Read it Again, Mommy: Two Wordless Picture Books about Dogs

A Ball for Daisy by Chris Raschka

This is a simple wordless picture book about a dog and a ball. The dog loves the ball. Another dog pops the ball. The dog gets a new ball. It’s very simple, yet the images are so cute and lively. Preschooler monkey loved this book and actually had tears in her eyes when the ball popped, she was so into the story!

Bow Wow Bugs a Bug by Mark Newgarden and Megan Montague Cash

This is another wordless picture book, though a little more complex than the first one. Told in comic book style, the story is about a dog who chases a bug around his block, encountering more bugs and dogs in the process. The whole thing is a little bit silly, a little surreal, but for my preschooler, very fascinating.

#aballfordaisy #bowwowbugsabug #comics #picturebook #meganmontaguecash #preschoolermonkey #wordless #marknewgarden #mommyreaditagain #chrisraschka

Guest Post by Author Anna Staniszewski: Top Five Favorite Fairy Tales

Today on the blog, I’m excited to have a guest post by Anna Staniszewski, author of the hilarious My Very Unfairy Tale Life series. The last book in the series, My Sort of Fairy Tale Ending, comes out on November 5th, so pre-order your copy now!

Take it away, Anna!

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Top Five Favorite Fairy Tales

1. East of the Sun, West of the Moon

This has been my favorite fairy tale for years. At first it seems like it’s going to be similar to Beauty and the Beast, but then it evolves into a story in which the heroine has to literally go to the ends of the earth to rescue her prince. When I first started writing My Very UnFairy Tale Life, this tale was very much in the back of my mind.

2. The Glass Mountain

I grew up with Polish fairy tales, and this was one of my favorites. The image of an impossible-to-climb glass mountain really stuck with me, so much so that it made an appearance in my second book, My Epic Fairy Tale Fail.

3. Cinderella

I’ve loved Cinderella since I was little for two reasons: the fact that she gets to wear pretty dresses, and the fact that she’s a regular girl who rises up to become extraordinary. In the final book in my series, My Sort of Fairy Tale Ending, I had a lot of fun (maybe a little too much fun!) turning this tale on its head.

4. Clever Gretel

 Not a lot of people know this Grimms’ folk tale, but it’s a downright hilarious story about a mischievous and plucky heroine–my favorite!

5. Hansel and Gretel

Abandoned children and flesh-eating witches are pretty cool, but a house made out of candy? Yes, please! Confession: I may be a little bit of a sugar addict…

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About the author:

Born in Poland and raised in the United States, Anna Stanszewski grew up loving stories in both Polish and English. She was named the 2006-2007 Writer-in-Residence at the Boston Public Library and a winner of the 2009 PEN New England Susan P. Bloom Discovery Award. Currently, Anna lives outside of Boston with her husband and their black Labrador, Emma.

When she’s not writing, Anna spends her time teaching, reading, and challenging unicorns to games of hopscotch. She is the author of My Very UnFairy Tale Life and its sequels, My Epic Fairy Tale Fail

and My Sort of Fairy Tale Ending

, all published by Sourcebooks Jabberwocky. Look for the first book in Anna’s next tween series, 

The Dirt Diary

, in January 2014, and visit her at 

www.annastan.com.

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Followers of my Boston Area Children’s Author Events Calendar will note that Anna is having a launch party for My Sort of Fairy Tale Ending at the New England Mobile Book Fair in Newton on November 9th. (More events with are listed on her website.)

If you’d like to find out more about her upcoming book, My Sort of Fairy Tale Ending, check out the trailer:

#PENaward #myveryunfairytaleseries #fairytales #guestpost #annastaniszewski #video

YA Book Review: The Kingdom of Little Wounds by Susann Cokal

The Kingdom of Little Wounds by Susann Cokal

This book reads as an exploration of the brutal truth behind fairy tales. The novel is violent and fascinating, brutal and heart-rending, engrossing and, well, just plain gross. The story is told from several points-of-view, including a young aspiring seamstress, an African nursemaid, and the Queen herself, though much of the book is also written in an omniscient third person. It sounds confusing, and it is occasionally, but it works very well.

The author’s writing is intricate and beautiful. I loved the medieval Scandinavian setting–the author’s integration of her research is flawless, and I enjoyed reading about crazy medieval medical theories.

Once I got over the fact that this was categorized as YA, I enjoyed this book immensely. I think this is really an adult fantasy novel, classified as YA, perhaps to capture those (female) adult YA readers who read fantasy when it is labelled YA, but not when it is adult. However, due to the graphic and frankly disturbing (even for adults) content, I would be hard-pressed to give this as a gift to any teenagers that I know personally. From depictions of rape, venereal disease, failed abortions, and numerous beheadings, this book definitely isn’t for the weak at heart.

Thank goodness for the (mostly) happy ending!

Review of ARC received through NetGalley.

#bookreview #adultbook #YA #Thekingdomoflittlewounds #fairytale #susanncokal