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Leaping Beauty: And Other Animal Fairy Tales Audiobook
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(3.03) - 726 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
Who better to wreak havoc with eight beloved fairy tales than Gregory Maguire, the brilliant, funny, and nationally best-selling author of the adult novel Wicked as well as the hilarious middle-grade series The Hamlet Chronicles.
Zany animals of all species run through these fractured tales with alarming speed and dexterity. Who would have thought that the ageless, exquisite Cinderella could be recast as the silly story of an enormous yet lovable elephant who plods along to the ball with glass pie plates on her feet; or that Sleeping Beauty, that most regal of all fairy tales, could be twisted into the story of a frog with a most unusual and promising dance career? Get ready to meet a gorilla queen and a psycho chimp, seven giant giraffes, and one very bad walrus.
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"What delightful little takes of classic fairy tales with animals as the main characters! I like the tongue-in-cheek humor throughout all the stories, and think that my youngest will like these stories as well. I may even have to purchase a copy for our home library to have another bedtime storybook!"
— Liz (4 out of 5 stars)
Leaping Beauty Listener Reviews
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" Very funny! :3 a 'must-read', quote the New York Times. "
— Lulu, 2/18/2014 -
" This was a cute book of short stories. I'm normally not in to the short story but I will be reading this one to owen. It as Mcguire is, a different take on the standard stories. I enjoyed them yet they aren't something I'll need to read again until its time to read these to Owen. "
— Becky, 2/16/2014 -
" Great take on fairytales.Very well done and is funny, but also serious and firm. This book is holding onto a good handle. I really enjoyed it! "
— Lkenner, 2/12/2014 -
" Love the clever and unique style of Maguire. Easy to read to young children, one short episode/chapter at a time... "
— Pauline, 2/7/2014 -
" By the author of "Wicked"- this book was a very clever, quick read redoing famous fairy tales. Laugh out loud funny at parts, I loved it! "
— Crystal, 2/3/2014 -
" I went to pick up books from the library for tutoring, and totally got this one for myself. Because I'm awesome enough to read kids books. "
— Jamie, 2/2/2014 -
" It was a cute book of new versions of fairy tales. It's billeted as a kids book but I'm not sure they would see some of the humor. Definitely best read in a quirky mood, as some of them can go from cute and funny to just stupid if you're in an unforgiving mood. "
— Lori, 1/30/2014 -
" Hilariously funny and very charming! I think this is one of the best books I've ever read. "
— Audrey, 1/25/2014 -
" Reading aloud to the kid. She really likes the stories, it has been a great way to pass time while waiting. "
— Meadow, 1/20/2014 -
" Maguire just always seems like he's trying too hard... "
— Daisy, 12/27/2013 -
" Strange and interesting and funny! "
— Lee, 12/25/2013 -
" animal "fractured" fairy tales. very funny and entertaining! "
— Sherry, 12/25/2013 -
" I realize this has gotta be for kids, but it cracked me up. As others have said, the penguin story was the best. This was a kindle library book, but I'll be buying a hard copy. "
— Amanda, 12/12/2013 -
" Cute stories but some of parts were way over the top. "
— Lynlee4, 11/2/2013 -
" Some of these reimaginings of fairy tales are cute, but they're definitely for kids. "
— Dawn, 10/31/2013 -
" thoroughly enjoyed myself while reading these short fairy tales. I laughed and even read one out loud to Travis. It was a fun read "
— Emily, 10/8/2013 -
" This just sort of fell into my hands just after seeing Wicked the musical in Dec. I had to read it. Great kid writing! FUN! "
— Melinda, 9/25/2013 -
" A collection of fractured fairy tales by the author of Wicked. My favorite was Rumplesnakeskin. Silly, fun, and creative, but lacked the depth of other retellings. Maybe because all of the main characters were animals, but the stories just didn't speak to me that way that Donna Jo Napoli's do. "
— Debbie, 9/22/2013 -
