LOOK! Gregory Maguire's new book comes out TOMORROW, and it is a retelling of SNOW WHITE, and I am seeing the Broadway adaptation of "Wicked" on SATURDAY, and life is GOOD, and I REALLY LIKE using capital letters like this.
Re: Books books books!cenireOctober 14 2003, 17:47:10 UTC
Yay! Is it the one with the green witch? I cut that out and put it up on my bulletin board. :D
Okay, for twisted fairy tales, in addition to the other books, I can give you more suggestions! (Sorry, I tend to go way overboard. You can look up descriptions on amazon.com or something and pick what intrigues you, or ignore me completely and get a random book. Really, either way, I won't be offended. I just love talking about books.)
Donna Jo Napoli writes a LOT of twisted fairy tales. "Beast" for Beauty & The Beast; "Zel" for Rapunzel; "The Magic Circle" for Hansel & Gretel; "Spinners" for Rumpelstiltskin; "Crazy Jack" for Jack and the Beanstalk... there are others too that I know I'm forgetting. Depends on what fairy tale intrigues you most. I think I read "Beast" first, but that was probably coincidence.
For Cinderella, there's "Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister" by Gregory Maguire (not as good as "Wicked", but still fascinating), "Just Ella" by Margaret Peterson Haddix, and "Ella Enchanted" by Gail Carson Levine (a very quick read).
For the Wizard of Oz, of course there's "Wicked", and also "Was" by Geoff Ryman, which manages to weave together the stories of L. Frank Baum, Judy Garland, the original Dorothy Gale, and a man with AIDS in the 1990's together brilliantly.
When I was younger I really enjoyed "Inside the Walls of Troy" by Clemence McLaren, which retells the Trojan War from the viewpoint of Helen and Cassandra.
Another one I forgot to recommend last time is "The Solitaire Mystery" by Jostein Gaardner, which I can't describe well except to say it makes you *think*. Everytime I start rereading it, I can't put it down until I finish. Good stuff. "American Gods" by Neil Gaiman, which I've been talking about so much recently, has a lot of material dealing with legends and gods and such.
Re: Books books books!elusiveficusOctober 15 2003, 20:08:07 UTC
Right, so I just got home from the book store! I am now the proud owner of "American Gods," "Good Omens" and, your fav, "Wicked." I'm so excited!! I'm starting "Wicked" first. YAY FOR BOOKS!
Re: Books books books!cenireOctober 16 2003, 17:41:59 UTC
YAY! I am so proud of you! :D I hope you enjoy them all, and I want to hear updates on your progress throughout them! ;) In case you hadn't noticed, I love talking about books, so I'm happy to discuss any one of the three, as well as any other favorite books we have in common. Squee for bibliophiles!
Okay, for twisted fairy tales, in addition to the other books, I can give you more suggestions! (Sorry, I tend to go way overboard. You can look up descriptions on amazon.com or something and pick what intrigues you, or ignore me completely and get a random book. Really, either way, I won't be offended. I just love talking about books.)
Donna Jo Napoli writes a LOT of twisted fairy tales. "Beast" for Beauty & The Beast; "Zel" for Rapunzel; "The Magic Circle" for Hansel & Gretel; "Spinners" for Rumpelstiltskin; "Crazy Jack" for Jack and the Beanstalk... there are others too that I know I'm forgetting. Depends on what fairy tale intrigues you most. I think I read "Beast" first, but that was probably coincidence.
For Cinderella, there's "Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister" by Gregory Maguire (not as good as "Wicked", but still fascinating), "Just Ella" by Margaret Peterson Haddix, and "Ella Enchanted" by Gail Carson Levine (a very quick read).
For the Wizard of Oz, of course there's "Wicked", and also "Was" by Geoff Ryman, which manages to weave together the stories of L. Frank Baum, Judy Garland, the original Dorothy Gale, and a man with AIDS in the 1990's together brilliantly.
When I was younger I really enjoyed "Inside the Walls of Troy" by Clemence McLaren, which retells the Trojan War from the viewpoint of Helen and Cassandra.
Another one I forgot to recommend last time is "The Solitaire Mystery" by Jostein Gaardner, which I can't describe well except to say it makes you *think*. Everytime I start rereading it, I can't put it down until I finish. Good stuff. "American Gods" by Neil Gaiman, which I've been talking about so much recently, has a lot of material dealing with legends and gods and such.
Well, that should keep you busy until 2004... ;)
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I think I'll grab a "Wicked" for sure. It just seems like there is too much telling to read it than not.
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