vacanthungarian's review
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
This is an excellent children's book. Rather than one long story that may be daunting for some of the slower kids, there's a bunch of vaguely familiar short stories. Loosely based on old fairytales, but with a multicultural twang.
brettec's review
5.0
A fantastic collection of modern fairy tales. They have all the things I've always loved about fairy tales including the language, morals, pacing - everything that's needed to make a story feel like a fairy tale. I loved every minute of it.
gracegreenlaw's review
3.0
Blackberry Blue provides a selection of short stories that have the feel of traditional tales while making links to the modern day. The stories could definitely be compared to those of the Brothers Grimm and Hans Christian Andersen as they are quite gruesome and grisly but also simultaneously feel quite different as they represent a far more diverse group of children which makes the book engaging and personal. While I liked the more modern, diverse take on traditional tales I found many of the stories to be quite scary or creepy and some of the descriptions are quite graphic and gruesome. Although the chapters were short, I was not particularly motivated to read on once I finished the end of any of them.
The clearest patterns throughout the book were the structure with each story starting with a problem, the character going through a time of hardship and then everything being righted in the end. In most of the stories there was a witch or sorcerer who caused the problems in the first place. As a result this book could be good to work on for making inferences or predictions. To make a receptive context you could bring in items from nature such as twigs, leaves and flowers for children to explore or perhaps hang up a purple cloak and ask children who they think it belongs to.
The clearest patterns throughout the book were the structure with each story starting with a problem, the character going through a time of hardship and then everything being righted in the end. In most of the stories there was a witch or sorcerer who caused the problems in the first place. As a result this book could be good to work on for making inferences or predictions. To make a receptive context you could bring in items from nature such as twigs, leaves and flowers for children to explore or perhaps hang up a purple cloak and ask children who they think it belongs to.
mat_tobin's review against another edition
5.0
A collection of newly written Fairy Tales by Jamila whose themes and characters may, to some extent, seem familiar yet with added twists. Lush illustrations and encourages a re-thinking of those established tales.
mat_tobin's review
4.0
The premise behind this retelling of European fairytales was to rewrite stories which cover a diverse range of cultures and societies. The book tells six stories which are both familiar and unfamiliar and, for me, this was part of their appeal. I like some more than others but especially loved The Purple Lady which I thought was magnificent in its telling and scope. Recognition should also go to Richard Collingridge's illustrations which, I felt, supported the sense of diversity.
bardicbramley's review
4.0
A beautiful collection of classical European fairytales told through the mind of a modern day European.
The stories follow the traditional format of a fantasy tale with strong moral (each of which can be found as a brief introductory scented W at the beginning of the stories) but with an healthy dose of wider inclusion and diversity in characters and settings.
The stories follow the traditional format of a fantasy tale with strong moral (each of which can be found as a brief introductory scented W at the beginning of the stories) but with an healthy dose of wider inclusion and diversity in characters and settings.
heartframes's review
4.0
this book is so whimsical and kinda disturbing too. but i loved the way all the fairytales were written and enjoyed reading this book!
kaybethbookish's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
janebranson's review
5.0
Beautifully written, timeless and fresh. These are rich and clever stories. I wish I still had a class to share them, but will have to make do with reading them to my own children!
ellalouise99's review against another edition
4.0
A great collection of short fairytale style stories with both similarities and differences to the traditional fairy tales. This book would be perfect for use in KS2 as a storybook to read and enjoy but could also be used in English lessons as the descriptions in this book are beautifully detailed. Some of the stories could also be read to children in KS1 making this a perfect universal book for a primary school teacher. There are lots of opportunities for predictions to be made by the children throughout the stories as well as opportunities for questioning by the teacher. I found this book enjoyable to read and will be using it with children in the future.
I liked the fact that the book contains a collection of short stories which could help to keep children, particularly younger ones, engaged throughout the book as you wouldn’t be reading each story for very long. I also believe there are a lot of opportunities for children to write their own endings or scenes from the stories. For example, the teacher could read all of the story apart from the last chapter and then children could finish writing it in a big write session following on from a class discussion to inspire creative ideas by sharing. There are also plenty of cross-curricular links which could be included. For example, children could create their own dresses for Blackberry Blue in DT, by first designing and then making them with inspiration from the book (using natural resources or taking inspiration from the colours and textures described).
Some of the stories in this collection may not be suitable for certain children so as a teacher, this must be considered before reading the book. For example, in one of the stories, a child’s father dies and his mother ends up in a bad relationship. This story may therefore not be suitable to read to a child who has been in a similar situation as it could become quite upsetting for them. KS1 teachers would also have to consider their individual class before reading stories from this collection as some of them may be too complex for young children to fully understand or enjoy.
There are lots of patterns which appear in this book which have strong links to traditional fairy tales. For example, the princess changing from ‘ugly’ to ‘beautiful’ links to the prince changing from a frog to a prince in traditional stories, the princess looking for a prince also links very closely to.
This book would allow for many opportunities for transforming the classroom/reading area to engage the children with the book. For example, the reading area could be made into the tree that the king lived inside while in the forest and misleading paths could be created around the classroom or in the playground.
I liked the fact that the book contains a collection of short stories which could help to keep children, particularly younger ones, engaged throughout the book as you wouldn’t be reading each story for very long. I also believe there are a lot of opportunities for children to write their own endings or scenes from the stories. For example, the teacher could read all of the story apart from the last chapter and then children could finish writing it in a big write session following on from a class discussion to inspire creative ideas by sharing. There are also plenty of cross-curricular links which could be included. For example, children could create their own dresses for Blackberry Blue in DT, by first designing and then making them with inspiration from the book (using natural resources or taking inspiration from the colours and textures described).
Some of the stories in this collection may not be suitable for certain children so as a teacher, this must be considered before reading the book. For example, in one of the stories, a child’s father dies and his mother ends up in a bad relationship. This story may therefore not be suitable to read to a child who has been in a similar situation as it could become quite upsetting for them. KS1 teachers would also have to consider their individual class before reading stories from this collection as some of them may be too complex for young children to fully understand or enjoy.
There are lots of patterns which appear in this book which have strong links to traditional fairy tales. For example, the princess changing from ‘ugly’ to ‘beautiful’ links to the prince changing from a frog to a prince in traditional stories, the princess looking for a prince also links very closely to.
This book would allow for many opportunities for transforming the classroom/reading area to engage the children with the book. For example, the reading area could be made into the tree that the king lived inside while in the forest and misleading paths could be created around the classroom or in the playground.