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Reviews
Two and Twenty Dark Tales: Dark Retellings of Mother Goose Rhymes by Georgia McBride, Michelle Zink
michalice's review
3.0
When I first heard about Two and Twenty Dark Tales I was very intrigued about what twist the rhymes would have. Some of the authors I have heard of, or even read their other work, yet some I had not heard of so I was wary about whether I would enjoy their stories. When I began reading I was happy to see I knew every rhyme that they had taken for their story's and soon found myself engrossed with each story and the different characters.
Once I started I could not stop reading and quickly finished the book, and I can't decide which story I liked the best, with each story having its own little twist they all stood out on their own. I enjoyed the twist on Jack and Jill (The Well), and the old woman who lived in a show (Life in a Shoe), they certainly make you think differently about the rhyme. Sing a song of Six-Pence didn't end how I expected it to, and was quite sad with the way it ended, but after thinking about it then it made sense.
Two and Twenty Dark Tales is a great read for someone looking to try out new authors to see what their writing is like, but for anyone who is a fan of any of the authors involved with this book. Even better is that Month9Books have donated the proceeds from the first five thousand books to charity, YALitchat.org, a literacy organization that fosters the advancement of young adult literature around the world. For more information visit yalitchat.com
Once I started I could not stop reading and quickly finished the book, and I can't decide which story I liked the best, with each story having its own little twist they all stood out on their own. I enjoyed the twist on Jack and Jill (The Well), and the old woman who lived in a show (Life in a Shoe), they certainly make you think differently about the rhyme. Sing a song of Six-Pence didn't end how I expected it to, and was quite sad with the way it ended, but after thinking about it then it made sense.
Two and Twenty Dark Tales is a great read for someone looking to try out new authors to see what their writing is like, but for anyone who is a fan of any of the authors involved with this book. Even better is that Month9Books have donated the proceeds from the first five thousand books to charity, YALitchat.org, a literacy organization that fosters the advancement of young adult literature around the world. For more information visit yalitchat.com
adelavmb's review
3.0
This review is also featured on my blog. I received an ebook ARC of this book through NetGalley.
Bilingual review: ENG/RO
English
I am one of those people who sometimes get interested in a book by seeing its cover. This was the case with "Two and Twenty Dark Tales: Dark Retellings of Mother Goose Rhymes", and I can't say I regret my decision. It was a pleasant, interesting read most of the times.
This anthology having been written by twenty different authors, it's clear from the start that you can't possibly like all of the stories included. With so many different, unique styles, it's near to impossible for each and every one of them to appeal to you.
I found myself literally loving half of these dark retellings of Mother Goose Rhymes, liking some of them, the rest boring me to death. You must probably be wondering how could such silly and cute rhymes turn into dark stories. Well, they can and I must admit that some of them really creeped me out. They all revolve around themes like death, dark witches, and pitiful, miserable beings. This book is grotesque, eerie and macabre, and at the same time intriguing and misterious, giving you goosebumps.
Personally, I didn't know the majority of these Mother Goose rhymes, but the good thing is that the rhymes are included at the beggining of each story. If I, who didn't know them, liked them so much, I can imagine how those who are more familiar with them will love them.
The version I read being an ARC, three of the stories were missing from the ebook, which is a pity as from what I heard about them, they were really good. I wish from the bottom of my heart I could give this 4 vanilla flowers. However, I can't possibly paper over the stories that bored me out of my mind.
I recommend this book to young adults and adults who may find enjoyment in horror fairytales. A little warning though: you won't see those innocent Mother Goose Rhymes with the same eyes after you read this.
____________________________
Română
Eu fac parte din categoria de omeni care uneori sunt atraşi de o carte datorită copertei. Acesta a fost cazul şi cu "Two and Twenty Dark Tales: Dark Retellings of Mother Goose Rhymes", şi nu pot să spun că regret decizia pe care am luat-o. A fost, în marea majoritate a timpului, o lectură interesantă şi plăcută.
