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Sunshine |
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| Author: |
Robin McKinley |
 Book Review
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Mass Market Paperback |
| ISBN: |
0515138819 |
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From Publishers Weekly
Buffyesque baker Rae "Sunshine" Seddon meets Count Dracula's hunky Byronic cousin in Newbery-Award-winner McKinley's first adult-and-then-some romp through the darkling streets of a spooky post-Voodoo Wars world. Now that human cities have been decimated, the vampiric elite holds one-fifth of the world's capital, threatening to control all the earth in less than 100 years, unless human SOFs (Special Other Forces) can hold them at bay by recruiting Sunshine, daughter of legendary sorcerer Onyx Blaise. As breathlessly narrated by Sunshine herself, the Cinnamon Roll Queen of Charlie's Coffeehouse, in the inchoate idiom of Britney, J. Lo and the Spice Girls, Sunshine's coming-of-magical-age launches when she is swarmed by noiseless vampires one night and chained in a decrepit ballroom as an entr‚e for... |
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Rose Daughter |
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| Author: |
Robin McKinley |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Mass Market Paperback |
| ISBN: |
0441005837 |
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From School Library Journal
Grade 8 Up. Gertrude Stein's famous quote, "Rose is a rose is a rose...," is dispelled by McKinley in her second novelization of the tale "Beauty and the Beast." (Beauty was her first novel, published 20 years ago.) Both books have the same plot and elements; what is different is the complexity of matured writing and the patina of emotional experience. Here, she has embellished and embodied the whys, whos, and hows of the magic forces at work. The telling is layered like rose petals with subtleties, sensory descriptions, and shadow imagery. Every detail holds significance, including the character names: her sisters, Jeweltongue and Lionheart; the villagers, Miss Trueword, Mrs. Bestcloth, and Mrs. Words-Without-End. Mannerisms of language and intricacies of writing style are key in this exposition. The... |
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The Door in the Hedge |
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| Author: |
Robin McKinley |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Paperback |
| ISBN: |
0698119606 |
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The Washington Post
Robin McKinley knows her geography of fantasy, the nuances of the language, the atmosphere of magic. . .
Book Description
Master storyteller Robin McKinley here spins two new fairy tales and retells two cherished classics. All feature princesses touched with or by magic. There is Linadel, who lives in a kingdom next to Faerieland, where princesses are stolen away on their seventeenth birthdays-and Linadel's seventeenth birthday is tomorrow. And Korah, whose brother is bewitched by the magical Golden Hind; now it is up to her to break the spell. Rana must turn to a talking frog to help save her kingdom from the evil Aliyander. And then there are the twelve princesses, enspelled to dance through the soles of their shoes every night. . . . These are tales to read with... |
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Robin McKinley Collection: Spindle's End/The Hero and the Crown/The Blue Sword |
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| Author: |
Robin McKinley |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Paperback |
| ISBN: |
0142302333 |
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The Hero and the Crown |
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| Author: |
Robin McKinley |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Paperback |
| ISBN: |
0141309814 |
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Book Description
Although she is the daughter of Damar's king, Aerin has never been accepted as full royalty. Both in and out of the royal court, people whisper the story of her mother, the witchwoman, who was said to have enspelled the king into marrying her to get an heir to rule Damar-then died of despair when she found she had borne a daughter instead of a son. But none of them, not even Aerin herself, can predict her future-for she is to be the true hero who will wield the power of the Blue Sword...
"Vibrant, witty, compelling, the story is the stuff of which true dreams are made."-The Horn Book
"Splendid high fantasy... filled with tender moments, good characters, satisfying action and sparkling dialogue... superb!"-School Library Journal, starred review
Awards:
( Winner of the 1985 Newbery... |
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Beauty |
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| Author: |
Robin McKinley |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Hardcover |
| ISBN: |
0060241497 |
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| Availability: |
Ships within 2-3 days. |
Book Review
This much-loved retelling of the classic French tale Beauty and the Beast elicits the familiar magical charm, but is more believable and complex than the traditional story. In this version, Beauty is not as beautiful as her older sisters, who are both lovely and kind. Here, in fact, Beauty has no confidence in her appearance but takes pride in her own intelligence, her love of learning and books, and her talent in riding. She is the most competent of the three sisters, which proves essential when they are forced to retire to the country because of their father's financial ruin. The plot follows that of the renowned legend: Beauty selflessly agrees to inhabit the Beast's castle to spare her father's life. Beauty's gradual acceptance of the Beast and the couple's deepening trust and affection are amplified in novel... |
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Beauty: A Retelling of the Story of Beauty and the Beast |
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| Author: |
Robin McKinley |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Paperback |
| ISBN: |
0064404773 |
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| Availability: |
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Book Review
This much-loved retelling of the classic French tale Beauty and the Beast elicits the familiar magical charm, but is more believable and complex than the traditional story. In this version, Beauty is not as beautiful as her older sisters, who are both lovely and kind. Here, in fact, Beauty has no confidence in her appearance but takes pride in her own intelligence, her love of learning and books, and her talent in riding. She is the most competent of the three sisters, which proves essential when they are forced to retire to the country because of their father's financial ruin. The plot follows that of the renowned legend: Beauty selflessly agrees to inhabit the Beast's castle to spare her father's life. Beauty's gradual acceptance of the Beast and the couple's deepening trust and affection are amplified in novel... |
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A Knot in the Grain |
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| Author: |
Robin McKinley |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Paperback |
| ISBN: |
0064406040 |
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| Availability: |
Ships within 2-3 days. |
From Publishers Weekly
The strange, rich magic of fairy tales is amplified and made highly personal in five stories by Newbery Medalist McKinley ( The Hero and the Crown ). A pragmatic, unapologetic feminism infuses each tale: while McKinley's adventurous heroines certainly do not eschew love, neither do they pine after princes and castles. Instead, each of these down-to-earth young women actively seeks a partner--however unusual--who suits her. Lily, the mute heroine of "The Healer," meets a fallen mage who can understand her thoughts and eventually helps her regain her voice. In "The Stagman," Queen Ruen abandons her royal husband for the shape-changing beast that rescued her from her cruel uncle's abuse. A maiden in "Touk's House" rejects a prince's hand in marriage in favor of the turquoise-eyed half-troll she has known and, she... |
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The Blue Sword |
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| Author: |
Robin McKinley |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Paperback |
| ISBN: |
014130975X |
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Book Description
Harry Crewe is an orphan girl who comes to live in Damar, the desert country shared by the Homelanders and the secretive, magical Hillfolk. Her life is quiet and ordinary-until the night she is kidnapped by Corlath, the Hillfolk King, who takes her deep into the desert. She does not know the Hillfolk language; she does not know why she has been chosen. But Corlath does. Harry is to be trained in the arts of war until she is a match for any of his men. Does she have the courage to accept her true fate?
