Book Description
This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Book Description
'Once upon a time in mid-winter, when the snowflakes were falling from the sky like down, a queen was sitting and sewing at a window ...'The tales gathered by the Grimm brothers are at once familiar, fantastic, homely, and frightening.They seem to belong to no time, or to some distant feudal age of fairytale imagining.Grand palaces, humble cottages, and the forest full of menace are their settings; and they are peopled by kings and princesses, witches and robbers, millers and golden birds, stepmothers and talking frogs.Regarded from their inception both as uncosy nursery stories and as raw material for the folklorist the tales were in fact compositions, collected from literate tellers and shaped into a distinctive kind of literature.This new translation mirrors the apparent artlessness of the Grimms, and fully represents the range of less well-known fables, morality tales, and comic stories as well as the classic tales.It takes the stories back to their roots in German Romanticism and includes variant stories and tales that were deemed unsuitable for children.In her fascinating introduction, Joyce Crick explores their origins, and their literary evolution at the hands of the Grimms. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A decent collection of these famous stories
This book does not contain all of the Grimms' stories, but it does include a wide selection (sixtyish) of the most famous and most interesting tales.There were many more stories, of course, but the editor of this edition has chosen some of the most well-known and representative ones.In addition, there are many tales included that aren't necessarily famous but are just as good as the familiar ones.

The book opens with an interesting introduction, which shows how the Grimms were the first to seriously record folk wonder tales in a literary form, putting them in good prose but still maintaining respect for the original stories.(The earlier French writers drew on folktales, but altered them into tales of courtly intrigue, and sometimes told them in a snickering, sarcastic style.)Then, of course, come the tales themselves, well-written and yet hauntingly simple.

Note:This is an edition for the grown-ups. No illustrations.Visually, it looks like a textbook rather than a book of fairy tales.I do need to buy a pretty edition someday, to pass on to my hypothetical kids.:) ... Read more

Book Description
This illustrated volume contains every published story by the Brothers Grimm, from well-known classics like "Cinderella" to lesser-known tales such as "The Bright Sun Brings on the Day". Other enchanting fairy tales include:

• "The Frog Prince"

• "Hansel and Gretel"

• "Snow-White and Red-Rose"

• "Rapunzel"

• "Little Red Riding Hood"

• "Rumpelstiltskin" ... Read more

Customer Reviews (29)

Excellent Collection
I bought this book for my niece because I grew up on the Brothers Grimm so I thought she should have access to it as well. This is one of the most complete collections of these fairy tales that I have ever seen. Very good if you have kids & want them to experience all of the real German folk tales as well as the Disney versions. I would highly recommend it.

GREAT!!
I was very pleased with the book purchase.My book was shipped quickly during the holiday season.Thanks

Font size
The Grimm fairytales are great but I would have wanted to know the size of the font prior to purchasing. I feel that the print size should have been larger. It makes it hard to keep focus when reading.

grimm
this book was just as good as i thought it would be very pleased with it and so is my young son who i purchased it for

i likey da booky
although the book is pretty long, there were a lot of stories that kept me interested. i always wanted to find out the true version of all my childhood fairy tales like cinderella, the frog prince, rapunzel, and so much more. my favorite of them all had to be "The Youth Who Could Not Shiver and Shake," that story was scary, funny, as well as amusing. overall the book, The Complete Brothers Grimm Fairy Tales, was and old time classic that could never be forgotten. ... Read more