Această antologie fiind scrisă de 20 de autori diferiţi, e clar de la început că nu au cum să-ţi placă toate poveştile incluse. Cu atât de multe stiluri unice, e aproape imposibil să fie fiecare din ele pe gustul tău.
Mi-au plăcut la nebunie cam jumătate din aceste repovestiri întunecate ale poeziilor pentru copii, o parte din ele doar mi-au plăcut, restul plictisindu-mă de moarte. Probabil vă întrebaţi cum se pot transforma nişte rime prostuţe şi drăguţe în poveşti de groază. Ei bine, pot, şi trebuie să recunosc că unele din ele m-au îngrozit de-a dreptul. Toate poveştile se învârt în jurul unor teme ca moartea, vrăjitoare rele şi fiinţe deplorabile, nenorocite. Această carte este grotescă, sinistră şi macabră, şi în acelaşi timp fascinantă şi misterioasă, făcându-ţi pielea de găină.
Eu, una, nu ştiam majoritatea acestor poezioare, dar partea bună e că sunt incluse la începutul fiecărei poveşti. Dacă mie, care nu ştiam poeziile originale, mi-a plăcut atât de mult cartea, îmi imaginez cum li se va părea celor care sunt familiari cu ele.
Versiunea pe care am citit-o fiind un ARC, trei dintre poveşti lipseau din ebook, ceea ce e mare păcat, pentru că am auzit numai păreri bune legate de ele. Îmi doresc din toată inima să-i pot da cărţii patru flori de vanilie, dar nu pot să trec cu vederea poveştile care m-au plictisit de moarte.
Recomand această carte tinerilor, dar şi adulţilor cărora le-ar plăcea nişte poveşti de groază asemănătoare basmelor. Un mic avertisment doar: nu veţi mai vedea cu aceiaşi ochi poeziile inocente pentru copii după ce citiţi această carte.
Bilingual review: ENG/RO
English
I am one of those people who sometimes get interested in a book by seeing its cover. This was the case with "Two and Twenty Dark Tales: Dark Retellings of Mother Goose Rhymes", and I can't say I regret my decision. It was a pleasant, interesting read most of the times.
This anthology having been written by twenty different authors, it's clear from the start that you can't possibly like all of the stories included. With so many different, unique styles, it's near to impossible for each and every one of them to appeal to you.
I found myself literally loving half of these dark retellings of Mother Goose Rhymes, liking some of them, the rest boring me to death. You must probably be wondering how could such silly and cute rhymes turn into dark stories. Well, they can and I must admit that some of them really creeped me out. They all revolve around themes like death, dark witches, and pitiful, miserable beings. This book is grotesque, eerie and macabre, and at the same time intriguing and misterious, giving you goosebumps.
Personally, I didn't know the majority of these Mother Goose rhymes, but the good thing is that the rhymes are included at the beggining of each story. If I, who didn't know them, liked them so much, I can imagine how those who are more familiar with them will love them.
The version I read being an ARC, three of the stories were missing from the ebook, which is a pity as from what I heard about them, they were really good. I wish from the bottom of my heart I could give this 4 vanilla flowers. However, I can't possibly paper over the stories that bored me out of my mind.
I recommend this book to young adults and adults who may find enjoyment in horror fairytales. A little warning though: you won't see those innocent Mother Goose Rhymes with the same eyes after you read this.
____________________________
Română
Eu fac parte din categoria de omeni care uneori sunt atraşi de o carte datorită copertei. Acesta a fost cazul şi cu "Two and Twenty Dark Tales: Dark Retellings of Mother Goose Rhymes", şi nu pot să spun că regret decizia pe care am luat-o. A fost, în marea majoritate a timpului, o lectură interesantă şi plăcută.
