Review – Alice in Tumblr-land: And Other Fairy Tales for a New Generation Hardcover by Tim Manley (4/5 stars)

Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Parody/Fairy Tales
Size: 272 pages
Publisher: Penguin Books
Release Date: November 5, 2013
ISBN: 978-0143124795
Stand Alone or Series: Stand Alone
Source: eGalley from NetGalley.com
Rating: 4/5 stars

I got a copy of this to review through NetGalley(dot)com. This was a fun and darkly humorous read about all of our favorite fairy tale characters as they struggle through their lives with the aide of social media.

This was a quick and interesting read. There were a number of times I was laughing out loud. The book jumps between many fairy tale characters. We read about Robin Hood trying to make a difference though youtube, Red Riding Hood trying to find a good man on OKCupid, Chicken Little freaking out over what she finds on WebMD, and the Ugly Duckling facing her classmates at a high school reunion…along with many other stories.

These stories are woven together remarkably well and we go back and forth between the different characters as the story of their current lives is unraveled for us. The book does a good job of closing out everyone’s stories on a surprisingly positive note. The stories are just very brief snippets, that at points leave you thinking “Uh, so what?” but then later they are revisited and make sense.

I was surprised at how well this book was done and at how much I enjoyed it. It is funny and does a good job of poking at the drama social media causes in society today.

There are also some very amusing pictures throughout. All of the pictures are done in an old traditional fairy style, but the content is more modern. The style of illustration is very ironic when compared to what it is depicting and makes for a lot of entertainment.

Definitely an adult’s only book. There is swearing and many sexual references in here. So, don’t buy this for your kid thinking it’s a fun fairy tale retelling. You also need a passing familiarity with fairy tales in order to appreciate all the humor in here.

Overall a fun and quick read. The stories of different fairytale characters are thrown into the modern day world are blended together to create a fun read. The book is remarkable cohesive considering it jumps between so many characters and that the stories are such small snippets. Recommended to those who enjoy fairy tales and humor.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
– 100 Books in a Year Reading Challenge
– 150+ Reading Challenge
– Graphic Novel Reading Challenge