Fairy Tales & Fables

I have to admit, I was a little jealous when I heard that Jennifer was taking a trip to sunny Florida. Even as an adult, the thought of heading to Orlando – the land of Disney and Harry Potter and rides and warmth – is ridiculously appealing. But even if we’re stuck at home, we can still enjoy a fairy tale or two. They might even end up being better than the fables we remember as kids!

The Encyclopedia of Early Earth by Isabel Greenberg
Long before our history is written, a Nord man and South Pole woman meet and fall in love. Though the Earth has different plans for the pair, its magnetic field preventing two bodies from polar opposites from ever touching, they are married. A lifelong storyteller, the Nord man echoes years worth of voices and myths, hoping to fill the void between the couple. The tales Greenberg’s gorgeous graphic novel fold into one another like a set of Russian nesting dolls, with storytellers telling stories of storytellers telling stories, delicately building The Encyclopedia of Early Earth’s dreamy world. Though many of the myths come from familiar roots, they are infused with a slight twist of humor and are told in conjunction with new stories, making them feel fresh and modern.

Far Far Away by Tom McNeal
Jeremy Johnson Johnson has felt like an outsider most of his life. He’s been supporting his reclusive father ever since his mother left them and recently admitted to his classmates that he can hear voices. Though it causes the townspeople of Never Better to shy away from him, Jeremy knows that being able to hear the voice of Jacob Grimm, famous half of fairy tale writing pair The Brothers Grimm, is a gift. When Jeremy begins a friendship with popular Ginger Boultinghouse, she encourages him to take risks and break free from his usual routine. But these changes set off a series of events that will expose Never Better’s secrets in a tale that masterfully echoes the work of the Brothers Grimm.

Princesses Behaving Badly: Real Stories From History – Without the Fairy-tale Endings by Linda Rodriguez McRobie
Nothing like the princesses you see in Disney cartoons or even Brothers Grimm, this book is packed with mini biographies of real princesses and their real-life stories. Divided into sections labeled Warriors, Usurpers, Schemers, Survivors, Partiers, Floozies and Madwomen, Princesses Behaving Badly gives readers a fascinating (and often funny) peek at real women from history. This is the perfect book for a curious high school student, bored by the limited old whiten men in their history text, or anyone who loves picking up bits and pieces of the past.