Michael Harris Cohen

A mixed bag of sometimes genuinely clever, sometimes overly stylish post-modern fairy tales, primarily retellings or inspired-bys that try (in some cases, much too hard) for a fresh twist. If you've read the Datlow and Windling edited collections of retold fairy tales from the 1990s, you'll recognize this collection as a b-grade version of that concept, as most of this stories are by unknowns but are still composed in the tradition of putting the adult content back in the fairy tale. There are a few stray gems here, but not many -- if you are looking for stand-outs and recognizable names, you are better off with Bernheimer's collections or Datlow's ongoing efforts. Still, this is worth reading for the truly dedicated fairy tale fan or scholar.… (més)

Modern Grimmoire is a collection of short stories, poetry, and images loosely inspired by the tales of the Brothers Grimm. Being a big fan of the Grimms' fairy tales, I thought I would enjoy this book. I thought that it would be stories and the like that would fit alongside the Grimms. I thought it would be something different than it was.

While some of the stories could fit alongside those of the Grimms, many were more modern interpretations of the tales, adding an unnecessary amount of vice and vulgarity to offset the enjoyment of most stories. All in all, the pearls were greatly outnumbered by the swine.

This collection was not for me; it may not be for all fans of the Grimms, as I consider myself one of them. However, you may like it if you like more indie-style publications; stories that are, at times, too literary for their own good, but at the same time, more immature than you'd expect from quality high literature.… (més)

Review based on ARC.

I love Grimm and I was very excited to win a copy of Modern Grimmoire through an early reviewer program. But I was not really sure what to expect -- would these be new takes on old stories? new stories? It was a combination. A very dark, very angry combination of, as the subtitle states, fairy tales, fables and folklore.

Overall, I was very happy with the anthology. It was a quick read, and each story very comfortably stands on its own. I would recommend to anyone who has a penchant for all things Grimm, for people who are interested in dark fairy tales, folklore, and fables, and for those with a stomach for the, well, grim. In other words, if the title is appealing to you, go ahead and pick it up. The book does the title and the cover justice.

The anthology is comprised of mostly stories, a few poems, and a handful of pictures. The stories were the heart and the focus of the book, and I separately review (though I do not summarize short stories) each on my blog at http://allbookreviewer.blogspot.com/2013/07/modern-grimmoire-contemporary-anthol....

There were a few standout stories that, in and of themselves, would make this book worth picking up and reading. The stories that were not as great (in my opinion), did not particularly detract from the whole, and overall, the anthology was particularly well written, edited, and composed.

The few standout stories:
The Ex-Court Painter, Goya, and the Princess, which tells the story of an ex-royal painter, who is called into Court to do a particularly sensitive and confidential job for the King. The painter is shuffled down to the basement, and is locked in a room to do his work. I will not spoil what the painting is of or how the story progresses, but this author did an excellent job of telling an intriguing and complete story in short order.

Night People, in Summer was another favorite that employed a sense of ghost telling and magical realism. The author took the ordinary daily life and added not only magic and supernatural intrigue, but also a light element of danger.

The Music Box, where the author took the modern and very relatable problem of dating, and added a magical twist that was fun and whimsical.

The Wolfman's New Gig, which was cute and dark at the same time. The author did a great job of keeping the reader just confused enough and intrigued enough to keep turning the page. The twists are well set up, and completely surprising and believable of the characters.

Bring It, Bernadette, which I loved. At just over a page, this story packed a lot of punch and a lot of twisted psyche in.

The Library, which was another good ambiant, creepy story with lots of questions and few answers. Although the tale is left incomplete, it is done so at the right time and in the right way so as to leave the reader still thinking about the story, but satisfied. It was confusing, and weird, and just perfectly intriguing.

WIth regard to the pictures, they were fine - lending some ambiance to the stories. My favorite by a lot was They Say Once the Trees Begin to Tremble It Is Too Late by Steven Ehret, on page 180.

With regard to the poems, they were also fine - lending some ambiance to the stories. They were little views into the life of a Grimm character, or a brief explanation, or a slight twist on perspective. I will add that I particularly liked the snark in Colleen Michaels' The Pea Defends His Position. I will also add that the Four Grimm Tales, Revisited, by Erin Virgil, was a well-done, interesting twist on the four tales. Enough said in these four little mini-poems to twist the original stories completely around.… (més)

Overall, I enjoyed this book. The prize winning story of the anthology, "The Ex-Court Painter, Goya and the Princess" was well chosen, I think. It is the most developed and complete. Others that stuck with me, are "the Mirror child", in which a Queen is given a child by a fairy, but with a difference, and "Night People, In Summer", in which a young girl is enticed out of the trying present by the night people. I was totally engrossed by the "Library", but it ended too abrubtly for me, with the characters having a resolution that was unknown to the reader. There was something very winsome and appealing about "the StoryTeller's Jig".

I liked the poems "Shelter for the Moon" and "Aubade."

I can't think of any of the stories which I didn't enjoy reading. Probably, if I weren't reviewing it, I might have read them slowly, a story or two at a time over a period of months, as I've read other collections of fairytales or myths.

I am a lover of fairy tales. I've read a fair amount of Brothers Grimm, and also many of the Andrew Lang collections - named for color, i.e. The Red Fairy Tale Book, and specific topics, [Russian Wonder Tales], [American Indian Tales and Legends], [the People Could Fly], and many others. One of the questions I ask myself about this collection is whether I expect something different from a contemporary collection than from a collection of old tales. For instance, some of the tales in Grimm are fairly sketchy and undramatized. That never bothered me, because of the connection of even a sketchy tale to a time and culture. But, it probably would in this book. Luckily, none of the stories is sketchy in this volume. But I did frequently wish that the author had pushed the story further. I don't know if this is fair. A fairy tale is something different than an individual vision, but I want more of that in a modern work. If some of the tales had been pushed just a little more, I think they would have resonated more. Still, it is a good collection of stories with a wide variety of themes, and I probably will now dip back into the stories at a more leisurely pace.… (més)