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3.37 AVERAGE
3.37 AVERAGE
This is exactly the kind of book that should be right up my alley. I enjoy retellings of familiar stories, especially when they are given a dark and grim twist. Yet, I found myself disappointed by this collection of short stories. In many cases, the stories seemed to just end and there wasn't much of a point. And it was hard to tell why the author felt a need to retell this particular story in this way. The Velveteen Rabbit story was perhaps the best one in this collection. It was dark and creepy and weird and somber and the tone was just right. There were a couple of other stories that I also thought were well done. The rest, however, were disappointing. I really wanted to like this. I'm sad that I didn't like it more.
Disturbing, clever, and elegant, reminds me of Shirley Jackson and Neil Gaiman. Ortberg at his uncanny best.
Out of all of the stories only 2 made sense. All do these stories had terrible endings that only left me confused. Was that the point? Very disappointed.
Creepy good fairy tale twists! The Velveteen Rabbit, dear Lord, about did me in. Greater collection of short stories.
I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley
This was a really great book of fairytale retellings. I like how she often took inspiration from more than one story at a time [all the source stories are listed at the end of the book] instead of just doing a straight retelling but with dark elements added. It definitely helped keep my interest because I didn't always know where the story was going, which I find is the problem with a lot of fairytale retellings these days. These are definitely darker than the Disney versions you are probably familiar with and also have a lot of feminist undertones that set them apart from the originals as well. There were a few at the end that I wasn't as into, but for the most part these were very enjoyable.
This was a really great book of fairytale retellings. I like how she often took inspiration from more than one story at a time [all the source stories are listed at the end of the book] instead of just doing a straight retelling but with dark elements added. It definitely helped keep my interest because I didn't always know where the story was going, which I find is the problem with a lot of fairytale retellings these days. These are definitely darker than the Disney versions you are probably familiar with and also have a lot of feminist undertones that set them apart from the originals as well. There were a few at the end that I wasn't as into, but for the most part these were very enjoyable.
As someone who lives for fairy tale retellings, I was very excited about this book. I thoroughly enjoyed these revisions of classic tales. I can't say I understood all of them (those that I didn't "get" were very few in number), but I still enjoyed the experience of reading them. My favorite stories in the collection were "The Merry Spinster" and "Six Boy-Coffins." Ortberg does a great job of bringing out darker themes from the original stories in these new versions.
the daughter cells- 4/5
the thankless child- 2/5
fear not: an incident log- 1/5
the six boy-coffins- 3/5
the rabbit- 4/5
the merry spinster- 1/5
the wedding party-1/5
someone's been threatening our friend mr. toad- 1/5
cast your bread upon the waters- 2/5
the frog's princess- 1/5
good fences make good neighbors- 1/5
the thankless child- 2/5
fear not: an incident log- 1/5
the six boy-coffins- 3/5
the rabbit- 4/5
the merry spinster- 1/5
the wedding party-1/5
someone's been threatening our friend mr. toad- 1/5
cast your bread upon the waters- 2/5
the frog's princess- 1/5
good fences make good neighbors- 1/5
I really enjoy Ortberg’s voice and writing. The stories are excellent individually but feel a little repetitive as a collection.
I liked The Rabbit and, Fear Not, and Six Boy Coffins
Each story was a snapshot into the larger world of one. There were no resolutions and sometimes no real plot or point. It felt like she either got bored and/or just didn’t feel like finishing the tales. Maybe possibly she backed herself into some storytelling corner she didn’t know how to get out of so she just stopped writing so as not to expose that. I’m not sure which, but mostly I’d get to the end of the story and scratch my head.
She can write that’s for sure. She’s got some great sentences in there. It could be over the top, for example the “witty” banter of The Wedding Party” was so excessive I found myself wondering how anyone could have the energy to match that conversation. It was relentless.
