Retell Me a Story: New and Upcoming Retellings

Listless Monday was inspired by both Amanda at A Bookshelf Monstrosity's feature Books by Theme and Court at Once Upon a Bookshelf's Listed feature. Be sure to check out their lists!

Welcome to the second day of Retell Me a Story!  I've got another guest post coming up later, but be sure to check out the giveaway and Nikki's guest post from yesterday.  Also, for more complete lists of retellings, check out my giant list of classic and mythological retellings and my list of fairy tale retellings.
 
I'm happy to be sharing with you some of the excellent MG and YA retellings (and I use that term pretty loosely here) that have just come out or that are coming out this year.  I thought it would make a delightful Listless Monday post, too!  As you will see from the length of this post, there are certainly a LOT of retellings being published right now.  These range from fairy tale to mythological to classic retellings.  Hopefully you will see one or two here that pique your interest.

Recently Released Retellings:

Soonchild by Russell Hoban (August 2012)
Retelling Innuit mythology
The Odyssey by Gillian Cross (September 2012)
Retelling The Odyssey by Homer
Fathomless by Jackson Pearce (September 2012)
Retelling The Little Mermaid

Ten by Gretchen McNeil (September 2012)
Retelling And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
The Turning by Francine Prose (September 2012)
Retelling The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
Fairy Tales from the Brothers Grimm by Philip Pullman (November 2012)
Retelling Grimm's fairy tales

Princess of the Silver Woods by Jessica Day George (December 2012)
Retelling Red Riding Hood (and Robin Hood)
Tempestuous by Kim Askew and Amy Helmes (December 2012)
Retelling The Tempest by William Shakespeare
Snow Whyte and the Queen of Mayhem by Melissa Lemon (Dec 2012)
Retelling Snow White

Doomed by Tracy Deebs (January 2013)
Retelling the Pandora myth
Catherine by April Lindner (January 2013)
Retelling Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
Splintered by A.G. Howard (January 2013)
Retelling Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
Dr. Frankenstein's Daughters by Suzanne Weyn (January 2013)
Retelling Frankenstein by Mary Shelley (more of a sequel)

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Upcoming Retellings:

The Madman's Daughter by Megan Shepherd (January 2013)
Retelling The Island of Dr. Moreau by H.G. Wells
The Trouble with Flirting by Clare LaZebnik (February 2013)
Retelling Mansfield Park by Jane Austen
Scarlet by Marissa Meyer (February 2013)
Retelling Red Riding Hood

A Touch of Scarlet by Eve Marie Mont (March 2013)
Retelling The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
Strands of Bronze and Gold by Jane Nickerson (March 2013)
Retelling Bluebeard
Frogged by Vivian Vande Velde (April 2013)
Retelling The Frog King

Life After Theft by Aprilynne Pike (April 2013)
Retelling The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy
The Hero's Guide to Storming the Castle by Christopher Healy (April 2013)
Retelling various fairy tales
Nameless: A Tale of Beauty and Madness by Lili St. Crow (April 2013)
Retelling Snow White

Furious by Jill Wolfson (April 2013)
Retelling (featuring?) the Greek Furies
Vengeance Bound by Justine Ireland (April 2013)
Retelling (featuring?) the Greek Furies
Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin by Liesl Shurtliff (April 2013)
Retelling Rumpelstiltskin

Jane Austen Goes to Hollywood by Abby McDonald (April 2013)
Retelling Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
Beauty by Nancy Ohlin (May 2013)
Retelling Snow White
Towering by Alex Flinn (May 2013)
Retelling Rapunzel

Of Beast and Beauty by Stacey Jay (July 2013)
Retelling Beauty and the Beast
All Our Pretty Songs by Sarah McCarry (July 2013)
Retelling the Orpheus and Eurydice myth
The Fairest of Them All by Carolyn Turgeon (August 2013)
Retelling Rapunzel and Snow White

Antigoddess by Kendare Blake (September 2013)
Retelling (starring?) various Greek gods
Cold Spell by Jackson Pearce (Fall 2013)
Retelling The Snow Queen (cover not available)
Across a Star-swept Sea by Diana Peterfreund (Fall 2013)
Retelling The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy (cover not available)
My Name is Rapunzel by K.C. Hilton (sometime in 2013)
Retelling Rapunzel

As you can see, a lot of retellings recently released or coming out this year.  I'd love for you to share with me any that I might have missed. Or any that you are particularly excited about!