Această antologie fiind scrisă de 20 de autori diferiţi, e clar de la început că nu au cum să-ţi placă toate poveştile incluse. Cu atât de multe stiluri unice, e aproape imposibil să fie fiecare din ele pe gustul tău.
Mi-au plăcut la nebunie cam jumătate din aceste repovestiri întunecate ale poeziilor pentru copii, o parte din ele doar mi-au plăcut, restul plictisindu-mă de moarte. Probabil vă întrebaţi cum se pot transforma nişte rime prostuţe şi drăguţe în poveşti de groază. Ei bine, pot, şi trebuie să recunosc că unele din ele m-au îngrozit de-a dreptul. Toate poveştile se învârt în jurul unor teme ca moartea, vrăjitoare rele şi fiinţe deplorabile, nenorocite. Această carte este grotescă, sinistră şi macabră, şi în acelaşi timp fascinantă şi misterioasă, făcându-ţi pielea de găină.
Eu, una, nu ştiam majoritatea acestor poezioare, dar partea bună e că sunt incluse la începutul fiecărei poveşti. Dacă mie, care nu ştiam poeziile originale, mi-a plăcut atât de mult cartea, îmi imaginez cum li se va părea celor care sunt familiari cu ele.
Versiunea pe care am citit-o fiind un ARC, trei dintre poveşti lipseau din ebook, ceea ce e mare păcat, pentru că am auzit numai păreri bune legate de ele. Îmi doresc din toată inima să-i pot da cărţii patru flori de vanilie, dar nu pot să trec cu vederea poveştile care m-au plictisit de moarte.
Recomand această carte tinerilor, dar şi adulţilor cărora le-ar plăcea nişte poveşti de groază asemănătoare basmelor. Un mic avertisment doar: nu veţi mai vedea cu aceiaşi ochi poeziile inocente pentru copii după ce citiţi această carte.
postitsandpens's review
3.0
3.5/5 stars.
Before I get started, I want to preface this by saying that I tend to be an enormous fan of retellings. Combine that with the fact that I am teaching nursery rhymes throughout this school year to my first graders, and it's pretty much guaranteed that I was going to enjoy this book. Like most anthologies this one has its high and low points, but for the most part I'd rate the stories included in my e-galley 3 stars or above, with just a couple of exceptions. I'm not going to go into major detail on each of the individual stories, however; if you want to see my thoughts on most of the stories I read, please checkout my status updates.
Just as a heads-up as well, my e-galley didn't include all of the stories that are found in the completed version, so I can't make any comments regarding Interlude: Humpty Dumpty, one of the versions of Sea of Dew, and The Lion and the Unicorn: Part the Second. All of the other stories, however, were included, and I did read all of them.
For me, in order to be a good retelling, you have to be able to see the original sourcework somewhere in the story. Because of this, some of the tales fell a bit flat for me, particularly if it was about a nursery rhyme I was familiar with. It was for this reason alone that Blue was not one that I particularly enjoyed. It was simply too confusing and not explained terribly well. On the other hand, Sing A Song of Six Pence and Wee Willie Winkie were extraordinarily well done. Other highlights for me included Tick Tock (fabulously creepy!) and I Come Bearing Souls (I am not ashamed to admit that I loved this one simply because it included Egyptian Mythology). And then you had Life In A Shoe, which was simply too short; it needed a lot more to allow for the necessary world-building, and ended too abruptly.
All in all, Two and Twenty Dark Tales was a solid anthology with some true gems. If you enjoy retellings - particularly of the creepy variety - you would most likely find at least a handful of stories in this collection to entertain you. I know it certainly made me look at some of the nursery rhymes a little differently!
An e-galley was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
***
To see more of my reviews, please visit me @ Read and Reviewed!
Before I get started, I want to preface this by saying that I tend to be an enormous fan of retellings. Combine that with the fact that I am teaching nursery rhymes throughout this school year to my first graders, and it's pretty much guaranteed that I was going to enjoy this book. Like most anthologies this one has its high and low points, but for the most part I'd rate the stories included in my e-galley 3 stars or above, with just a couple of exceptions. I'm not going to go into major detail on each of the individual stories, however; if you want to see my thoughts on most of the stories I read, please checkout my status updates.
