Fairest by Gail Carson Levine

Plot:
"I was born singing. Most babies cry. Or so I believe. I have no one to tell me the truth of it. I was abandoned when I was a month old, left at the Featherbed Inn in the Ayorthaian village of Amonta. It was January 12th of the year of Thunder Songs." The fairy Lucinda has once again given a dreadful gift. This time it's a mysterious magical mirror. The gift is disastrous when it falls into the hands of Aza, who never looks in a mirror if she can help it. In the Kingdom of Ayortha, Aza is most definitely not the fairest of them all. Many spurn her. Many scoff at her. She keeps out of sight. But in a land of singers, Aza has her own gift, one she's come by without fairy intervention: a voice that can do almost anything, a voice that captivates all who hear it. In Ontio Castle, merry Prince Ijori is drawn to it, and vain Queen Ivi wants to use it for her own ends. Queen Ivi would do "anything" to remain the fairest in the land. In this spellbinding tale filled with humor, adventure, romance, and song, Newbery Honor author Gail Carson Levine invites you to join Aza as she discovers how exquisite she truly is.


Review:
First thing I am going to say is that I really liked how this book was written like a musical. It is based in a town where the characters burst out into song whenever they feel just like in a musical or movie. I found that detail of the story to be my favorite. The story starts off well, but I feel that it slows down more and more as the story progresses. Especially near the middle. I felt like the middle took forever to get through. The interesting pointers just lacked for a few chapters. All in all I did enjoy the story very much. It’s like a fairy tale and it is well written. I was very found of the gnomes in the story as well. Those were fun characters. It wasn’t my favorite book, I’ll admit, but it did have unique themes and could very well be yours given the chance.


Rating:
3.5
Read again?
Probably Not.

The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K. Rowling

Plot:
The Tales of Beedle the Bard, a Wizarding classic, first came to Muggle reader's attention in the book known as Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Now, thanks to Hermione Granger's new translation from the ancient runes, we present this stunning edition with an introduction, notes, and illustrations by J. K. Rowling, and extensive commentary by Albus Dumbledore. Never before have Muggles been privy to these richly imaginative tales: "The Wizard and the Hopping Pot", "The Fountain of Fair Fortune", "The Warlock's Hairy Heart", "Babbitty Rabbitty and Her Cackling Stump", and of course, "The Tale of the Three Brothers". But not only are they the equal of fairy tales we now know and love, reading them gives new insight into the world of Harry Potter.


Review:
As a person who loves muggle fairy tales already, I can honestly say that I thoroughly enjoyed this book of fairy tales for wizards. It was well written and I read each and every story with ease. Though short stories can sometimes be boring and lack much point, these stories were well though out and I found each of them very interesting. Especially if you like the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling, don’t hesitate to pick up this book. I thought when I first heard about this book that it would be aimed for small children and full of sort of nursery rhymes, but trust me, that isn’t the case. This book is filled with tales that are definitely on the Grimm side, my favorite kind of fairy tales. The artwork in this book is terrific as well.


Rating:
4.5
Read again?
Most Likely.