A Wolf at the Door and Other Retold Fairy Tales (13 stories) (Paperback)

~ (Editor), (Author) "Liz Wallach was a pretty good kid..." (more)
Key Phrases: forty aliens, fairy godfather, goose girl, Aunt Tamara, Sun's Mother, New York (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 5-8-This well-written collection revisits both familiar and lesser-known stories with creative revisions by a variety of familiar writers. The tales range from Jane Yolen's comic "Cinder Elephant" to Garth Nix's downright creepy "Hansel's Eyes," in which the witch no longer eats children, but instead harvests their organs for sale. It's easy to recognize the traditional tale in most instances, but some are likely to be unfamiliar to many readers, particularly Katherine Vaz's "The Kingdom of Melting Glances," based on two Portuguese tales. Tanith Lee's "A Wolf at the Door," set in the next ice age, and Janeen Webb's "Ali Baba and the Forty Aliens" enter the realm of science fiction. Neil Gaiman's "Instructions" is a poem of advice for those finding themselves in the midst of fairy tales. Gregory Maguire's "The Seven Stage a Comeback" is a song in which the dwarves consider taking back Snow White. The diversity of content, style, and tone makes this an excellent collection for sampling. Most of these stories ask readers to think a bit more about fairy tales and what they may be saying to and about us. Overall, Wolf is enjoyable reading for those who like fairy tales, particularly fans of revisionist versions who don't expect humor in every story.
Ellen A. Greever, University of New Orleans, LA
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Booklist

Gr. 6-10. Irreverent, poetic, and thrillingly evil, these new versions of classic fairy tales are less comic and playful than the fractured fairy-tale picture books for younger readers. In fact, as the editors point out in their introduction, fairy tales were originally told to older audiences before the stories were sweetened and simplified for children. Many of these retellings are contemporary, set in the city and the schoolyard as well as the dark woods, with lots of evil stepmoms and rivalrous siblings. Garth Nix's "Hansel's Eyes" may be too lurid, even for teens, spelling out the fairy tale's elemental terror in graphic detail, with a Hagmom who gets Dad to dump the kids in a city wasteland. But many of the other stories are dark and strange and beautiful. In Gregory Maguire's "The Seven Stage Comeback," the dwarves speak in poetic monologues as they try to get back their beloved Snow White after she's left them for the prince ("We took her in when she was lost / But then we lost her in our turn"). Jane Yolen's "Cinder Elephant" is about "a lovely big girl," whose dancing slippers are size nine-and-a-half wide, very wide; she hooks the prince with her love of sports and books and her fast, funny talk. Both immediate and traditional, this dramatic collection will grab middle-graders and teens for storytelling and readers' theater. Hazel Rochman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9-12
  
• Paperback: 166 pages
• Publisher: Aladdin Paperbacks (December 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0689821395
• ISBN-13: 978-0689821394
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #256,044 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific!, October 15, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: A Wolf at the Door (Hardcover)

As a big fan of the Datlow/Windling fairy tale volumes for adult readers ("Snow White, Blood Red," etc.), I was thrilled to see a volume I could give to my young niece and nephew, so that they too could discover the pleasure of re-told fairy tales, and see that there is so much more to these tales than the Disney versions for very young children. This is a great collection, as one would expect from Datlow & Windling. My own favorite pieces were Neil Gaiman's "Instructions" and Patricia McKillip's lyrical version of The 12 Dancing Princesses. And Kathe Koja's version of the Ugly Duckling ("Becoming Charise") made me cry. My 9-year-old niece votes for "Falada" by Nancy Farmer because it was so funny, and for Kelly Link's "Swans," because she liked the heroine very much. My ten-year-old nephew liked Katherine Vaz's "The Kingdom of Melting Glances" best because he liked the princesses with bacon up their sleeves! If you want to get kids interested in reading or to give them something magical and fun when they've run out of Harry Potter books, then I can highly recommend this collection. And as an adult reader, I enjoyed it too.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Young Adult Book, but grownups will like it, too., September 22, 2000

By	J. Austin "jodylync" (Dublin, OH United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: A Wolf at the Door (Hardcover)

I purchased this book without even realizing that it was geared toward kids (Ages 8-12). I am a new fan to Datlow/Windling and had to add this to my collection. Am I glad that I did! This book takes some of the classic fairy tales and gives them a delightful twist. As I said, it is geared towards kids, so it doesn't have the adult twist that the other books do, but it is a great read for all ages.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Retold Fairy Tales Strike Again! :), April 23, 2005

By	C. Carnevale "Children's Book Reader" (CA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This collection of stories includes:
The Months of Manhatten by Delia Sherman
Done in the tradition of the good sister being rewarded over the bad one this story is set in New York. The good sister finds a painting of twelve people who question her about the seasons and such. She responds favorably to all the months which gains her good luck. When her stepsister tries, she tells the months that she doesn't like any of the months in New York. She is cursed with bad luck. Eventually she turns repentant and makes the sisters grow closer.