Just as a heads-up as well, my e-galley didn't include all of the stories that are found in the completed version, so I can't make any comments regarding Interlude: Humpty Dumpty, one of the versions of Sea of Dew, and The Lion and the Unicorn: Part the Second. All of the other stories, however, were included, and I did read all of them.
For me, in order to be a good retelling, you have to be able to see the original sourcework somewhere in the story. Because of this, some of the tales fell a bit flat for me, particularly if it was about a nursery rhyme I was familiar with. It was for this reason alone that Blue was not one that I particularly enjoyed. It was simply too confusing and not explained terribly well. On the other hand, Sing A Song of Six Pence and Wee Willie Winkie were extraordinarily well done. Other highlights for me included Tick Tock (fabulously creepy!) and I Come Bearing Souls (I am not ashamed to admit that I loved this one simply because it included Egyptian Mythology). And then you had Life In A Shoe, which was simply too short; it needed a lot more to allow for the necessary world-building, and ended too abruptly.
All in all, Two and Twenty Dark Tales was a solid anthology with some true gems. If you enjoy retellings - particularly of the creepy variety - you would most likely find at least a handful of stories in this collection to entertain you. I know it certainly made me look at some of the nursery rhymes a little differently!
An e-galley was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
***
To see more of my reviews, please visit me @ Read and Reviewed!
elaineruss's review
3.0
I assumed this was going to take the nursery rhymes of Mother Goose and expand them into short story form however these are mainly complete reinterpretations with elements of the original nursery rhyme. It was a little dissapointing if I'm honest. However, once I got over that, there are some good elements to this.
Wee Willie Winkie was without doubt the best story of the collection and it's no coincidence it's one of the few that actually took the rhyme and created a short story from it (as I'd been hoping).
All in all an interesting little collection of stories that, unfortunately, didn't quite deliver what I was hoping.
Full review here
Wee Willie Winkie was without doubt the best story of the collection and it's no coincidence it's one of the few that actually took the rhyme and created a short story from it (as I'd been hoping).
All in all an interesting little collection of stories that, unfortunately, didn't quite deliver what I was hoping.
Full review here
diaryofthebookdragon's review
4.0
Anthologies are like a sampler, an assortment of boxed chocolates. You never know what are you going to get read but you get an opportunity to taste a lot of new flavors authors. I don’t know why I did not read many anthologies before, but I must admit I am getting addicted. I got a feeling 2013 is going to be my anthology-addiction year. :)
Two and Twenty Dark Tales is an anthology of horror and paranormal stories for young adults inspired by Mother Goose Rhymes. Francisco X. Stork said it all in Foreword:
“Who would want to transform innocent nursery rhymes into dark and scary fairy tales? What kind of perverse minds would twist words meant to put us to sleep into colorful and sometimes fun, but nevertheless scary, nightmares?”
Well, as a matter of fact – a lot of authors. 22 of them to be precise. The stories they wrote are not exact retellings since they sometimes just use motives from rhymes as inspiration or main plot elements. Of course there are a couple of stories that are literal retellings, but most of them are not.
If you are not familiar with Mother Goose Rhymes, don’t worry. Before each story there will be a song that was an inspiration. Since I only knew song about Jack & Jill, this was a great help to me. I loved reading these stories and finding out how writers mind ‘click’, how they make the connections and what they will make from a couple of simple rhymes.
I will not do review of each story separately because that will be too long. And since they are all short, it is very hard commenting without spoilers. So I will try to in general comment what to expect.
This anthology is for young adult audience. What does it mean? It means that main characters are coming of age teens and stories usually center at some crucial event in their life. As usual, most of the stories are told from female point of view except “A Pocket Full of Posy” by Pamela van Hylckama Vlieg which has a male main character.
