In a Glass Grimmly

Starred review from August 6, 2012
The grossness quotient has gone up in Gidwitz’s companion to A Tale Dark and Grimm, his grisly reimagining of classic fairy tales. Translation: this second foray is even more enjoyable than the author’s acclaimed debut. The protagonists in this installment are Jack, Jill, and a talking frog, whose adventures begin separately in reworkings of “The Frog Prince” and “The Emperor’s New Clothes,” before the three join forces in “Jack and the Bean-stalk.” Parental cruelties are more ordinary this time—mockery, neglect, and recrimination—but what the children find in their quest for the Seeing Glass is horrifying enough to compensate for any perceived softness at the outset. When Jill rescues Jack atop the beanstalk by accepting the giants’ eating challenge, even the Monty Python gang might cringe at the results—it’s the phrase “no guts, no glory” brought to Technicolor life. Gidwitz can do nuance, too, as Jill’s perilous encounter with a sympathetic mermaid demonstrates. Technically polished, and with more original content, this romp has lost none of the edge of its predecessor. Ages 10–up. Agent: Sarah Burnes, the Gernert Company.

Starred review from August 15, 2012
The author of A Tale Dark and Grimm (2010) starts over--sending young Jack and Jill on a fresh quest for self-knowledge through trials and incidents drawn (stolen, according to the author) from a diverse array of European folk and fairy tales. Foolishly pledging their lives on finding the long-lost Seeing Glass, cousins Jack and Jill, with a three-legged talking frog to serve as the now-requisite comical animal sidekick, set out from the kingdom of Marchen. They climb a beanstalk, visit a goblin market and descend into a fire-belching salamander's lair (and then down its gullet). In a chamber of bones ("It gave new meaning to the term rib vaulting"), they turn the tables on a trio of tricksy child eaters. Injecting authorial warnings and commentary as he goes, Gidwitz ensures that each adventure involves at least severe embarrassment or, more commonly, sudden death, along with smacking great washes of gore, vomit and (where appropriate) stomach acid. Following hard tests of wit and courage, the two adventurers, successful in both ostensible and real quests, return to tell their tales to rapt children (including one named "Hans Christian," and another "Joseph," or "J.J.") and even, in the end, mend relations with their formerly self-absorbed parents. Not so much a set of retellings as a creative romp through traditional and tradition-based story-scapes, compulsively readable and just as read-out-loudable. (source note) (Fantasy. 11-14)

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Starred review from October 1, 2012

Gr 3 Up-Gidwitz is back with a second book that, if possible, outshines A Tale Dark & Grimm (Dutton, 2010). Once upon a time, in a faraway kingdom, cousins Jack and Jill have had a particularly tough day. Jack has a mean-boy problem: he's bullied and tortured by a clique whom he hero-worships. Jill has a mirror-obsessed, pettily cruel mother who lets her daughter walk naked, unaware, in front of the entire kingdom. But our woe-ridden hero and heroine are in for far worse: a skyscraping beanstalk, a fratlike group of giants, a deadly mermaid, and an oversize fire-breathing salamander show up before these brave, loving, and realistically flawed children get their happily ever after. This book, like the first, features a bold-font "storyteller" who introduces, explains, and comments on the story as it unfolds-usually with alacrity as he promises gore in the pages ahead, but with a fair dose of true insight into the characters and what makes them, like us, human. However, the chapters derive only loosely from fairy tales; they are mostly Gidwitz's inventions, which allows the character and story arcs to congeal into a satisfying whole. Most delightfully, that snarky, insightful narrator reminds us that stories were once verbal, communal experiences. This book begs to be read aloud, preferably to children who delight equally in hearing about pools of vomit and blood and about triumphant heroes.-Allison Bruce, The Children's Storefront, New York City

Copyright 2012 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from July 29, 2013
This companion to Gidwitz’s popular A Tale Dark & Grimm tells the tales of Jack and Jill via a series of reimagined adventures inspired by the Brothers Grimm and Hans Christian Andersen. Veteran narrator Jonny Heller dives headfirst into these colorful fantasies with vigor and unbridled enthusiasm, creating an endless array of colorful characters that will delight audiences both young and old. Heller’s delivery is perfect for every character, and his excellent performance is on display right from the start. Listeners will find themselves hooked by the end of the first chapter, in part because Heller understands the role and responsibilities of the audio narrator—a role he clearly cherishes—and delivers a spirited performance. Ages 10–up. A Dutton hardcover.

January 1, 2013
In this [cf2]A Tale Dark & Grimm[cf1] companion, Princess Jill joins up with cousin Jack and a frog; they set off on a life-or-death quest to find the "seeing glass," encountering goblins, mermaids, and a monster. A closing note explains sources (Grimm, Andersen, Mother Goose, Christina Rossetti, and the New Testament). This book is gory, hilarious, touching, and lyrical all at once.

(Copyright 2013 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

November 1, 2012
This companion volume to A Tale Dark & Grimm (rev. 1/11) features more macabre and humorous once upon a time takeoffs. Princess Jill is the daughter of a very beautiful but selfish queen; her cousin Jack lives in the village and longs to play with the other boys, who just laugh at him. After Jill has a humiliating experience involving a dress made of cloth that no one will admit they can't see, she joins up with Jack and a frog and they set off on a life-or-death quest to find the seeing glass. Along the way they encounter goblins, mermaids, and a terrible monster named Eidechse von Feuer, der Menschenfleischfressende, each time outwitting what appears to be certain death; in a spectacularly bloody and funny scene, they also face giants in the sky (as the narrator warns, What follows is the most disgusting thing I have ever heard ). Gidwitz masterfully threads his lore and his characters together, coming at last to a satisfying conclusion. A closing note explains his source material, drawn from Grimm, Andersen, Mother Goose, and even Christina Rossetti and the New Testament. The book somehow manages to be gory, hilarious, touching, and lyrical all at once, with tons of kid appeal. susan dove lempke

(Copyright 2012 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

August 1, 2013
Gr 5-8-This companion (2012) to "A Tale Dark & Grimm" (2010, both Dutton) follows Jill and her cousin Jack as they go through many adventures that will sound rather familiar to anyone who has read fairy tales. There are new twists on princesses who kiss frogs, beanstalks that reach to the sky, giants who live at the top of those beanstalks, mermaids who fish for little girls, and bewitching goblin markets selling treacherous goods. Jill and Jack are resourceful and clever, at least most of the time. Johnny Heller is obviously having a blast reading this book and his joy is infectious. Gidwitz often "breaks the fourth wall" (connects directly with the audience) in his writing, and Heller cheerfully employs this technique to further draw listeners in, while simultaneously using it to reassure, since this world can be very grim, indeed. His gruff yet friendly narrative tone morphs easily into the piping voices of tiny salamanders; the smooth pitches of a snake oil salesman; the cultured tones of royalty; and the dulcet, tempting songs of mermaids. Gidwitz writes about the darker, truer side of familiar stories (e.g., the frog does not get kissed and turned into a prince, he gets thrown into a wall and badly injured). Heller portrays this darkness with aplomb, and also easily voices the magic and joy of fairy tale worlds. A delightful audiobook.-"Geri Diorio, Ridgefield Library, CT"

Copyright 2013 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.