Book Description
Most of the fairy tales that we grew up with we know thanks to the Brothers Grimm. Jack Zipes, one of the more astute critics of fairy tales, explores the romantic myth of the brothers as wandering scholars, who gathered "authentic" tales from the peasantry. Bringing to bear his own critical expertise as well and new biographical information, Zipes examines the interaction between the Grimms' lives and their work. He reveals the Grimms' personal struggle to overcome social prejudice and poverty, as well as their political efforts--as scholars and civil servants--toward unifying the German states. By deftly interweaving the social, political, and personal elements of the lives of the Brothers Grimm, Zipes rescues them from sentimental obscurity. No longer figures in a fairy tale, the Brothers Grimm emerge as powerful creators, real men who established the fairy tale as one of our great literary institutions. Part biography, part critical assessment, and part social history, The Brothers Grimm provides a complex and very real story about fairy tales and the modern world. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A mishmash of everything
This book tries to cover a lot of ground, but in the end you get a sense that it has gotten you anywhere.The first impression I got was that this book was actually a bunch of journal articles thrown together because there isn't much sense of continuity to this book.It doesn't have an overall theme and the topics covered don't seem to connect well.It starts off with a short biography of the Grimms, so far so good.After that, it covers the orgins of the tales, a little dry, but not bad.After that, there's a chapter about how the Grimm tales indoctrinate children into the bourgeoisie.The Marxism seems a little dated.After that, out of the blue, you get a chapter on Henri Pourrault, an obscure writer of fairy tales.It's never explained why this writer is in this book, but I guess the author really liked this journal article and couldn't resist throwing it in.

After this, it gets really weird.You get a chapter about how fairy tales are all about childhood sexual abuse.If that doesn't kill your mood to read fairy tales, then the following chapter in which the author attacks the Grimm tales as outdated and obsolete and advocates the rewriting of the tales for more modern perspectives will.One gem that the author singles out for praise is a rewriting of Cinderella.In this version, Cinderella is a labor organizer who organizes all the workers in her kingdom.The prince, impressed by her accomplishments, falls in lover with her and proposes.However, Cinderella refuses to betray the worker and rejects the prince.In the end, Cinderella moves to America and the prince commits suicide over the heartbreak.Wow, the kids will love that one.It's not even entertaining or enlightening for adults and borders on masochistic.That's some of the nonsense that you'll run into in this book.I really recommend that you pass on this.

For serious students of European fantasy literature
The Brothers Grimm: From Enchanted Forests To The Modern World by Jack Zipes (Professor of German, University of Minnesota) is an informed and informative examination of the lives of the famous fairy tale gatherers, writers, and preservers, Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm. From their humble origins amidst poverty and prejudice to their ultimate contribution to literature as a whole, The Brothers Grimm is a truly fascinating account and a "must-read" for serious students of European fantasy literature and folklore. ... Read more

Book Description
Children everywhere are familiar with the fairy-tale world of the Brothers Grimm, who made "once upon a time" a part of our universal vocabulary—but few people know much about the brothers themselves. Inspired by their desire to document their national literary heritage, the two devoted brothers spent most of their adult years collecting and publishing German Märchen and Sagen, fairy tales and legends. This thorough and compelling biography addresses the social, political, and historical influences that shaped the lives and stories of Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Two Lives, One Legacy
It's a great title for this book, "Two Lives One Legacy." And this is a beautiful story on the lives of the two brothers. It was not easy for me to find a book on their lives...and when I learned of this book, it was not easy to get a hold of it...

Most remember Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm for the stories they published, and sometimes myth intrudes even with this. But they lived great and wonderful lives, and this book tells all.

From childhood, this book covers their lives in an easy read. It offers a whole new light on the lives and times of, 'The Brother's Grimm."

There is not a movie on the, "true" story of the two brother's, I hope one will be made soon.

Fine biographical coverage
Donald Hettinga's Brothers Grimm presents a fine biographical coverage of the era and lives of the Brothers Grimm and the stories they recorded. Photos, archival illustrations, and plenty of details on the brothers' relationship pack a 179-page, engrossing account. ... Read more

Book Description
"Cinderella," "Hansel and Gretel," "Rapunzel," and "Snow White" are just a sampling of the dozens of fairytales presented to the world by the German brothers Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm. This book details the social and political influences that shaped the lives of the Brothers Grimm and the wonderful tales they shared. ... Read more