The title of the book tells you to expect dark retellings, so there will be a lot of stories with gothic/dark fantasy or horror elements (although there is one lonely sci-fi dystopian). As for HEA it will happen in 50% of cases. So if you must have your happy ending, you will be disappointed sometimes.
Reading this anthology was fun and interesting adventure. I was not familiar with any of these authors before, although I recognized a lot of the names, but after tasting what are they able to do, I will be definitely reading more of their work. So if you don’t know what next to read, try this book and you will definitely find a couple of new authors that are worth checking out.
I recommend this book to fans of: ya paranormal, ya horror, ya fantasy, retellings or to those who contemplate reading something from these genres.
Disclaimer: I was given a free eBook by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for a honest review. This text is also posted on Amazon and my blog.
Two and Twenty Dark Tales is an anthology of horror and paranormal stories for young adults inspired by Mother Goose Rhymes. Francisco X. Stork said it all in Foreword:
“Who would want to transform innocent nursery rhymes into dark and scary fairy tales? What kind of perverse minds would twist words meant to put us to sleep into colorful and sometimes fun, but nevertheless scary, nightmares?”
Well, as a matter of fact – a lot of authors. 22 of them to be precise. The stories they wrote are not exact retellings since they sometimes just use motives from rhymes as inspiration or main plot elements. Of course there are a couple of stories that are literal retellings, but most of them are not.
If you are not familiar with Mother Goose Rhymes, don’t worry. Before each story there will be a song that was an inspiration. Since I only knew song about Jack & Jill, this was a great help to me. I loved reading these stories and finding out how writers mind ‘click’, how they make the connections and what they will make from a couple of simple rhymes.
I will not do review of each story separately because that will be too long. And since they are all short, it is very hard commenting without spoilers. So I will try to in general comment what to expect.
This anthology is for young adult audience. What does it mean? It means that main characters are coming of age teens and stories usually center at some crucial event in their life. As usual, most of the stories are told from female point of view except “A Pocket Full of Posy” by Pamela van Hylckama Vlieg which has a male main character.
The title of the book tells you to expect dark retellings, so there will be a lot of stories with gothic/dark fantasy or horror elements (although there is one lonely sci-fi dystopian). As for HEA it will happen in 50% of cases. So if you must have your happy ending, you will be disappointed sometimes.
Reading this anthology was fun and interesting adventure. I was not familiar with any of these authors before, although I recognized a lot of the names, but after tasting what are they able to do, I will be definitely reading more of their work. So if you don’t know what next to read, try this book and you will definitely find a couple of new authors that are worth checking out.
I recommend this book to fans of: ya paranormal, ya horror, ya fantasy, retellings or to those who contemplate reading something from these genres.
Disclaimer: I was given a free eBook by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for a honest review. This text is also posted on Amazon and my blog.
casey_zi's review
4.0
Great short story collection! Allegorical, interpretive, and entertaining. Except for a few confusions here and there, I enjoyed it very much. Here are my comments for each tale, in the order they are presented:
As Blue as the Sky and Just as Old
Meh. Not a strong opening story. Perhaps it was because I wasn't familiar with the rhyme this one is based on, or perhaps it was a pile of rubbish.
Sing a Song of Six-Pence
Dark, haunting, and eventually rewarding: A story about the lengths a mother will go to be with her child.
Clockwork
This has got to be my favorite one out of the whole anthology. This story has the mouse who ran up a clock turn out to be a girl; how and why she became a mouse is the mystery the girl explores. It keeps you guessing and arrives at a bittersweet conclusion that I approved of wholeheartedly.
Blue
An invisible spirit who writes stories on peoples' skin meets a boy who can see her. This story could have had potential had it been expanded some, but it ended too abruptly, without taking that potential anywhere.
