them were just riveting and wonderful, but a few were somewhat boring.
I enjoyed some of these stories, but not all. Some of them were just riveting and wonderful, but a few were somewhat boring.
A series of stories influenced by old fairy tales. It has my favourite story from when I was a kid - The Twelve Dancing Princesses. I still love that tale