"McKinley's spare and eloquent prose is sheer delight... a compelling portrait of the vibrant, wryly humorous Harry." -School Library Journal, starred review
"This is a zesty, romantic heroic...." -Booklist, starred review
Awards:
( A 1983 Newbery Honor Book
( An ALA Notable... |
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Water: Tales of Elemental Spirits |
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| Author: |
Robin McKinley |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Paperback |
| ISBN: |
0142402443 |
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From Publishers Weekly
Each highly respected authors in their own right, husband and wife Dickinson (The Ropemaker) and McKinley (Spindle's End) collaborate for the first time on a collection of enchanting tales linked by an aquatic theme. Infused with selkie legends and Greek and Roman underworld myths, the tales possess a consistently compelling, rhythmic tone, despite the fact that the authors alternate in the tellings. Dickinson's opening "Mermaid Song" sets the tone for a tenuous relationship between those who dwell on sand and in sea; only the landsman who has listened to the stories passed down through generations can accord the sea its proper respect. McKinley's "The Sea-King's Son" builds on the traditional tale of the Sea-King's daughter who falls in love with a musician, but with a satisfying twist. Taken together, the... |
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Beauty: A Retelling of the Story of Beauty and the Beast |
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| Author: |
Robin McKinley |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Mass Market Paperback |
| ISBN: |
0060753102 |
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| Availability: |
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Book Description
A strange imprisonment Beauty has never liked her nickname. She is thin and awkward; it is her two sisters who are the beautiful ones. But what she lacks in looks, she can perhaps make up for in courage. When her father comes home with the tale of an enchanted castle in the forest and the terrible promise he had to make to the Beast who lives there, Beauty knows she must go to the castle, a prisoner of her own free will. Her father protests that he will not let her go, but she answers, "Cannot a Beast be tamed?" Robin McKinley's beloved telling illuminates the unusual love story of a most unlikely couple: Beauty and the Beast.
About the Author
Robin McKinley won the 1985 Newbery Medal for her book The Hero and the Crown, and a 1983 Newbery Honor... |
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Spindle's End |
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| Author: |
Robin McKinley |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Hardcover |
| ISBN: |
0399234667 |
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| Availability: |
Ships within 2-3 days. |
Book Review
Renowned fantasy writer Robin McKinley, author of the lush "Beauty and the Beast" retellings Beauty and Rose Daughter, has produced another re-mastered fairy tale, this time about the dreamy Sleeping Beauty. Much like in the original story, the infant princess, here named Rosie, is cursed by an evil fairy to die on her 21st birthday by pricking her finger on a spindle. That same day, Rosie is whisked away into hiding by a peasant fairy who raises her and conceals her royal identity. From that point on, McKinley's plot and characterization become wildly inventive. She imagines Rosie growing up into a strapping young woman who despises her golden hair, prefers leather breeches to ball gowns, and can communicate with animals. And on that fateful birthday, with no help from a prince, Rosie saves herself and her entire sleeping... |
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The Hero and the Crown |
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| Author: |
Robin McKinley |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Mass Market Paperback |
| ISBN: |
0441328091 |
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| Availability: |
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Book Description
Although she is the daughter of Damar's king, Aerin has never been accepted as full royalty. Both in and out of the royal court, people whisper the story of her mother, the witchwoman, who was said to have enspelled the king into marrying her to get an heir to rule Damar-then died of despair when she found she had borne a daughter instead of a son. But none of them, not even Aerin herself, can predict her future-for she is to be the true hero who will wield the power of the Blue Sword...
"Vibrant, witty, compelling, the story is the stuff of which true dreams are made."-The Horn Book
"Splendid high fantasy... filled with tender moments, good characters, satisfying action and sparkling dialogue... superb!"-School Library Journal, starred review
Awards:
( Winner of the 1985 Newbery... |
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