Pieces of Eight
Eh, a lot of complicated, "mysterious" things happened to develop the worldbuiding, but again, this story wandered around aimlessly and ended without taking its potential anywhere.
Wee Willie Winkie
In this one, a girl who has been lying about her age is warned about a curse targeting under-sixteens. The dark atmosphere is particularly strong here; it's a creepy story that will no doubt scare kids into getting to bed on time.
Boys and Girls Come Out To Play
Started out great, but turned into something less than great. It was trying too hard to aim for "dark" and got a lot of "huh?" instead.
I Come Bearing Souls
This one had an interesting premise, but too much of it was unexplained and left me feeling a little bewildered. Why would the pantheon of Ancient Egypt be incarnated in the bodies of American teenagers, and why would they be performing death rituals on their classmates?
The Lion and the Unicorn (Part One)
This is a promising start, but the ARC I recieved of this does not include Part Two, so I can't say anything conclusive about the whole story.
Life in a Shoe
In this one, the situation behind the woman with all her kids living in a shoe is explored with a little realism. (With all those children, neglect and poverty are more than probable.) It was okay; not bad, not amazing. A little too simplified and short compared to the other stories.
Candlelight
A sad story about what comes to people, especially teenagers, who are selfish and petty and do not appreciate what they have.
One for Sorrow
A girl is drawn to a strange crow who shows up every day at her window. He wants her to break a curse that has been set on him, but in doing so, she might just set the curse on herself instead.
Those Who Whisper
Reminded me of the novel Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Marillier. A young woman is cast from her village after a mysterious string of murders claims her mother. She lives in a hut out in the forest for years, until one day a familiar face shows up at her door with a horrifying truth. Not bad.
Little Miss Muffet
I couldn't make sense of this one. People turned into spiders randomly and ate each other's friends. Seriously.
Sea of Dew
A haunting story about the fate of people lost at sea.
Tick Tock
A very, very creepy babysitter horror story. Great atmosphere, but it was too bizarre and nonsensical to be a great story. I failed to see how or why any of the events in this story could have happened, even in a horror fiction. Usually the villains/spectres in horror have some kind of reason, no matter how twisted, for what they do; in this tale there was nothing I could infer as to what their motives were.
A Pocket Full of Posy
This one caught my interest very quickly. A boy wakes up in a field, with blood on his hands, and finds his girlfriend dead nearby. But he cannot remember what happened, and won't rest until he does. I liked it, but was disappointed by the solution it arrived at.
The Well
What really happened when Jack and Jill fell down a hill? Unfortunate things.
The Wish
Could practically be the poster story for the phrase "be careful what you wish for." A girl makes a wish upon a star, and a moment later a boy appears to unknowingly grant her wish.
A Ribbon of Blue
A sweet tale about death and the release it can provide.
Thanks to NetGalley.com and Month9Books for providing me with the ARC!
As Blue as the Sky and Just as Old
Meh. Not a strong opening story. Perhaps it was because I wasn't familiar with the rhyme this one is based on, or perhaps it was a pile of rubbish.
Sing a Song of Six-Pence
Dark, haunting, and eventually rewarding: A story about the lengths a mother will go to be with her child.
Clockwork
This has got to be my favorite one out of the whole anthology. This story has the mouse who ran up a clock turn out to be a girl; how and why she became a mouse is the mystery the girl explores. It keeps you guessing and arrives at a bittersweet conclusion that I approved of wholeheartedly.
Blue
An invisible spirit who writes stories on peoples' skin meets a boy who can see her. This story could have had potential had it been expanded some, but it ended too abruptly, without taking that potential anywhere.
Pieces of Eight
Eh, a lot of complicated, "mysterious" things happened to develop the worldbuiding, but again, this story wandered around aimlessly and ended without taking its potential anywhere.
Wee Willie Winkie
In this one, a girl who has been lying about her age is warned about a curse targeting under-sixteens. The dark atmosphere is particularly strong here; it's a creepy story that will no doubt scare kids into getting to bed on time.
