Book Summary:
Sabrina and Daphne Grimm have had their world turned upside down for a year they have been shuffled from horrible foster home to horrible foster home. While still holding on to the belief that their parents are still out there. When suddenly out of nowhere the grandmother they thought was dead reappears in their life. Granny Relda introduces them to the life of a Grimm in Ferryport Landing. She tells them that all the fairy tales are true and their family has been documenting the ever-afters for centuries. Their first fairy tale detective assignment is the crushing of a farmer’s house by what looks like a giants foot. The girls, Granny Relda, and Mr. Cannis must find out if it really was a giant and how to stop said giant from causing more damage to the town. The story takes a turn for the worse when Mr. Cannis and Relda are abducted by said giant, and the girls are left to figure out the fairy tale world and solve the crime. That is if they survive meeting Robin Goodfellow himself Puck. In the end they find the real culprit was the famous or infamous Jack. Who was out to make himself something once more. They are also introduced the secretive and dangerous group the scarlet hand. This is the first book in a series of 11, so this is great introduction to the wonderful fairy tale characters in a new setting.
APA Citation:
Buckley, M., & Ferguson, P. (2005). The fairy-tale detectives. New York, NY: Amulet Books.
Impressions:
This book was one of the best novels that expands on fairy tale lore. I loved all the characters from Granny Relda to Mr. Cannis and the girls there was such characterization. I felt for the girls being transported from one foster care home to the next. Never really knowing that they were a part of such an amazing and famous family. Sabrina is believable in her quest to find her family and the distrust she has for granny Relda. She has been through a lot and feels that she can only depend on herself. Her sisterly protection over Daphne is also believable, her parents left her in charge and that’s her role as her sisters protector The typical suspects such as Snow White and the Big Bad wolf were reimagined as real people, put in extenuating circumstances. The author gave each character a job and a calling not to far from their fairy tale existence. Prince Charming is the Mayor and the seven dwarves are his handymen/ henchmen . After reading this book I felt invested in the characters and their story. I want to know more about Ferryport Landing and the Grimm family. This is a great first book and it gives a good introduction to the characters while still telling a meaningful story. I cannot wait to read the entire series.
Professional Review:
KIRKUS REVIEW
Readers will definitely have to be up on their folktales, as well as children’s lit classics in general, to catch all the references in this terrific, head-spinning series opener. Dumped roughly out of foster care into the arms of Relda, a twinkly-eyed woman claiming to be their grandma, Sabrina and Daphne Grimm, 11 and seven, find themselves in Ferryport Landing, a seemingly normal New York town originally (and more accurately) dubbed Fairyport Landing. It’s inhabited by the likes of Mayor Charming, three chubby cops named Boarman, Swineheart and Hamstead and vulpine Mr. Canis—all transported overseas for their own safety long ago by four-times-Great Grandpa Wilhelm Grimm. Borrowing a flying carpet and a certain pair of silver slippers from a fashion-conscious Magic Mirror, Sabrina and Daphne quickly find themselves springing the renowned Jack from jail to help deal with a destructive giant who has snatched Relda. All is, however, not as it seems. Rich in well-set-up surprises and imaginatively tweaked characters, this tongue-in-cheek frolic features both a pair of memorable young sleuths and a madcap plot with plenty of leads into future episodes. (Fantasy. 10-12)
THE SISTERS GRIMM by Michael Buckley,Peter Ferguson. (2005). Kirkus Reviews. Retrieved November 23, 2015, from http://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/michael-buckley/the-sisters-grimm/
Library Uses: I would use this book and others that use fairy tale characters in a program in which I book talked books that used fairy tale characters in their story. We would then compare and contrast the take each author used on the same characters.
No comments:
Post a Comment