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Reviewed by:
  • Fairy Tale Comics ed. by Chris Duffy
  • Karen Coats
Duffy, Chris , ed. Fairy Tale Comics; illus. by Bobby London, Emily Carroll, Gilbert Hernandez , et al. First Second/Roaring Brook, 2013 125p ISBN 978-1-59643-823-1 $19.99 Ad Gr. 2-4

Seventeen folktales, mostly from the European tradition, are retold here by prominent cartoonists such as Craig Thompson, Raina Telgemeier, and Charise Mericle Harper. The collection is heavily weighted toward the Grimms, but Br’er Rabbit and Baba Yaga make appearances, along with a Japanese tale, Perrault’s “Puss in Boots,” an Italian tale, some lesser known English stories, and one from the 1001 Nights. Diversity is thus mostly left to artistic style, where it undeniably shines; the full-color comics demonstrate a wide variety of style in both figure and format, from the painterly richness of Brett Helquist’s rendition of Rumpelstiltskin to the retro Golden Book stylings of Gigi D. C.’s Little Red Riding Hood to Bobby London’s antic take on the magic porridge-pot story. “The Boy Who Drew Cats,” by Luke Pearson, is a brilliantly understated masterwork of the graphic-novel form, with a near perfect interplay of deadpan dialogue, suggestive illustration sequences, and just enough narration to help young readers distinguish inner dialogue and memory from present action. The sense of most of the other tales, however, suffers in these condensed retellings; many are missing important plot points that affect their coherence, leaving significant gaps not addressed in either picture or text. Readers will be familiar enough with most of the tales to fill in the gaps, but the renditions on their own are rather flat despite their energetic presentation. Nevertheless, emergent comics fans will enjoy seeing the familiar tales in a new format as well as relishing the introduction to so many of the artists and varieties of the graphic narrative form in one place.

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