Boys and Girls Come Out To Play
Started out great, but turned into something less than great. It was trying too hard to aim for "dark" and got a lot of "huh?" instead.
I Come Bearing Souls
This one had an interesting premise, but too much of it was unexplained and left me feeling a little bewildered. Why would the pantheon of Ancient Egypt be incarnated in the bodies of American teenagers, and why would they be performing death rituals on their classmates?
The Lion and the Unicorn (Part One)
This is a promising start, but the ARC I recieved of this does not include Part Two, so I can't say anything conclusive about the whole story.
Life in a Shoe
In this one, the situation behind the woman with all her kids living in a shoe is explored with a little realism. (With all those children, neglect and poverty are more than probable.) It was okay; not bad, not amazing. A little too simplified and short compared to the other stories.
Candlelight
A sad story about what comes to people, especially teenagers, who are selfish and petty and do not appreciate what they have.
One for Sorrow
A girl is drawn to a strange crow who shows up every day at her window. He wants her to break a curse that has been set on him, but in doing so, she might just set the curse on herself instead.
Those Who Whisper
Reminded me of the novel Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Marillier. A young woman is cast from her village after a mysterious string of murders claims her mother. She lives in a hut out in the forest for years, until one day a familiar face shows up at her door with a horrifying truth. Not bad.
Little Miss Muffet
I couldn't make sense of this one. People turned into spiders randomly and ate each other's friends. Seriously.
Sea of Dew
A haunting story about the fate of people lost at sea.
Tick Tock
A very, very creepy babysitter horror story. Great atmosphere, but it was too bizarre and nonsensical to be a great story. I failed to see how or why any of the events in this story could have happened, even in a horror fiction. Usually the villains/spectres in horror have some kind of reason, no matter how twisted, for what they do; in this tale there was nothing I could infer as to what their motives were.
A Pocket Full of Posy
This one caught my interest very quickly. A boy wakes up in a field, with blood on his hands, and finds his girlfriend dead nearby. But he cannot remember what happened, and won't rest until he does. I liked it, but was disappointed by the solution it arrived at.
The Well
What really happened when Jack and Jill fell down a hill? Unfortunate things.
The Wish
Could practically be the poster story for the phrase "be careful what you wish for." A girl makes a wish upon a star, and a moment later a boy appears to unknowingly grant her wish.
A Ribbon of Blue
A sweet tale about death and the release it can provide.
Thanks to NetGalley.com and Month9Books for providing me with the ARC!
lisaluvsliterature's review
I have to thank Netgalley for allowing me to read this, unfortunately, it was just not for me. I got through 3 stories before I gave up. The nursery rhymes were some not very well known in some cases, and the stories were just so far reaching that I couldn't really get into them, or relate them really to what I'd kind of thought the stories would be like. Some people may enjoy them, they were just not my cup of tea, so not worth me reading the whole book. Now I do understand some of the big name authors didn't have there stories in the books yet, but that would probably not change my mind.
powerlibrarian's review
5.0
This anthology of twenty-two young adult short stories is quite remarkable. Most of the stories are equally poetic and eerie, with unique and spooky plots and lyrical writing styles. Some are set in historical fantasy worlds, and others are set in present day, but they all share a similar ethereal quality.
There were only one or two stories that didn’t captivate me, which I believe is quite impressive for an anthology with such a specific theme. I’m not going to lie--quite a few of the stories had me literally upset when I reached the ending--not just because of the dark twists that gutted me, but because the stories were over. Some of these should be made into novels, and I’m tempted to email those authors and tell them to get to work on extending their ideas for a full length publication.
I was very familiar with some of the nursery rhymes (like the Hickory Dickory Dock and the Jack and Jill rhymes), but there were many that I didn’t recognize at all. Knowing the rhymes before reading the book did not at all affect my enjoyment of these stories. I would recommend this book to anyone regardless of their familiarity with or appreciation of nursery rhymes. These dark and creepy stories are for teenagers and adults alike. I highly recommend this collection for anyone looking for a brief escape into the dark and twisted world of the Mother Goose nursery rhymes.