Cinder Elephant by Jane Yolen
Elanor is not a skinny girl like her two stepsisters but she is good and kind. Also she knows a lot about sports. Through the help of her bluebird friends, Elanor is able to attend the ball where the prince and she (grammar?) discover they have a lot in common. The moral at the end of story appears as such: "Moral: If you love a waist, you waste a love." (pg. 28) Very well put indeed!

Instructions by Neil Gaiman
This bears reading over which I haven't done. It's a list of instructions on what to do and not do when in a fairy tale. Such advice includes: "You may pick strawberries in December's frost," and "Know that diamonds and roses are as uncomfortable when they tumble from one's lips as toads and frogs:..." (pgs. 31-32) Very nice to read.

Mrs. Big: "Jack and the Beanstalk" Retold by Michael Cadnum
Poor Mrs. Big! Her husband fell off the clouds where their home was built chasing after Jack because he thought Jack had hurt his wife! Mrs. Big wasn't too thrilled with the house in the clouds even though they bought it; you could step off at the wrong place and that's exactly what poor Mr. Big did! But Mrs. Big gets her revenge!

Falada: The Goose Girl's Horse
Falada is a fairy horse sent out in the real world as an unjust punishment. Although his mission is to deliver a princess safely to another kingdom he seems to fail. Sure, she arrives in the kingdom but a wicked goblin has taken her place as princess. Little does Falada know that another horse also has a task to fufill!

A Wolf at the Door by Tanith Lee
Glasina spent time mostly with her mother and father. Still there were the lions around (who had learned to say Hallo, wot ya got?  ) and the scary wolves. Glasina was content until one day she met a wolf that could speak more than most animals. She led him back to the house where he proceeded to stay with the father and daughter (the mother was out) and cause disorder. He was a very untidy house guest. Finally the father realized that perhaps he was a human in disguise. But would Glasina have to kiss him and marry him? She wanted to go to college! Was there any other way of having the wolf turn back into a human? Clever read.

Ali Baba and the Forty Aliens by Janeen Webb
There were lots of abandoned mines where Al lived and he would wander among them. One day he saw one that wasn't quite right. Soon he saw aliens using it! When he learned how to enter it he discovered some gold. Even though he was not greedy his brother was...

Swans by Kelly Link
Emma's stepmother is highly unusual. She can't stand noise and when she can't take it any more she turns the offenders to swans. That's how Emma becomes surrounded by swans in her school. Emma is safe from becoming a swan as she won't talk ever since her mother died. But what should she do to change them all back into humans?

The Kingdom of Melting Glance by Katherine Vaz
Perhaps the most confusing story out of the collection, this story is based on a Portueguese story. Rosa feels all alone in the world, with only a bird as a friend. Pehaps, like her parents, she and the bird can merge into the world and forget their present lives.

Hansel's Eyes by Garth Nix
Most definitely the most gruesome of the stories. Hansel and Gretal are left in an abandoned part of a city by their parents. Distracted by a video game store they go in only to have Hansel entranced in a game and a witch giving Gretal the option to become her apprentice or also die and Hansel may eventually. The witch cannot see and has a "stichling" do it for her. I think she gets her strength from murdering children. In the end, Gretal has more powers than she started out with and Hansel only has one of his original eyes.

Becoming Charise by Kathe Koja
Charise is a very smart girl but doesn't have the opportunities that some have. She doesn't seem to fit in any social group either. She must learn to accept her situation and that no matter where she is she can make it.

The Seven Stage a Comeback by Gregory Maguire
A story about what happens after Snow White leaves from the perspective of the dwarves. They decide to go after her and bring her back by force but when they see something they change their minds.

The Twelve Dancing Princesses by Patricia A. McKillip
A traditional retelling of the story except that the older princess plays a more prominent role. Also the princesses are under a curse making them dance with the undead. OK, perhaps it's not so traditional afterall.