" A funny twist to old Fairy Tales! "
— Karen, 8/26/2013 -
" Cute, but a little too silly. A fun read though. I liked the section at the end that talked about the author. "
— Ana, 4/28/2013 -
" I thought this was a cute kids book with creative takes on various fairytales. It was fun to see stories that I loved growing up altered to wonderfully create a different version in which the characters are animals instead of humans or different animals from the originals. "
— Erin, 11/12/2012 -
" Gregory Maguire, of "Wicked" fame rewrites familiar fairy tales with humor that will be appreciated by kids of all ages. Wonderful word play. "
— Linda, 7/25/2012 -
" My son loves this book. I can een get him to read it by himself! The stories are spun from different fairy tales that I remember reading as a child. Maguire just makes them better! "
— Mandy, 6/30/2012 -
" Very cute, creative, amusing twists on standard fairy tales. I found it as entertaining as my friend's 5-year-old did. "
— Maura, 3/19/2012 -
" This book felt like a waste of time. I love fairy tale retellings, but this was just annoying. I didn't like the writing, and the stories were... not good. I am not a fan. Ugh... "
— Ashley, 3/16/2012 -
" Definitely a book for 8-12 year olds. I thought there would be a little bit of a "sick" Grimm Brothers twist but the stories are cute and I'll be able to read them as bedtime stories as the kids get older. "
— Sara, 3/13/2012 -
" This book is umm . . . it's ok. I liked it I mean it was ok. But don't buy it. It's not worth the money. Borrow it or go to the library but I don't know if I would recomend it. "
— Kandy, 7/14/2011 -
" These we cute and some were laugh out loud funny but others were just plain weird. An interesting spin added by Maguire to put animals into fairy tales. "
— Shelley, 6/23/2011 -
" Great take on fairytales.Very well done and is funny, but also serious and firm. This book is holding onto a good handle. I really enjoyed it! "
— Lkenner, 4/6/2011 -
" I'm not finishing this book. I was reading it with my daughter, but the stories got to be so negative and filled with rude words I just couldn't go on. I don't recomend this for a preschooler. "
— Josephine, 4/1/2011 -
" Don't bother. This book is pretty lame. The alterations Maguire makes to the stories is based primarily on punning the titles. These stories have zero depth. If you like his work, reread Stepsister or Wicked instead. "
— Christina, 1/28/2011 -
" Cute, but a little too silly. A fun read though. I liked the section at the end that talked about the author. "
— Ana, 10/27/2010 -
" I liked this collection of stories. Gregory Maguire is a great storyteller.. "
— Jodie, 10/19/2010 -
" My son loves this book. I can een get him to read it by himself! The stories are spun from different fairy tales that I remember reading as a child. Maguire just makes them better! "
— Mandy, 9/8/2010 -
" Not the most insightful parodies of classic fairy tales I've read, but perhaps the funniest. "
— Cheryl, 6/28/2010 -
" Enjoyable spin on fairy tales and an easy read. "
— Aurora, 6/20/2010 -
" Pretty forgettable and not quite as adorable and amusing as I expected. "
— Sarah, 4/24/2010 -
" I read this book a while ago but I still remember how much I loved it! "
— iLove?, 3/27/2010 -
" I was slightly disappointed and bored by this one. I don't think it will be read to the non-existant kids. "
— Betsy, 1/29/2010 -
" It has many stories in it that are really funny. This was a very enjoyable book and a quick read. "
— Abigail, 1/19/2010 -
" Gregory Maguire, of "Wicked" fame rewrites familiar fairy tales with humor that will be appreciated by kids of all ages. Wonderful word play. "
— Linda, 1/14/2010
About Gregory Maguire
?Gregory Maguire is an American author of nonfiction and fiction and fantasy for children, young adults, and adults, including the Wicked Years, the first book of which is Wicked—the basis for the major motion picture and Tony Award–winning Broadway musical of the same name. He received his PhD in English and American literature from Tufts University and his BA degree from the State University of New York at Albany. He was a professor and co-director at the Simmons College Center for the Study of Children’s Literature from 1979-1985.