Of Giants and Ice

August 20, 2012
In the frothy launch of the Ever Afters series, sixth-grader Rory Landon receives much unwanted attention as a result of her divorced celebrity parents and her perpetual status as the new kid. But when she's recruited by the Ever After School, where no one knows her family and fairy tales are recreated, she feels like her life is beginning. Rory immediately establishes her capability by rescuing a girl from a dragon and meets characters like Rumpelstiltskin, the librarian; Hansel, the sword-fighting instructor; and Sleeping Beauty, the Director. Despite Rory's ominous dreams and the knowledge that tales can be "failed" (meaning people die), she embarks on a journey into "Jack and the Beanstalk" with two other "Characters-in-training": Lena, an aspiring inventor, and Chase, a cocky son of a legend. Bach's premise is entertaining, and her storytelling offers charming detailsâparticularly as the students tackle iconic obstacles (such as climbing the beanstalk). The laundry list of fairy tales and characters involved, though, results in an adventure that can feel cluttered. Ages 8â12. Agent: Joanna Volpe, New Leaf Literary and Media.

September 1, 2012

Gr 5-7-When sixth-grader Rory attends Ever After School, she can finally stop "acting like a side character" in the lives of her famous movie-actress mother and director father. EAS, it turns out, is not a run-of-the-mill after-school program but a place filled with magic-dragons, talking fawns, and tables with never-ending food-and her new acquaintances are "characters-in-training" who, under the guidance of fairy-tale heavyweights (e.g., Rapunzel, Hansel and Gretel, Rumplestiltskin), go off to fight giants, dragons, and the evil Snow Queen. When Rory's friend Lena chooses her and Chase (Rory's nemesis) to accompany her up the beanstalk to steal the giant's gold, they have no idea of the dangers they'll face or the demands the tale will impose. From getting trapped in a locked rolltop desk to fighting off wolves inside a glass mountain, the threesome meet every challenge head-on, narrowly escaping being captured (or eaten!), and returning triumphant, if a bit battle-scarred. Rory realizes that, even with her transient life, she'll remain part of EAS and be ready someday to vanquish the Snow Queen in a fairy tale that is uniquely hers. Readers will delight in fast-paced, detail-rich chapters. There's plenty of magic to intrigue Harry Potter fans and enough twists and turns to entice even reluctant readers. The relationships among the three strong protagonists develop believably, and the secondary characters have enough dimension to maintain interest. This debut novel is a light, fun look at fairy tales after the "happily ever after."-Nancy Menaldi-Scanlan, formerly at LaSalle Academy, Providence, RI

Copyright 2012 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 15, 2012
On an expedition to steal a giant's coins, hen and harp, Rory Landon discovers that she is destined for a special role in fairy-tale history. Only child of divorced celebrities, Rory is not your ordinary sixth-grader. She's had plenty of experience with after-school programs in the many different places she's lived. Nor is Ever After School your ordinary day care center. The children and grandchildren of fairy-tale characters, EASers are Characters-in-training, likely to be part of each other's tales and certain to be sent on one or more quests of their own. Here, for the first time in years, Rory makes friends who don't care about her famous parents. Here, she fights a dragon, with a real sword. And when her friend Lena's first tale turns out to require beanstalk-climbing, Rory's thrilled to be one of her Companions, even though she's afraid of heights and even though her least favorite person, Chase Turnleaf, is coming along. Their accidental visit to the Snow Queen in her Glass Mountain prison changes their relationship and sets the stage for a promised sequel. Rory recalls her adventures in a first-person chronological narration that includes plenty of dialogue. This fast-paced combination of middle school realism and fairy-tale fantasy will appeal particularly to imaginative readers already familiar with traditional tales. (Fantasy. 9-13)

COPYRIGHT(2012) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

January 1, 2013
Rory, daughter of a movie star and a big-time director, joins an after-school program that's really a school for "Characters," kids who will eventually take on roles in canon fairy tales. The realistic family dynamics give Rory believable motivation for success outside her parents' Hollywood realm, while the nicely executed modern-twist-on-fairy-tales premise will be inviting for fantasy lovers.

(Copyright 2013 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)