Book Description
Questioning culturally predetermined consolidations of childhood experience, this study focuses on memory and affect on the verge of linguistic formulation. Fairy tale plots frequently function as cover-ups of a deeply rooted violence that expresses itself through sensibilities of the skin and in presymbolically charged cataclysms. In a narrative border zone, early linguistic and psychic events re-emerge with primordial force. Split into seemingly irreconcilable opposites, good and evil engage in warfare with each other; cannibalism and infanticide take hold of family life. In close readings of four newly translated, intricately interpersonal fairy tales related by the Brothers Grimm, this inquiry explores an utter frightfulness ... Read more

Book Description
Professor McGlathery's study is the first to survey scholarly criticism of Grimms' Fairy Tales from its publication to the present. It reveals the changing perception of fairy tales, from the initial assumption that they were descended from ancient sources, and the consequent interest in the genre's origin and evidence for ancient ritualistic practice, to the study of the fairy tale as a literary genre, distinct from other types of popular narrative; ideological critics are seen to pursue the meaning of the tales, and folklorists to examine cultural sources and story-telling as performance art. ... Read more

Book Description
The fairy tales collected by the brothers Grimm are among the best known and most widely-read stories in western literature.In recent years commentators such as Bruno Bettelheim have, usually from a psychological perspective, pondered the underlying meaning of the stories, why children are so enthralled by them, and what effect they have on the developing child.In this book, Ronald Murphy takes five of the best-known tales ("Hansel and Gretel," "Little Red Riding Hood," "Cinderella," "Snow White," and "Sleeping Beauty") and shows that the Grimms saw them as Christian fables.Murphy examines the arguments of previous interpreters of the tales, and demonstrates how they missed the Grimms' intention.His own readings of the five so-called "magical" tales reveal them as the beautiful and inspiring "documents of faith" that the Grimms meant them to be.Offering an entirely new perspective on these often-analyzed tales, Murphy's book will appeal to those concerned with the moral and religious education of children, to students and scholars of folk literature and children's literature, and to the many general readers who are captivated by fairy tales and their meanings. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Having Read A Selection
I was given a selection regarding "Hansel And Gretel" from this book for my German Fairy Tales, Folktales, and Fables course.I was very impressed by Murphy's work.What was so fascinating was the use of the Grimm's VERY OWN notes in regards to the story being used as an allegory for spiritual maturation into the Christian faith.He never implies that the tales had a Christian origin, but he does explain clearly how the Grimm brothers took the tales and made them personal expressions of faith by using their own words and commentaries.He pays homage to their extra-German origin, but he does so without downplaying the brothers' own influence on the formation of these particular versions.An impressive work.

"Not withstanding" is right!
It is a REAL STRETCH to say that the Grimm faery tales origins were Christian. I can only speculate that the reason for this book is to make us Christians feel like we can read these stories to their children without fear, or regret. Really, it is quite bold to try to twist things to appear to be Christian so that Christians can claim them as their own. Unfortunatly Murphy perpetuates this behavier in this book. The origins of these tales are obviously Pagan, read up on the brothers Grimm and really study the tales they told. Everyone should be able to enjoy these faery tales without trying to make them acceptable first. Appreciate them for what they are, dont put a spin on them. Believe it or not, some things can be enjoyable without being of Christian origin.

A Link in a Long Chain of Grace.
It was while reading the story of Jorinda and Joringal, a tale not mentioned in this book, that I began to wonder about the spirituality of the Brothers Grimm.Jorinda, a beautiful maiden, is transformed into a nightinggale and taken captive in a castle by a witch.One day, her lover, a shepherd, finds a red flower with a drop of dew in the center of it.When he touches the witch with with the flower, it deprives her of her evil power, and Joringal's beloved is set free.I had to wonder: "Did the Grimms know they were talking about Jesus?"Murphy answered this question for me: they did, indeed.

If I were going to pick a word to describe the overall impression the author gives me, I think it would be "kindly."At first I sometimes got the feeling I was listening in on someone else's conversation: Murphy forgets his readers and his partners in academic dialogue are strangers, and need to be introduced.But once everyone is seated for discussion, Murphy is generous not only to the Grimms (he sometimes tells how good a writer Wilhelm is, when he should be showing), he treats other scholars with respect (not a universal habit in academia), and describes the ironic skepticism or sexual crudities of rival versions of these tales without downplaying those approaches, yet bringing out the special depth of the Grimm's mythical imagination and spiritual feeling.

