How to Fracture a Fairy Tale

Praise for How To Fracture a Fairy Tale A master storyteller at her best. I've been a fan of Jane Yolen and fractured fairytales for years and this collection doesn't disappoint. --Chanda Hahn, New York Times bestselling author of Reign (An Unfortunate Fairy Tale) This collection is Jane Yolen at her best, telling stories you've never seen before but have known all your life, and stories as familiar as your left hand that you barely recognize, spun from shadows and moonlight and breathed through silvered glass. This is magic. --Patricia C. Wrede, author of the Enchanted Forest Chronicles Yolen's deftly-flowing prose highlights each unique perspective or imaginative speculation. Her tales, once fractured, don't splinter--they sparkle. --Alex Flinn, author of Beastly and Beheld How to Fracture a Fairy Tale is a fascinating exploration of how old stories we all think we know can become fresh and new and stunning in the hands of the masterful Jane Yolen. So many of Yolen's stories here are like origami--with expert snips and twists and turns, she transforms the ordinary into fantastic art. This book can be read just for sheer pleasure or as a study for other writers in what is possible. --Margaret Peterson Haddix, author of The Missing series and The Shadow Children series No one can spin a tale as magical as Jane Yolen, full of beauty and wonder, and more than a few sharp thorns! --Jessica Day George, author of the Rose Legacy series and the Dragon Slippers trilogy Ever the master storyteller, Jane Yolen weaves and spins and fractures her way through a far-ranging, culturally diverse array of fairy-tales. Ranging from the comic (various famous fairy tale wolves kvetching in an Old Wolves Home) to the disturbing (a take on Cinderella involving incest) to the poetic (a lovely version of the Native American tale 'The Woman Who Loved a Bear'), each tale is a finely crafted gemstone. Readers will be filled with wonder and delight, pain and joy, and may even be inspired to try their own hand at fracturing a fairy tale. I particularly loved Yolen's explanatory 'How I Fractured These Stories' section at the end, identifying the origin tale, each one accompanied by a luminous poem. --Edith Pattou, author of West and East Fans will be delighted with the story notes and poems that cap off her fantastic collection of fairy-tale retellings and fractured legends. --Booklist 5/5 stars. If you enjoy fairy tales and would want to read them in a different perspective then this book is definitely for you. --Things in Her Head Deeply moving and poignant reimaginings of the tales many of us know and love. --Reader Fox and a Box of Books This collection of fractured fairy tales is a must-read for any lover of folklore. All of the stories are beautiful in their own way, and some are truly amazing. If you like fairy tales, especially retellings of them, you need to read this book. --Hazel G. Evans Praise for Jane Yolen The Hans Christian Andersen of America --Newsweek The Aesop of the twentieth century --The New York Times Jane Yolen is a gem in the diadem of science fiction and fantasy. --Analog Praise for The Emerald Circus A brilliant example of short-form storytelling by one of the treasures of the science fiction community. --Brandon Sanderson, New York Times bestselling author of Mistborn [STARRED REVIEW] After more than a decade, Yolen (Briar Rose; Sister Emily's Starship and Other Stories) returns with 16 stories that take readers sideways and upside down through beloved fairy tales and classic tales such as Peter Pan and The Wizard of Oz, while also reimagining the lives of famous storytellers such as Hans Christian Anderson, Edgar Allan Poe and Emily Dickinson. Verdict: These delightful retellings of favorite stories will captivate newcomers and fans of Yolen as she once again delivers the magic, humor, and lovely prose that has attracted readers for years. --Library Journal, starred review [STARRED REVIEW] VERDICT: These highly entertaining retellings are perfect for teens fans of fairy tales and classic literature, though they are easily enjoyed without any background knowledge. --School Library Journal Ever the wordsmith, Yolen dazzles with her first short story collection for adults in years. --Booklist An impressive overview of the author's breadth and career, this collection will appeal to the author's existing devotees--or to anyone who has ever thought that happily ever after left too many questions. --Kirkus Jane Yolen's [The] Emerald Circus may be my favorite book of the year, period, with apologies to Jeff Vandermeer's Borne. Many years ago, when I had my own blog, I wrote a post celebrating the versatility of Yolen--one of the few authors who can write top-shelf books at any age level. [The] Emerald Circus is a perfect example of her fluid but rock-solid prose. --Adult Books for Teens, School Library Journal Jane Yolen's The Emerald Circus is full of marvels. From Snow Queen to spaceship, The Emerald Circus is a delight. --Patricia A. McKillip, author of the Riddle-Master trilogy and The Forgotten Beasts of Eld Jane Yolen facets her glittering stories with the craft of a master jeweller. Everything she writes, including The Emerald Circus, is original and timeless, deliciously creepy and disturbingly lovely. --Elizabeth Wein, author of Code Name Verity In this masterful collection, Jane Yolen draws upon myth, fairy tales, history, poetry, and children's classics from Alice to Oz to fashion new tales from the bones of the old. There is simply no better storyteller working in the fantasy field today. She's a national treasure. --Terri Windling, author of The Wood Wife and The Essential Bordertown