What if
every book you read was real? If the characters within had lives of their own
that carried on long after you turned the last page? These are the questions
that Jodi Picoult with her daughter and co-author Samantha van Leer, and Chris
Colfer asked themselves as they wrote their most recent/ debut novels.
Releasing
a mere three weeks apart, Jodi and Samantha’s Between the Lines on June 26th and Chris’s The Land of Stories: The Wishing Spell on July 17th,
both authors tackle the idea of fairy tales invading the lives of children in
our world in the most wonderful ways.
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| goodreads.com |
In Between the Lines, a fifteen-year-old
loner name Delilah is inexplicably drawn to a fairy tale book she finds in her
school library. The main character, Oliver, intrigues her with his ability to
overcome the loss of his father, something Delilah struggles with every day.
She thinks that the connection is just that of a fatherless bond… until the day
Oliver moves and the book changes.
In Jodi
and Samantha’s story, the characters in books are merely playing a role for the
Reader every time the book is opened. When the covers are closed they lead
their own lives separate from the stories we know and love. Most characters are
perfectly content knowing that their lives are controlled by the whims of the
Readers, but Oliver longs for more. After a while, Delilah and Oliver realize
that their feelings for each other go beyond that of friendship and a joint
desire to help Oliver escape the bonds of the book. But how can a two-dimensional,
inch high illustration born of words survive in our three-dimensional world?
I
absolutely adored this story. The idea of the characters we know and love
having lives outside of the story was fascinating. The characters were real and
their problems were relatable. The book itself alternated between chapters of
the story book that Oliver is trapped in, and Delilah’s and Oliver’s points of
view. With each change, the text color changed as well. There were full-color
illustrations of Oliver at the beginning of each storybook chapter and small
silhouettes scattered throughout the rest of the pages. All of this absolutely
made the book come alive. In the acknowledgements Jodi and Samantha mention
that they wanted this book to be a keepsake—something you would want to show
your friends or read to your children. They achieved that not only through the
beautiful design but also through their adorable, compelling story.
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| shelf-life.ew.com |
Chris
Colfer, best known for his role as Kurt Hummel on Glee, also tackled fairy tales in his debut book, The Land of Stories: The Wishing Spell. In this middle
grade novel, twelve year old twins Alex and Conner are having some issues.
Alex, a know-it-all and intelligent beyond her years, struggles to make friends
outside her books and her teachers. Conner, popular at school but struggling to
apply himself to his schoolwork, feels overshadowed by his sister. Both are
trying to deal with the one year anniversary of the loss of their father to a
tragic car accident the day before their eleventh birthday. Things are looking
bleak until their grandmother brings them the old fairy tale book that their
father used to read to them when they were younger. But, as they soon find out,
this isn’t just any fairy tale book—it’s alive.
All of
the fairy tales you thought you knew are true, but they don’t end where they do
in our world. Instead, Cinderella is expecting her first child, and Goldilocks
is a wanted fugitive. When Alex and Conner accidentally fall into this world,
they are going to have to figure out how to get home without getting mixed up
in the drama in the land of stories. But it’s hard not to be noticed when
you’re from another world and they have to be careful; the Big Bad Wolf gang is
on the prowl and Snow White’s Evil Witch has escaped prison—and she’s
interested in the twins as well.
When I
picked this book up at BEA I wanted it simply because Chris Colfer had written
it. From the summary I knew it would be cute, but I never expected to fall in
love with it the way that I did. It wasn't instant love—the book started out a
bit slow as the necessary set-up was provided, giving us an idea of who the
twins were and where they were in life. But once they entered the storybook
world, it was an entirely different story.
As the
book progressed, I fell more and more deeply. By the end, I wished there were
another three hundred pages so that I would have more time to spend with this
new world—a world that was fast-paced, magical, and hilarious. In this land the
fairy tales we grew up with have never ended, and Chris Colfer did a phenomenal
job of bringing us a whole new side of these tales, introducing us to a new set
of stories that will be sure to stay with the reader indefinitely. You will get
lost in this world, where the stories are so entertaining and moving that you
will wonder if they weren't real.
While
both of these amazing authors embraced the idea of children from our world
falling into a fairy tale based world, the way the stories were achieved both
managed to be fresh, funny, and heart-warming. They each had their strong
points and they are each intended for two very different audiences. But while
one is geared toward a more middle grade readership, I have no doubt that
readers of all ages can enjoy and benefit from reading both. Hopefully they
will bring a little more magic to your world.
Written by Renee Combs