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Retell Me a Story Guest Post: Nikki from BookPairing

I'm pleased to welcome my first Retell Me a Story guest poster, Nikki Steele, the excellent blogger who shares her thoughts over at BookPairing.  She can also be found on twitter and goodreads.  Thanks for sharing with us, Nikki!

Re-Casting Women as Heroines

In classic fairy tales, there are step-mothers and there are princesses and, as everybody knows, the step-mothers always seem to be cast as the villains, the princesses as unlucky women waiting to be rescued by a Prince, usually of the charming type.

Kathleen Ragan, in her Fearless Girls, Wise Women, & Beloved Sisters collection of folktales, tries to undo that dichotomy, claiming that the timing of when many fairy tales were recorded—the Victorian Era—has much more to do with this than the actual fairy tales themselves. To prove this, she goes back into first-hand accounts and records to bring back to life the folktales that star female heroines, such as the Sudanese woman, Fatma, who outwits a king’s challenge by earning more money abroad than the Prince can; the beautiful Chinese woman who escapes a king’s lust, and ultimately becomes king by a prophetic sign, bringing happiness to her people; and the young Iroquois mother who is the only one to take a stand against an evil monster.

Because I’m of the pairing persuasion, I wanted to look at a modern novel that recast women as the hero(in)es and chose Margaret Atwood’s The Robber Bride, a retelling of the classic fairy tale The Robber Bridegroom (in itself, a pretty good tale when it came to a female protagonist). Many of the same elements of female heroes that Ragan talks of are evident in Atwood’s book—the female traits of cooperation and community and women who use their different strengths to come together to solve problems. Like all of Atwood’s books, this one is carried by the rich descriptions of character, especially of the three main heroines: Tony, a military history professor, Roz, a fashion-savvy CEO, and Charis, a New-Age earth mama who have all been brought together through mutual deceptions by Zenia, the shadowy woman who has no time nor place and has effectively robbed them of their husbands at one time or another.

By the end, when Zenia is no more and the metaphorical dust has cleared from the battlefield, there is a strange shift that occurs. The bonds that have held the three women together for so long now extend to Zenia, the displaced woman, who as Tony thinks, “[A]lthough she was many other things, she was also courageous. What side she was on doesn’t matter; not to Tony, not any more. There may not even have been a side. She may have been alone.”

It’s unusual for any fairy tale to end in this way—in a mutual understanding between the hero(in)es and the villains. In this one, the resolution seems right, bringing the modern fairy tale into a better approximation of its more ancient forebearers, before a Victorian Era that, in a way, robbed stories of the types of heroism that are more closely related with being a woman.

What are your favorite fairy tale heroines? What modern novels have you read that re-cast women as the heroines?

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Retell Me a Story: Welcome and Giveaway!

I'm so thrilled to finally be kicking off Retell Me a Story, a celebration of all things retelling! I've got some really fabulous guest posts from authors and bloggers, not to mention reviews and other retelling goodies to share. I hope you'll stop by every day this week to enjoy the fun and to feed your love for retellings. Check back shortly for my first guest post of the week.  But first, a little introduction:

Why Retellings?

Back in November 2011, I began to notice that there seemed to be an upswing of retellings hitting my radar. And not just fairy tale retellings, which are always available. No, there were more classic books and mythological stories making a fresh appearance. I've always been a big fan of classics, though I've really neglected reading them of late. I was really excited to see these often loathed classic books wearing shiny new faces that might actually attract new readers. Thus, my idea for a reading challenge, the Classic Double Challenge, was born. This challenge encourages people to read a retelling (or otherwise related book) and its "classic" predecessor. It is my way of encouraging myself and others to not only enjoy those fancy new retellings, but give some love to those dusty older classics as well. And from there I thought, why not have an entire week dedicated to celebrating retellings? I'm hoping this celebration will light the fire under you to read not only a retelling, but also the original story that was its inspiration.