The gender pronoun swapping felt contrived. As if to say “I’m inclusive...I’m mixing it up.” There was no real-ness to it. More like it was used to check an LGBTQ genre box. It’s possible it was used to make use of preconceived notions of what is expected of daughters as opposed to sons in fairy tales. So making daughters—He—thereby causing the reader to assign those duties to the male character instead. It really only worked well in The Frog’s Princess.
So much gaslighting! In numerous stories. Hit too close to home.
Each story was a snapshot into the larger world of one. There were no resolutions and sometimes no real plot or point. It felt like she either got bored and/or just didn’t feel like finishing the tales. Maybe possibly she backed herself into some storytelling corner she didn’t know how to get out of so she just stopped writing so as not to expose that. I’m not sure which, but mostly I’d get to the end of the story and scratch my head.
She can write that’s for sure. She’s got some great sentences in there. It could be over the top, for example the “witty” banter of The Wedding Party” was so excessive I found myself wondering how anyone could have the energy to match that conversation. It was relentless.
The gender pronoun swapping felt contrived. As if to say “I’m inclusive...I’m mixing it up.” There was no real-ness to it. More like it was used to check an LGBTQ genre box. It’s possible it was used to make use of preconceived notions of what is expected of daughters as opposed to sons in fairy tales. So making daughters—He—thereby causing the reader to assign those duties to the male character instead. It really only worked well in The Frog’s Princess.
So much gaslighting! In numerous stories. Hit too close to home.
**4.5 stars**
I find that there are thousands of versions of fairy tales retellings being published for today's readers, but Ortberg's versions are much more unique than anything else I've ever read. It's become a thing to explore the original macabre fairy tales written in the past. But The Merry Spinster is so much more than anything else I've read before.
Ortberg is funny, clever and witty, and all of this translates so extremely well into each of her stories. There are eleven stories in all, and if you only read one of them, let it be The Velveteen Rabbit. I was completely floored by this twisted version, which features a sociopathic stuffed rabbit hellbent on making all those who 'wrong' him pay, and wants to become 'real.'
There were so many amazing stories in this volume. These include a tale of mermaids who are concerned with property rights on land and a king who would murder all of his sons if he ever has a daughter. Many of the characters play interesting parts, especially in one where three daughters, one named Paul, consider playing the role of either husband or wife if they were to ever marry. Whether or not I completely understood each and every story (trust me - some of these went right over my head), they are amazingly well-written and contain plenty of horror and humor to go around.
I'm so glad I got a chance to read The Merry Spinster. It was completely satisfying and horrifying, full of questions and feminist critique that is sure to be thought-provoking for anyone. Ortberg manages to be clever and funny without poking fun on these original stories and their twisted endings. More than this, she highlights their originality while making them relevant for modern readers.
I find that there are thousands of versions of fairy tales retellings being published for today's readers, but Ortberg's versions are much more unique than anything else I've ever read. It's become a thing to explore the original macabre fairy tales written in the past. But The Merry Spinster is so much more than anything else I've read before.
Ortberg is funny, clever and witty, and all of this translates so extremely well into each of her stories. There are eleven stories in all, and if you only read one of them, let it be The Velveteen Rabbit. I was completely floored by this twisted version, which features a sociopathic stuffed rabbit hellbent on making all those who 'wrong' him pay, and wants to become 'real.'
There were so many amazing stories in this volume. These include a tale of mermaids who are concerned with property rights on land and a king who would murder all of his sons if he ever has a daughter. Many of the characters play interesting parts, especially in one where three daughters, one named Paul, consider playing the role of either husband or wife if they were to ever marry. Whether or not I completely understood each and every story (trust me - some of these went right over my head), they are amazingly well-written and contain plenty of horror and humor to go around.
I'm so glad I got a chance to read The Merry Spinster. It was completely satisfying and horrifying, full of questions and feminist critique that is sure to be thought-provoking for anyone. Ortberg manages to be clever and funny without poking fun on these original stories and their twisted endings. More than this, she highlights their originality while making them relevant for modern readers.