The main subjects of this book are Hansel and Gretel, Little Red Riding Hood, Snow White, Cindarella, and Sleeping Beauty.(But don't overlook Appendix A, a closer look at Wilhelm Grimm's New Testament, or Appendix C, the story of the Cross and the Christmas tree.It was the star on top of the latter that furnished the fifth star for this rating.)

The story Murphy tells is one link in a chain of grace that goes back thousands of years.Early Christian thinkers saw classical philosophy and myth as a "tutor" to bring the Western world to Christ.Dante and Michaelangelo picked up on the same theme in the Middle Ages.G. K. Chesterton described how, as a child, he learned reason and morality, and intimations of spiritual truth, from fairy tales, naming some of the stories in this book, but without talking about Christianity in particular.Later he wrote a book, Everlasting Man, in which he described pagan mythology in similiar sympathetic terms.This is the book that helped C. S. Lewis, who would become the most influential Christian writer of the 20th Century, to conclude that the Gospel was the answer to the question, "Where have all the hints of Paganism been fulfilled?"Later Lewis brought the story full circle with his own redemptive fairy tales, the Chronicles of Narnia.So the story Murphy tells is of interest historically, as well as for the remarkable light it sheds on our favorite fairy tales.It is one link in a chain of grace that no man on earth can fully know.

For those interested in the bigger picture, let me recommend some good books: City of God (Augustine); Contra Celsus (Origin); Everlasting Man and Orthodoxy (Chesterton); Eternity in Their Hearts (Don Richardson); Jesus Through the Centuries (Jaroslav Pelikan); The Crown of Hinduism (J.N.Farquhar); and Discovery of Genesis.(with reservations - see my Amazon review.)Also, of course, my own books, Jesus and the Religions of Man, and True Son of Heaven: How Jesus Fulfills the Chinese Culture.

My four year old boy spied the cover of this book, with its picture of Snow White and the owl, raven, and dove, and asked for an explanation."The prince came and kissed Snow White and shecame back to life," I told him."Is (the prince) God?" He asked.Murphy shows that the Brothers Grimm still have the power to solicit deep spiritual questions from people of all ages.

Magnificent achievement
A groundbreaking analysis of Grimm's fairy tales. Ronald Murphy does a superb job of demonstrating how the Brother Grimm drew out the Christian meaning in the tales, often by adding symbolic or allegorical material. This is a tour-de-force of insightful scholarship and literary detective work.

I note that one of the other reviews of this book claims that Murphy says the tales are of Christian origin. But this is not the case; rather, he suggests that the tales contain elements of Greco-Roman, Egyptian, Germanic, and French folklore. The point is, as Murphy so masterfully demonstrates, that the Grimms took this material and exposed its latent Christian meaning.

This is one of the best books about Grimm's tales to come across in many year; highly recommended.

not withstanding
All though the fairy tales certainly have the teeth marks of Christianity, I should point out that Grimm's fairy tales are undeniably of Heathen, NOT Christian origin. The author and the below reviewer below failed to recognise the fact tht Grimm was a scholar that deeply studied Teutonic Mythology, in fact he wrote a 4 volumn set dedicated to the study of anceint Germanic Heathenism. I HIGHLY doubt that Grimm felt that the fairy tales were of Christain origin. In fact, when little red riding hood was devoured by the wolf and then released by the hunter this is a direct reflection of the anceint germanic legend of Wotan being released from the belly of the Fenris wolf through his son Vidar the Silent. This is purely pagan expression of rebirth. Jack and the Beanstalk is blatently Heathen, and very few, if any Christain expression can be seriously extracted from this tale. Here is a boy named Jack that travels to Elfland via a "bean stalk"(one of the nine worlds of the World Tree), in which he makes a deal with one of the elves and then takes a journey to Giantland(another one of the nine worlds of the World Tree). In this story, Jack slays a giant and brings food back to his familily. While this could be construed as a good "Christian" deed, I should point out that providing for ones familily was of extreme importants to those whom practiced Heathen religion in anceint times. I do, however, feel that Grimms fairy tales are an inner expression of those whom have germanic roots and I feel that anyone whom has pride in their Northern heritedge, whetherChristian or Asatru(Germanic Heathen), should Grimms fairy tales(which is NOT racist if one respects other cultures and ways of thinking). ... Read more

