Spotlight: Fairy Tales

Though some of us put fairy tales aside as something for children (or babies), the truth is that many of these stories were originally intended for all ages or even adult audiences. Of course, some of us never outgrow our love for the fantastic, magic and danger and things seen from the corner of your eye.

The enduring appeal of these stories is handily demonstrated by the fact that 2012 saw not one, but two movies based on the story of Snow White: Snow White and the Huntsman (starring Charlize Theron and Kristan Stewart) and Mirror, Mirror (starring Julia Roberts and Sean Bean). And on television this fall will be the second seasons of both Grimm and Once Upon a Time.

Before we get too far, Carnegie-Stout does have collections of classic fairy tales by The Brothers Grimm, Hans Christian Andersen, Edmund Spenser, and Charles Perrault. And there are even more in the children's section.

Because fairy tales come from the tradition of oral storytelling, there's been no shortage of adaptations, remixes, and retellings over the years. For example you have Disney's animated feature Beauty and the Beast, the '80s television program Beauty and the Beast, the modern day YA novel (and movie) Beastly, and, of course, the numerous variations in the romance section.

We have graphic novels inspired by fairy tales, from Castle Waiting by Linda Medley (see Andrew's staff review) to the Fables series by Bill Willingham. Both of which take elements familiar from bed time stories, and create something for a more adult audience (Fables, in particular, is not meant for younger readers).

Many authors have built careers around creating or recreating fairy tales. J.R.R. Tolkien has inspired generations of fantasy fans with his tales of Middle-earth. Charles de Lint was one of the original authors of urban fantasy (the kind without vampires), and Holly Black helped to reinvent the sub-genre for modern YA readers. Eowyn Ivey's recent debut novel, The Snow Child, is a retelling of a Russian fairy tale, and yes, she's named after the Tolkien character.

There are many, many more examples, but we don't want to overwhelm you. If you're not sure where to start, try My Mother She Killed Me, My Father He Ate Me (Fiction Short My), a collection of fairy tales by 40 contemporary authors. Stop by the Recommendations Desk or submit a Personal Recommendations request online, and we'll help you find a new version of your favorite story.

Avast ye, Dubuquers, 'tis Talk Like a Pirate Day!

Are ye in need o' a refresher on your pirate lingo? Look t' our blog post o' last year for the origins o' this fine day, and links t' get ye talkin' like a pirate.

If you're lookin' t' celebrate this fine day, Carnegie-Stout has a fine trove o' piratical books and movies for you t' peruse.

Might we suggest explorin' t' phenomenon o' space pirates? Those scurvy dogs who sail t' voids between t' stars and have appeared in works o' science fiction for decades. Below we've gathered a samplin' o' titles available at Carnegie-Stout.

Trading in Danger by Elizabeth Moon
The Rock Rats by Ben Bova
Sureblood by Susan Grant
The Reality Dysfunction by Peter F. Hamilton
The Truth of Valor by Tanya Huff
Firefly: the complete series
Outlaw Star
Treasure Planet
Tenchi Muyo!

Best Seller Read-Alikes for the Week of September 16th

Can’t wait to get your hands on the latest best-seller, but the hold list is too long? To tide you over, every week we’ll offer similar titles and authors to the week’s fiction and nonfiction best sellers.

Fiction

At #1 on the best seller's list for fiction is Mitch Albom's The Time Keeper. Written in the same leisurely and sparse style as his other fables for the modern world (The Five People You Meet in Heaven, For One More Day), The Time Keeper centers on Father Time - the inventor of the world's first clock some six thousand years ago and subsequently banished to a cave for eternity - who is given one last chance at redemption. He must teach two earthly people the true meaning of time, in a journey that leads him to a teenage girl who is about to give up on life and a wealthy businessman who wants to live forever.

Authors and books similar to The Time Keeper include:

Richard Paul Evans -  Evans is an inspirational author of Christian-themed novels for adults and kids. His on-going Walk series begins with The Walk, which begins when Seattle ad executive, Alan Christoffersen loses everything -  his job, his home and his wife. Bereft, he decides to take a walk, heading for the farthest point on his map: Key West, Florida. The people he encounters along the way, and the lessons they share with him, will save his life.

The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch with Jeffery Zaslow - Pausch, a computer science professor diagnosed with terminal cancer, explores his life, the lessons that he has learned, how he has worked to achieve his childhood dreams, and the effect of his diagnosis on him and his family.

Jeffery Zaslow - The contributing author of The Last Lecture, Zaslow has written other inspirational fiction and nonfiction novels. Most recently, he contributed to Gabby Gifford's biography, Gabby. On his own, Zaslow wrote The Girls from Ames: A Story of Women and a Fourty-Year Friendship  and The Magic Room: A Story About the Love We Wish for our Daughters. 

Click here for more fiction bestsellers... 

Nonfiction

At #1 on the nonfiction best seller's list is the controversial first-person account of the raid that killed Osama bin Laden, No Easy Day: The Autobiography of a Navy SEAL by Mark Owen and Kevin Mauer. Written pseudonymously, the book's author was revealed to be former Navy SEAL Mark Bissonnette, and the book begins with his early training and details the planning and execution of the raid on the bin Laden compound in Pakistan. The books has come under heavy criticism from the Defense Department, which has threatened legal action against Bissonnette for allegedly breaching a nondisclosure agreement. Bissonnette's account of the raid also contradicts many details from the official U.S. description of the mission.

Books similar to No Easy Day include:

SEAL Team Six: Memoirs of an Elite Navy SEAL Sniper by Howard Wasdin (359.0092 WAS) - A Navy SEAL Team Six sniper reveals how he became an elite soldier while recounting the dramatic mission that nearly cost him his life, offering insider perspectives on his team's extensive training process at the Marine's Scout Sniper School.

American Sniper: The Autobiography of the Most Lethal Sniper in U.S. Military History by Chris Kyle (956.70443 KYL)- A former member of Navy SEAL Team 3 describes his life as a father and husband, and as the serviceman with the most confirmed sniper kills in the history of the United States military while serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Heart and the Fist: The Education of a Humanitarian, the Making of a Navy SEAL by Eric Greitens (359.984 GRE) - The author describes how, after working as a humanitarian around the world, he realized that he could do nothing to stop violence or prevent people from becoming refugees and soon joined the elite Navy SEALs, where he drew on his humanitarian training as he battled injustice.

Click here for more nonfiction bestsellers ...

If you'd like more recommendations, stop by the Recommendations Desk on the first floor, check out NoveList Plus on the library's website, or visit W. 11th & Bluff next week for more reading suggestions. Or submit a Personal Recommendations request, and we'll create a reading list just for you!