Joy McCullough

A modern-day version of Hansel & Gretel to please fans of A Series of Unfortunate Events.

Basil and Dahlia are orphaned by a greenhouse explosion that killed their parents - an explosion both children believe (unbeknownst to each other) to be their own fault. Now, having discovered that a social worker means to split them up, they are on the run, and they wind up in Manhattan, where intrepid Dahlia leads them to Laurel Fox's bakery, Cravings. To Basil's astonishment, Ms. Fox takes them in: she feeds them, gives them comfortable beds, and outfits them with new wardrobes. But she is also trying to collect their tears for an ingredient in her new line of baked goods, and Basil and Dahlia realize they must escape and expose her before she harms more children.

The narrator's voice is wry and slightly old-fashioned; they mention knowing "Louis" (Pasteur) and Charles (Dickens). See also: A Tale Dark and Grimm by Adam Gidwitz, A Series of Unfortunate Events, The Mysterious Benedict Society.

McCullough's author's note says this was her first book to go out on submission to editors, yet it is only being published now. Lucky for readers!

Quotes

And very often that's the way of it - the truth tellers sound the most ridiculous of all. (168)

Perhaps sometimes horrible things simply happen and it's no one's fault. It's just the way of the world, and the only option is to try to do good and remain hopeful in spite of so much awful. (225)… (plus d'informations)

I absolutely recommend the audio book for this, the multiple narrators really bring this to life, and like plays themselves, this is better experienced more than read. Even if you don't know the plays being mentioned, the stories are well supported enough that you can understand even without needing to know the Shakespearean lore.

If you are expecting this to be written like Shakespeare, well to be honest I'm really not sure why, but this is written in Joy McCullough's style with Shakespearean influence. She's an excellent author and that's why I picked this book up in the first place. I loved it, because it's about women taking control of their own stories, and brought up ideas and perspectives that had not occurred to me before about these old plays. An excellent listen/read, especially if you're a fan of writing in verse.… (plus d'informations)