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grav_ityYes, that Chris Colfer. And maybe as a baby!Author I am not qualified to say this, but WELCOME TO THE YA/MG FAMILY, CHRIS. You wrote an excellent book, and if this is your career after acting (or during acting), I say BRING IT ON.
As there is a lot of variation in the YA section, there's also quite a bit of variation in the Middle Grace shelves. You still get books that are dark, books that are deep, books that are adventurous, and occasionally something ends up in the section and you're not sure why it's there (can we say "Howl's Moving Castle"?). THE WISHING SPELL was an absolutely note-perfect fairy-tale, with just enough edge to make it interesting, and not so much that it was in any way "edgy". I pretty much adored it.
The story follows twins Alex and Connor Bailey, who have just turned 12 and are dealing with the recent death of their father. Their mom is doing her best to make ends meet, but money is tight. Alex is a total book-worm and gets teased a lot, while Connor is more popular but not good at school, but the two don't really resent each other's strengths. Whatever else, it's family first. They learned that from their father, who always had stories to tell them whenever they needed advice or to be cheered up. For their birthday, their grandmother gives them an old fairy-tale book, the one their dad used to read to them, and, as is the case in these tales, before long Alex and Connor are sucked into the fairy world and the great adventure that lies therein.
What follows is a tremendous romp through a bunch of fairy-tale kingdoms, in search of the spell that will get them back home. They meet a lot of fairy-tale characters, and learn that "happily ever after" is a bit harder to pull off when you can't just close the book and move on with your life. This is, as I've said before, one of my favourite things about fairy-tale retellings, and Colfer manages to pull it off really, really well.
In addition to being a tightly written adventure (um, except for the part where hay and straw are two different things, and the part where you don't fire arrows with a crossbow, but those are two exceptionally minor details), it's also LAUGH OUT LOUD funny. Colfer's dialogue is delightful, and each character is wonderful, no matter how little time we spend with them. Goldilocks is a wanted felon, Red Riding Hood is a vastly unprepared elected Queen that no one takes seriously, and Snow White, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Rapunzel had the Little Mermaid have all grown up and DONE things with their lives (or, you know, done things with their DEATHS), and it is JUST. SO. AWESOME.
What absolutely holds the story together, though, is the relationship between Alex and Connor. They start out as opposites, but Colfer planted very early on the idea that they really aren't so different after all. Watching the two of them work together, learn each other's strengths and weaknesses, and grow up a little bit over the course of the book was easily my favourite part.
I lie: my favourite part was the explanation for how all the princesses ended up marrying princes called Charming. ;)
Anyway, if you are in the mood for a fun read, or if you have kids under 12 (or with happy spirits, like me!), this is definitely the book for you.
10/10 for weaving together so many stories, for being fantastical and having common sense, for a great sister-and-brother team, for a GORGEOUS map, and for being something I believe would have been published anyway, had the author not already been famous.
As there is a lot of variation in the YA section, there's also quite a bit of variation in the Middle Grace shelves. You still get books that are dark, books that are deep, books that are adventurous, and occasionally something ends up in the section and you're not sure why it's there (can we say "Howl's Moving Castle"?). THE WISHING SPELL was an absolutely note-perfect fairy-tale, with just enough edge to make it interesting, and not so much that it was in any way "edgy". I pretty much adored it.
The story follows twins Alex and Connor Bailey, who have just turned 12 and are dealing with the recent death of their father. Their mom is doing her best to make ends meet, but money is tight. Alex is a total book-worm and gets teased a lot, while Connor is more popular but not good at school, but the two don't really resent each other's strengths. Whatever else, it's family first. They learned that from their father, who always had stories to tell them whenever they needed advice or to be cheered up. For their birthday, their grandmother gives them an old fairy-tale book, the one their dad used to read to them, and, as is the case in these tales, before long Alex and Connor are sucked into the fairy world and the great adventure that lies therein.
What follows is a tremendous romp through a bunch of fairy-tale kingdoms, in search of the spell that will get them back home. They meet a lot of fairy-tale characters, and learn that "happily ever after" is a bit harder to pull off when you can't just close the book and move on with your life. This is, as I've said before, one of my favourite things about fairy-tale retellings, and Colfer manages to pull it off really, really well.
In addition to being a tightly written adventure (um, except for the part where hay and straw are two different things, and the part where you don't fire arrows with a crossbow, but those are two exceptionally minor details), it's also LAUGH OUT LOUD funny. Colfer's dialogue is delightful, and each character is wonderful, no matter how little time we spend with them. Goldilocks is a wanted felon, Red Riding Hood is a vastly unprepared elected Queen that no one takes seriously, and Snow White, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Rapunzel had the Little Mermaid have all grown up and DONE things with their lives (or, you know, done things with their DEATHS), and it is JUST. SO. AWESOME.
What absolutely holds the story together, though, is the relationship between Alex and Connor. They start out as opposites, but Colfer planted very early on the idea that they really aren't so different after all. Watching the two of them work together, learn each other's strengths and weaknesses, and grow up a little bit over the course of the book was easily my favourite part.
I lie: my favourite part was the explanation for how all the princesses ended up marrying princes called Charming. ;)
Anyway, if you are in the mood for a fun read, or if you have kids under 12 (or with happy spirits, like me!), this is definitely the book for you.
10/10 for weaving together so many stories, for being fantastical and having common sense, for a great sister-and-brother team, for a GORGEOUS map, and for being something I believe would have been published anyway, had the author not already been famous.