But enough of the boring stuff, let's start this celebration off right with a giveaway of some retellings!  I'm not usually a fan of earning extra points, but in this case I'll make an exception or two. Everyone gets one free entry, but you can earn one extra entry by joining the Classic Double Challenge and one extra entry by commenting (in a meaningful way) on any of the posts for the Retell Me a Story event this week. Only one comment will count, but do feel free to comment as much as you like :)  Here are the prizes you can choose from (and I can finally open it to international readers!):

The Turning by Francine Prose (HC or ARC)
The Humming Room by Ellen Potter (ARC)
The Thirteenth Princess by Diane Zahler (PB)
Princess of the Wild Swans by Diane Zahler (HC)
Catherine by April Lindner (ARC)
Sweet Venom by Tera Lyn Childs (ARC)
Masque of the Red Death by Bethany Griffin (ARC)
Ten by Gretchen McNeil (HC)
International prize: One book worth up to $10 from Book Depository (must be a retelling of some kind)

The first winner will get to pick two books, the second will get to pick one book, and if I get enough entries I'll add a third winner who will get to pick one book.  All you need to do is fill out the form below before next Sunday, January 20.  Thanks for joining in the celebration and I hope you will enjoy Retell Me a Story! (Giveaway closed: Winners chosen)

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Retell Me a Story, Coming This Sunday!

I am feverishly working toget the guest posts, reviews, giveaway details, and everything worked out for the Retell Me a Story event that starts this Sunday, January 13th.  I'm really, really excited about it, mostly because I've got some stellar guest posts that I can't wait to share with you!  Also, because I really love retellings, so this is the perfect event for me

I guess this post is just to say, I may be absent for the next few days, in preparation for all the fun and excitement coming next week.  Feel free to spread the word and be sure to drop by next week!

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

2012 By the Numbers

I love to do my bookish stats analysis at the end of the year.  I'm a bit behind, but that's just how it goes.  Enjoy!

For comparison, my 2011 stats.

Total books read in 2012: 130
For the full list, see my Read in 2012 list.

Average books per month: 11  
January was my highest month with 16 books.
May was my lowest month with 8 books.

And now come the graphs :)

Print is still my top choice for reading format, but my audio and e-book formats took some pretty big leaps this year.
(Audio went from 9% in 2011 to 22% in 2012 - most likely due to my long commute; e-books went from 12% in 2011 to 18% in 2012.)

My genres for the most part didn't change much since last year.  The two significant differences are the big increase in sci-fi (from 2 books to 21 books) and the big decrease in paranormal (from 22 books to 8 books).  There were some other adjustments, notably an increase in fairy tale retellings, but nothing too monumental.

In other percentages, mostly for my own benefit, things stayed fairly consistent:
Nonfiction 5%
Fiction 95 %
(which is still painfully sad)

My age group reading was pretty similar as well (boy, do I need to read more adult books)
Childrens: (below middle grade): 2%
Middle Grade: 24%
Young Adult: 65%
Adult: 9%

The sources for my books was almost identical to 2011:
Books from the library: 49%
Books sent for review: 44%
Books from my collection (not for review): 5%
I'm hoping the Dusty Bookshelf Challenge will help me pull up that last percentage a little.

My most-read author was a three-way tie with four books each:
L.A. Meyer (for the Bloody Jack series)
Tamora Pierce (for the Song of the Lioness series mostly)
Cinda Williams Chima (for the Seven Realms series)

Other random stats:
2012 Debut Authors: 18
Rereads: 9
Did Not Finish: 5
Books with main or strong supporting characters who are People of Color (I've included people with disabilities in this rather broad definition): 33%

If you're interested in seeing how I did with my reading challenges from 2012, go to my 2012 Reading Challenges Page.

Whew, if you made it through this post, give yourself a pat on the back!  How was your 2012 reading?

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Book Review: Beta by Rachel Cohn

Beta by Rachel Cohn
Publisher: Disney/Hyperion
Publication date: October 2012
Pages: 336
Source: ARC from ALA
For: Review
Series: Beta, Book 1

Elysia is a beta, one of the first clones created to be a teenager. Despite having a few glitches, she is immediately purchased to be a companion for the mayor's son. Discovering that she seems not to be completely perfect as she is supposed to be, Elysia struggles with the feelings she's experiencing and with discovering that not all is ideal on her isolated perfect island.

