Cinderella Archives -

Grimmtastic Girls by Joan Holub & Suzanne Williams

March 25, 2014
goodreadswithronna
Contests & Giveaways, Fairy tales, Family & Relationships, MG Fiction

On Good Reads With Ronna Today, A Book Blast Featuring
The Grimmtastic Girls & $50 Book Blast Giveaway, Too!

Grimmtastic Girls #1: Cinderella Stays Late by Joan Holub & Suzanne Williams (Scholastic Inc., Ages 8-12), Publication Date: March 25, 2014 Pages: 192

Summary: The authors of the hit Goddess Girls series put a fun and girly twist on another super-popular theme: fairy tales!

Once upon a time, in faraway Grimmlandia…

A Grimmtastic girl named Cinderella is starting her first week at Grimm Academy on the wrong foot. Cinda’s totally evil stepsisters are out to make her life miserable. The Steps tease Cinda, give her terrible advice about life at the academy, and even make her look bad in front of her new friends, Red, Snow, and Rapunzel! But when Cinda overhears the Steps plotting a villainous deed that could ruin Prince Awesome’s ball, Cinda, her new friends, and a pair of magical glass slippers have to stop them–before the last stroke of midnight!

Grimmtastic Girls #2: Red Riding Hood Gets Lost by Joan Holub & Suzanne Williams (Scholastic Inc., Ages 8-12), Publication Date: March 25, 2014 Pages: 192

Summary: Red Riding Hood might have a terrible sense of direction, but her grimmtastic friends are always there to help!

Once upon a time, in faraway Grimmlandia…

Red Riding Hood is thrilled to try out for the school play. Acting is her dream, and she’s great at it–too bad she has stage fright! After a grimmiserable audition, Red decides to focus on helping her friends Cinda, Snow, and Rapunzel save Grimm Academy from the E.V.I.L. Society. But when Red gets lost in Neverwood forest and runs into Wolfgang, who might be part of E.V.I.L., she needs her magic basket and a grimmazingly dramatic performance to figure out what’s going on!

About the Authors: Joan Holub & Suzanne Williams

Joan Holub has authored and/or illustrated more than 130 children’s books, including Little Red Writing (illustrated by Caldecott Honoree Melissa Sweet) and Zero the Hero. She lives in NC and is online at www.joanholub.com

Twitter | Pinterest | Goodreads

Suzanne Williams is the author of nearly 50 books for children, including the award-winning picture book Library Lil (illustrated by Steven Kellogg). She lives near Seattle, WA and is online at www.suzanne-williams.com

Author Blog | Goodreads

Co-authors Joan and Suzanne have written the Goddess Girls, Heroes in Training, and Grimmtastic Girls series. Though they live in different states and hardly ever get to see each other, they spend lots of time together in Grimmlandia.

Facebook (Grimmtastic Girls) | Facebook (Goddess Girls Books)

Online Author Visits

DON’T MISS THIS FABULOUS $50 BOOK BLAST GIVEAWAY!

Prize: $50 Amazon Gift Card or PayPal cash (winner’s choice)

Contest ends: April 23, 11:59 pm, 2014

Open: Internationally

How to enter: Please enter using the Rafflecopter widget below.

Terms and Conditions: NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. A winner will be randomly drawn through the Rafflecopter widget and will be contacted by email within 48 hours after the giveaway ends. The winner will then have 72 hours to respond. If the winner does not respond within 72 hours, a new draw will take place for a new winner. Odds of winning will vary depending on the number of eligible entries received. This contest is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook. This giveaway is sponsored by the authors, Joan Holub & Suzanne Williams and is hosted and managed by Renee from Mother Daughter Book Reviews. If you have any additional questions – feel free to send and email to Renee(at)MotherDaughterBookReviews(dot)com.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Cinderelephant by Emma Dodd

September 17, 2013
goodreadswithronna
Ages 4-8, Children's Book Reviews, Family - Siblings, Humorous Stories, Juvenile Fiction

Coming to bookstores this October is a really terrific retelling of a most beloved fairy tale, Cinderella, this time starring none other than the perfectly plump and pleasing pachyderm known as Cinderelephant (Arthur A. Levine Books/Scholastic, $16.99, ages 4-8) written and illustrated by Emma Dodd.

Parents, it’s likely that by the time you read this to your child, he or she will have already heard this classic or watched the Disney version. That’s definitely a plus because it will allow you more time to spend pointing out all the humorous touches Dodd’s included in the colorful and cheerful illustrations. And if your youngsters are new to the tale, they’re still in for a tremendous treat.

You know the plot and to Dodd’s credit, her economy of words keeps the story fun and flowing for those of us for whom the tale is not new. Cinderelephant is bossed around by the Warty Sisters, two unattractive Wart Hogs who are “horrible, mean, and smelly,” plus they clearly lack table manners.

When an invitation to Prince Trunky’s ball arrives, young readers get their first clue as to what this Prince might look like considering the king is called King Saggy and the queen is Queen Wrinkly. Calling her “Cinder-irrelavant,” the Warty Sisters slough off Cinderelephant’s hope of also attending the ball.

I love how Dodd features a Furry Godmouse who’ll save the day and get the gigantic gray gal to the Prince’s party. She even manages those appropriately placed superlatives and the occasional big but (you’ll see what I mean) joke with both her text and artwork.

Parents and kids will be entertained by the humor, whimsical illustrations and happy ending (pun intended) because, let’s face it, we all know one pink size 20+ shoe can only belong to one palatially-sized pachyderm!

– Reviewed by Ronna Mandel

Cinderella’s Stepmother Steps Into The Spotlight

If you’ve had enough with fairy tales, you’ll love introducing your children to Seriously, Cinderella is So Annoying!: The Story of Cinderella as Told by the Wicked Stepmother ($5.95, Picture Window Books, ages 5 and up) written by Trisha Speed Shaskan. Simply put, this is a mockery of Cinderella’s perfect image. From the viewpoint of the jealous stepmother, Cinderella is treated well by every member of the family, but she is just too chatty and oh, so annoying. I like this book, not only for its humor, but also because it is an original take on a tried and true fairy tale. After reading and being told so many quintessential princess stories, this book makes young readers think in fresh, new ways. The cartoon-like illustrations by Gerald Guerlais are colorful and inviting too. In the back of the book the author suggests that readers read the original Cinderella story and compare it to this one. Any book that is funny and encourages children to think outside the box (or should I say castle?) is a winner.