There were only one or two stories that didn’t captivate me, which I believe is quite impressive for an anthology with such a specific theme. I’m not going to lie--quite a few of the stories had me literally upset when I reached the ending--not just because of the dark twists that gutted me, but because the stories were over. Some of these should be made into novels, and I’m tempted to email those authors and tell them to get to work on extending their ideas for a full length publication.
I was very familiar with some of the nursery rhymes (like the Hickory Dickory Dock and the Jack and Jill rhymes), but there were many that I didn’t recognize at all. Knowing the rhymes before reading the book did not at all affect my enjoyment of these stories. I would recommend this book to anyone regardless of their familiarity with or appreciation of nursery rhymes. These dark and creepy stories are for teenagers and adults alike. I highly recommend this collection for anyone looking for a brief escape into the dark and twisted world of the Mother Goose nursery rhymes.
brandy_wine's review
2.0
I thought the twists to the mother goose rhymes was neat. It was different than what I normally read.
owlishbookish's review
5.0
This review originally appeared on my blog, Starting the Next Chapter with a 4.5 rating.
You may recall hearing all about Old Mother Hubbard and Humpty Dumpty as a child. What if that wasn't the entire story? Two and Twenty Dark Tales is here to give you a glimpse of the possibilities behind these classic rhymes with new interpretations and fresh story-telling from a variety of authors. Ranging from eerie to moving, there is something for everyone in this fantastic collection of short stories.
Each story on offer in this anthology takes on a particular Mother Goose rhyme and spins it in an entirely new way. My personal favorite was "Sing a Song of Six-Pence" by Sarwat Chadda, a dark and foreboding take on the rhyme of the same title. With an unusual yet intriguing narrator and a forlorn setting, the tale Chadda tells is barely recognizable yet amazingly inventive. That's only the beginning. From front to back, this book is chock full of some truly wonderful stories.
If you're a particular fan of short story anthologies, Two and Twenty Dark Tales is a must. With such a fantastic selection of stories, you just can't go wrong. I thoroughly enjoyed reading each and every adaptation the book has to offer. It made me think about all of the possibilities in interpretations of such time-honored, traditional rhymes. I can promise you one thing in particular, as well: You'll never look at Mother Goose the same way.
Obligatory legal statement: This digital review copy was provided to me free of charge by the publisher via Netgalley. No monetary compensation was received in exchange for this fair and unbiased review.
You may recall hearing all about Old Mother Hubbard and Humpty Dumpty as a child. What if that wasn't the entire story? Two and Twenty Dark Tales is here to give you a glimpse of the possibilities behind these classic rhymes with new interpretations and fresh story-telling from a variety of authors. Ranging from eerie to moving, there is something for everyone in this fantastic collection of short stories.
Each story on offer in this anthology takes on a particular Mother Goose rhyme and spins it in an entirely new way. My personal favorite was "Sing a Song of Six-Pence" by Sarwat Chadda, a dark and foreboding take on the rhyme of the same title. With an unusual yet intriguing narrator and a forlorn setting, the tale Chadda tells is barely recognizable yet amazingly inventive. That's only the beginning. From front to back, this book is chock full of some truly wonderful stories.
If you're a particular fan of short story anthologies, Two and Twenty Dark Tales is a must. With such a fantastic selection of stories, you just can't go wrong. I thoroughly enjoyed reading each and every adaptation the book has to offer. It made me think about all of the possibilities in interpretations of such time-honored, traditional rhymes. I can promise you one thing in particular, as well: You'll never look at Mother Goose the same way.
Obligatory legal statement: This digital review copy was provided to me free of charge by the publisher via Netgalley. No monetary compensation was received in exchange for this fair and unbiased review.