Things I Liked:
I was really intrigued by the premise of this book.  I love the idea of clones created to look like real people, but without souls (ok, that sounds creepy - I like it as a book, not an actual idea).  I loved seeing this disturbing future world Cohn created, complete with an idyllic island society that is isolated from everything else going on in the world.  It was interesting to watch Elysia figure out what she was feeling and what her place in the world was, and just what was really going on.  I thought the book had so much potential, but it didn't work for me.

Things I Didn't Like:
I never felt like anything was explained or like Elysia really figured out who she was or what she wanted to do.  She kind of still seemed to be drifting, (*possible spoiler ahead*) even after she fell in love (*end spoiler*).  I was disappointed at how quickly she shifted her feelings and changed her opinions based on who she was with.  Especially the ending seemed just really strange, really too far out there to believe, and didn't seem to fit with what had gone on before.  Most of my problems were with just how bored I was for most of the book.  It really felt like nothing happened for the first 2/3 of the book and then everything does.  It is slow-building, yes, but I wanted to see something more than just Elysia trying to figure out what people meant when they spoke (though, a few times it seemed inconsistently done throughout), Elysia trying to please the humans, but wondering about her First.  And I was annoyed that the choices she makes were stupid, even for her.  I can't really explain it well, but I just didn't like it.  

Read-alikes:
Reminded me a bit of Virals by Kathy Reichs
Maybe somewhat like The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: !@
some, not a lot though

mrg-factor: XX
most of it clinical, but some of it was uncomfortably descriptive

v-factor: ->
a little bit

Overall rating: **

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Challenge Me in 2013

It's that time again!  Time to sign up for the reading challenges of 2013.  I'm super excited and hope to complete the few I've chosen this time around.  If you are interested, you can check out how I did on my 2012 challenges here.

Classic Double Challenge hosted by yours truly. :)  For information on signing up for this challenge, go to the Classic Double Challenge 2013 sign up page. Also, for suggestions on book pairs to read, I have a giant list of retellings with their classic book listed.

I'm going to be ambitious and hope for the Super Size level again this year (even though I didn't manage to quite reach it last year).  And be sure to come back during January 13-19 for my Retell Me a Story event, filled with giveaways, guest posts, and lots of retelling info!

1. Little Red Riding Hood
2. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer 

3. The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
4. The Turning by Francine Prose

5. The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy
6. Across a Star-Swept Sea by Diana Peterfreund

7. The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
8. A Touch of Scarlet by Eve Marie Mont

(Or maybe something Shakespeare, I'm keeping my options open :) Pretty good fail again this year, though 2 out of four isn't bad

Jessica at Books: A True Story's Dusty Bookshelf Challenge.  Though I totally failed last time (no, really, I read zero books for it), I really want to get to those older books that have been waiting so patiently for me.  So, I'm sticking with my original list of books and hoping to get one or two of them read at least (ie: Pixie Dust level).

1. Dealing with Dragons by Patricia C. Wrede (3+ years)
2. Beautiful Creatures by Margaret Stohl and Kami Garcia  (3+ years)
3. Rampant by Diana Peterfreund (3+ years)
4. The Brontes: A Life in Letters by Juliet Barker (um, maybe a decade?)
5. Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco X. Stork (3+ years)

At least I got one read! :)

The last one I'm doing (hey, I'm cutting back a bit this year), is the YA Audiobook Challenge, hosted by Jen of A Book and a Latte.  I already listen to plenty of audiobooks, but now I have a reason to choose more YA audios.  I'm starting low with the Easy Listening level, only 12 audiobooks.  Let's hope I get to more than that!  And I really have no ideas what I want to start with, so I'll just leave my 12 slots wide open for now:

1. Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey
2. The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare
3. Magisterium by Jeff Hirsch
4. Beautiful Days by Anna Godberson 
5. A Company of Swans by Eva Ibbotson
6. Hattie Ever After by Kirby Larson
7. Keturah and Lord Death by Martine Leavitt
8. Jessica Rules the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey
9. Strands of Bronze and Gold by Jane Nickerson
10. The Mighty Miss Malone by Christopher Paul Curtis
11. Sabotage by Margaret Peterson Haddix 
12. The Way We Fall by Megan Crewe
13. Will Sparrow's Road by Karen Cushman
14. The Arctic Incident by Eoin Colfer
15. The Eternity Code by Eoin Colfer 

Yay! I finished one of my challenges!! :)

What challenges are you doing this year?

