Rating: 
Summary: Worth every page, and every chocolate chip!
Review: This is a wonderful collection of short stories. Don't let them fool you with the "Grade 5-8" thing -- the stories are ageless. It starts out with the cute and silly ones, involving chipmunks, bizarre wizards, and arrogant unicorns, and then moves on to what I consider the real meat of the book: the story whose title I can't remember either, a retelling of Sleeping Beauty from an odd perspective, and the Rose Garden story. Those two are haunting, hard-hitting, Wrede at her finest. It then meanders through other various fantasy worlds (the Earthwitch story is wonderful, for being one of her early works), including the "Cruel Sister" story, based on the ballad with which most fantasy readers are familiar. It ends with a delight for all of her readers, a story called "Utensile Strength" involving Cimorene, Mendanbar, and Daystar (no Shiara, unfortunately). It was great, and the recipe to which others have alluded: it's great, too. I made it for my birthday a couple years ago. It's kind of similar to brownies, but I would definitely recommend it to anyone with a little patience (it was a trip to the store to get all the ingredients).So: buy the book, make the recipe, and have a wonderful day!
Rating:
Summary: Worth every page, and every chocolate chip!
Review: This is a wonderful collection of short stories. Don't let them fool you with the "Grade 5-8" thing -- the stories are ageless. It starts out with the cute and silly ones, involving chipmunks, bizarre wizards, and arrogant unicorns, and then moves on to what I consider the real meat of the book: the story whose title I can't remember either, a retelling of Sleeping Beauty from an odd perspective, and the Rose Garden story. Those two are haunting, hard-hitting, Wrede at her finest. It then meanders through other various fantasy worlds (the Earthwitch story is wonderful, for being one of her early works), including the "Cruel Sister" story, based on the ballad with which most fantasy readers are familiar. It ends with a delight for all of her readers, a story called "Utensile Strength" involving Cimorene, Mendanbar, and Daystar (no Shiara, unfortunately). It was great, and the recipe to which others have alluded: it's great, too. I made it for my birthday a couple years ago. It's kind of similar to brownies, but I would definitely recommend it to anyone with a little patience (it was a trip to the store to get all the ingredients). So: buy the book, make the recipe, and have a wonderful day!
Rating:
Summary: TOTALLY GREAT!
Review: This is a wonderful set of stories...i think that my favorite it the one about the frying pan...and the cake is good too.
Rating:
Summary: Fractured Fairytales
Review: This is an absolutely great set of books for fun-loving "kids" of all ages. The main characters are believable if imaginative, and the "walk-ons" are laughable. The interplay of the main storyline with the odd-ball fairy-tale take-offs keep it light-hearted and warm. I'd recommend this book to anyone whoever sat--or wished they'd sat--on is or her's mother lap while being read fairy tales as a child. The spoofs on the standard fairy tales are absolutely delightful. This is one (or four) you will want to read again and again.
Rating:
Summary: Great book.....
Review: This is great book for kids of all ages. It's continuesly humorous, filled with wisecracks and teases about the normal fantasy... great short stories, some tragic and moving, other happy and bright. But they're all great! This is a great read aloud for kids 5-8, and great for every one else including adults! Every one from 9-99 will love reading it to them selves, and every one, from 1-100 will enjoy hearing it! No violence, and none of all the rest of R rated stuff.
Rating:
Summary: Not just for children....
Review: This is the first book of Wrede's that I ever encountered, and from the moment I opened it, I was enthralled. Not entirely children's tales, these... Wrede weaves intricate original fairytales in and out of brilliantly re-worked classics and tales spun from myths that are obscure yet deserving of elaboration. Sleeping Beauty is herein rendered with a haunting, tragic genius, and an old Irish lyric poem telling the tale of a King's three daughters will never be quite the same again. Hats off to this brilliant collection of charms and delights!
Rating:
Summary: Recommended
Review: Wrede has done it again! This book is really good. It's funny, charming and neat. I would recommend it to everyone, especially to fans of the Enchanted Forest, Lyra and all of the other places she's written about. I loved all of the stories in the Book. P.S. The recipe at the back's great, too! And for those of you unfamiliar with the worlds of Patricia Wrede READ THEM SOON! You might also want to check out the the Lioness Quartet by Tamora Pierce.
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