Book Review

Book: Black Heart, Ivory Bones edited by Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling

I have read another of their collections of re-written fairy tales. This one is more for an adult audience than that one was. I really loved this collection. Some of the stories had such distinct and interesting voices that I had to read them out loud. There were several stories that were based on the same fairy tale and I loved to see the different takes each author took.

There were some stories that I liked more than others, of course, and I found that the ones that I liked the best were the ones that told the story in a succinct manner. I over-write quite a bit and I think it's that part of me that appreciates anyone who can tell a story in as few words as possible. It has given me a lot of ideas for re-writes of my own story, for sure!

It always amazes me the way that short stories make every word count. They are able to set the scene and make you care about the characters in a few short paragraphs. That is definitely something that I struggle with.

All in all I am incredibly happy that I read this book. Apparently it's the 6th in a series of collections that they did and I am going to hunt down the other five now. I hope that those of you who like fairy tales will read them too!

Happy reading!