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

2013: The Books I Read

This is just a post where I will (hopefully) be able to keep track of what books I read this year.  Here's to a goal of at least 100 again and loving as many as last year.  Happy New Year!

1. The Humming Room by Ellen Potter
2. The Turning by Francine Prose
3. The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare (audio)
4. Prodigy by Marie Lu
5. Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey (audio)
6. Reached by Ally Condie
7. Splendors and Glooms by Laura Amy Schlitz
8. Promised by Caragh M. O'Brien
9. Magisterium by Jeff Hirsch (audio)
10. The Kill Order by James Dashner 
11. Infinity Ring Book 1: A Mutiny in Time by James Dashner (audio)
12. The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater 
13. Goblin Secrets by William Alexander
14. Beautiful Days by Anna Godberson (audio)
15. Etiquette & Espionage by Gail Carringer
16. A Red Herring Without Mustard by Alan Bradley (audio)
17. Mind Games by Kiersten White
18. Level 2 by Lenore Appelhans 
19. A Company of Swans by Eva Ibbotson (audio)
20. Seraphina by Rachel Hartman 
21. Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz
22. Hattie Ever After by Kirby Larson (audio)
23. Cinders and Sapphires by Leila Rasheed
24. Will Sparrow's Road by Karen Cushman (audio)
25. Shades of Earth by Beth Revis 
26. The Baby Whisperer Solves All Your Problems by Tracy Hogg and Melinda Blau
27. The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: The Hidden Gallery by Maryrose Wood (audio)
28. The Rose Throne by Mette Ivie Harrison
29. Keturah and Lord Death by Martine Leavitt (reread) (audio)
30. Through the Ever Night by Veronica Rossi 
31. Jessica Rules the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey (audio)
32. Everbound by Brodi Ashton
33. Boundless by Cynthia Hand 
34. The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: The Unseen Guest by Maryrose Wood (audio)
35. Beautiful Creatures by Margaret Stohl and Kami Garcia
36. Strands of Bronze and Gold by Jane Nickerson (audio)
37. Fragments by Dan Wells 
38. Bomb by Steve Sheinkin
39. The Mighty Miss Malone by Christopher Paul Curtis (audio)
40. The Lord of Opium by Nancy Farmer
41. Loki's Wolves by K.L. Armstrong and M.A. Marr
42. Sabotage by Margaret Peterson Haddix (audio)
43. Requiem by Lauren Oliver
44. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
45. The Way We Fall by Megan Crewe (audio)
46. Dodger by Terry Pratchett
47. The Arctic Incident by Eoin Colfer (audio)
48. Dark Triumph (His Fair Assassin 2)
49. Spies and Prejudice by Talia Vance
50. The Eternity Code by Eoin Colfer (audio)
51. Going Vintage by Lindsay Leavitt
52. The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey
53. Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
54. Soldier's Secret by Marissa Moss
55. The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
56. The Chaos of Stars by Kiersten White
57. Yesterday by C.K. Kelly Martin
58. Black Hole Sun by David Macinnis Gill
59. Ironskin by Tina Connolly
60. Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein
61. The Hero's Guide to Storming the Castle by Christopher Healy
62. Across a Star-Swept Sea by Diana Peterfreund
63. Raven Flight by Juliet Marillier
64. Fox Forever by Mary Pearson
65. Double Crossed by Ally Carter
66. Among the Nameless Stars by Diana Peterfreund
67. A New World by Patrick Ness
68. The Summer Before I Met You by Sarah Rees Brennan
69. The Spring Before I Met You by Sarah Rees Brennan
70. The Brides of Rollrock Island by Margot Lanagan
71. Transparent by Natalie Whipple
72. Neverfall by Brodi Ashton
73. Earthbound by Aprilynne Pike
74. Hero by Alethea Kontis
75. Just One Day by Gayle Forman
76. Allegiant by Veronica Roth
77. Blackout by Robison Wells
78. Life Before Legend by Marie Lu
79. Bitter Kingdom by Rae Carson
80. The Eye of Minds by James Dashner
81. Just One Year by Gayle Forman
82. I am Half-Sick of Shadows by Alan Bradley
83. Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson
84. Blackmoore by Julianne Donaldson

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage