The idea of writing twisted
versions of fairy tales isn’t new, but Gregory Maguire does it well.  In this
unabridged audiobook he reads his own work, and his wry voice brings out the
humor.  In one of the best of collection, "So What and the Seven
Giraffes," a Gorilla Queen has a chimp baby who mostly says "so
what?"   The Queen soon dies, and So What’s new step mother tries to kill
him by getting a hunter to tear out his heart.  But So What escapes to live
with a family of giraffes who work at a circus.  So What works as their house
keeper.  The Queen discovers, from a talking mirror, that So What is still
alive, so she tries three times to kill him.  The Queen chases him to the
circus, where So What is being fired from a cannon, and she dies in an accident
of her own creation.  Most of the stories have a similarly bizarre and frenzied
plot, woven from other fairy tales and other well-known children’s stories. 
Maguire fills each paragraph with fun, silliness, and smart witticisms that
will please both children and adults.  Characters are killed off without a
second thought, and the whole tone is entirely irreverent.  Very enjoyable. 

© 2005 Christian
Perring. All rights reserved. 

Christian
Perring, Ph.D., is Academic Chair of the Arts & Humanities
Division and Chair of the Philosophy Department at Dowling College, Long Island. He is also
editor of Metapsychology Online Review.  His main research is on
philosophical issues in medicine, psychiatry and psychology.

Categories: Children, AudioBooks