Book Description

Murder, mutilation, cannibalism, infanticide, and incest: the darker side of classic fairy tales figures as the subject matter for this intriguing study of Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm's Nursery and Household Tales. This updated and expanded second edition includes a new preface and an appendix containing new translations of six tales, along with commentary by Maria Tatar. Throughout the book, Tatar skillfully employs the tools not only of a psychoanalyst but also of a folklorist, literary critic, and historian to examine the harsher aspects of these stories. She presents new interpretations of the powerful stories in this worldwide best-selling book. Few studies have been written in English on these tales, and none has probed their allegedly happy endings so thoroughly.

Customer Reviews (8)

Profoundly Disappointing
It would be an understatement to say that I greatly anticipated the reading of this book. I am terribly fond of fairy tales (who among us isn't?) and looked forward to an engaging, informative handling of the content of the Grimms' tales, with a focus on the unchildlike elements so common in the stories due to their original intent to reach mature audiences.

Unfortunately, I was profoundly disappointed in this book. The book lacks clarity and organization; the entire 'feel' of the writing is that of a dissertation that was haphazardly expanded to 'book size'. The writing pulls in various different directions, often seemingly at random, with no clear view of why a certain topic was handled when it was, nor how it led into the next discussed topic. "Herding cats" is a phrase that comes to mind; "whiny and tired children" would also apply here.

For example, in the first chapter ""SEX AND VIOLENCE: The Hard Core of Fairy Tales", Tatar deals only briefly with the puzzlement of sex and violence in popular children's literature before moving on to spend the bulk of the chapter on the Grimms' financial difficulties, publishing woes, irritation over displeased critics, as well other such varied and broad themes as the differences in vernacular between various editions, the misfortunes of modern compilers who have not had the older, less heavily edited versions available, and authors who failed to realize that the "Grimms" author were two people, not one. Most of these topics, as the shrewd reader will note, have little or nothing to do with sex/violence in Grimms' fairy tales or any others.

Another flaw in this book leading to a "dissertation" feel is Tatar's obsession with diagrams. Multiple diagrams are devoted to detailing the difference between "fairy" tales and "folk" tales. This is NOT a topic that interested me whatsoever, and the multitude of pages devoted to it was deeply annoying. What does the difference between a fairy/folk tale have to do with the "hard facts" of the Grimms' tales? Nothing, as we later find out. It's just something Tatar is interested in. Slightly more pertinent is the number of diagrams devoted to detailing the relationships between various story archetypes, but once again, I did not buy this book to learn about the archetypes of fairy tales, but rather to deal with the "hard facts" of the Grimms' tales - sex, violence, abandonment, the fact that a number of endings were NOT "happily ever after" - and the lack of serious treatment of these grim topics makes me feel that this book was misnamed in an attempt to drum up sales.

I seriously considered giving the book 2 stars for my disappointment with the lack of title-related subject matter, but I finally settled on 3 stars, simply because I still found the result to be mildly interesting. If you want a book on deconstructing fairy tales in general, this is a decent resource, if somewhat dry and boring. If you want a book on the grim realities of the Grimms' tales, look elsewhere.

Interesting
The book is quite interesting but rather academic.I had the feeling I was reading someone's PhD thesis, albeit an interesting one.

The Riddles Of Classic Fairy Tales
I have read several of Maria Tatar's books for critical fairy tales analysis.
The book is lush with beautiful drawings and the writing style is acutely very good, and very easy to read, and understand.
However, I just really wasn't impressed because I had known most of the information that was presented in thisvolume.
I acutely would recommend her novel The Annotated Classic Fairy Talesand her up coming book The Annotated Brothers Grimm ( this also looks very interesting. )
The Hard Facts of the Grimms' Fairy Tales( to me at least. ) Would be a good starter point for someone who really wants to know the truth about fairy tales.
More recommend for new comers who want's great art work and something easy to read.

close look at the uncensored tales
It was really interesting to find out about how the Grimm's collection was put together and how it was rewritten. I was surprised to read that the Grimms added violence in order to make the stories more parent-friendly--I guess parents in those days really believed that punishments would produce virtue.Loved the stories at the end, which are pretty hair-raising.
I was surprised to learn that these stories went so far back in time and that they were originally for adults.

Could be better
Maria Tatar's book, while excellent lacks focus.She needs more information in some areas, while in other areas, she needs entirely new sections.It is an excellent book, but you may not find all the information you're looking for.For instance, I was reading the sex and violence section, and she would go on for pages about the sources the Brothers used.While this can pertain to the section title, she strayed to much, and I felt the section was lacking information on sex and violence. ... Read more

Book Description
In September 1863 Jacob Grimm travels through rural western Germany with his devoted niece, Auguste-- who longs to learn, at last, the truth about her family-- and Kummel, their new and enigmatic manservant. As relations between the three reach the boiling point, Jacob's traumas and heartbreaks here in his original homeland are revealed in vivid flashbacks. Now, old, Jacob resists Auguste's attempts to make him take stock of his life, but memories that are repressed have a tendency to reappear in other places and in other guises.Throughout Jacob's travels, he is reminded of the folk tales he and his brother Wilhelm collected in their Tales for the Young and Old. Although the brothers were renowned language scholars and passionate supporters of German unification, they were haunted throughout their lives by the Tales. Most notable is the feverish fairy tale of Sleeping Beauty, which holds a shattered mirror to a life, a country, and a history. The Sleeping Beauty recounted here is neither the Disney version nor even the Grimms' version, but an enchanting tale that goes beyond the marriage of the prince and princess to reveal the surprising truth behind the evil spell.In his compelling historical novel, Haydn Middleton re-creates the life story of literature's most famous brothers. It is a history that could almost be a fairy tale itself, with its fabulous changes of fortune, tests of duty and honor, arrogant princes, lost loves, and twisted family relationships-- all unfolding in a world of dark forests and even darker politics. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Mesmerizing
An incredible accomplishment.Middleton interweaves 3 stories:Jacob Grimm at the end of his life, key moments throughout Grimm's life, and a stylized version (related to Grimm's life) of the fairy tale, Briar Rose.All three stories are richly interwoven and overlapped, so you are never quite sure which is influencing the other.Middleton uses wonderful pacing, beautiful language and a "well-spun" yarn to keep the reader thoroughly engaged.As a history buff, I appreciated Middleton's ability to include historical and cultural background to help explain the purpose behind Grimm's actions.I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the history of fairy tales, German development during the early 19th century, the life and times of the Grimm's Brothers, or simply a well-told story.

MAGICAL ARTISTRY
Middleton's Grimm ranks with Angela Carter's bejeweled fairytale rewrites in BURNING MY BOATS. He weaves three plots into one story. First he tells of the life of Jacob Grimm in his last year as he takes a sentimental journey across Germany to an early home he shared with his brother during Wilhelm's marriage. He tells of Jacob and Wilhelm's youth and their mother's stories that burst with blood and suicide, and how these stories later lead into the the brothers collecting horrific children's tales. He tells of Jacob's tie to his late brother's daughter, who falls in love with their mysterious manservant, Kummel. And he tells the story of Sleeping Beauty as it has never been told before and which parallels Jacob's own life. All these stories are suffused with marvelous description and surreal imagery that at once rubs shoulders with gripping realism and such rich epithets as "Her face would split a pitcher." For me, this is a stunning invention and modern classic that follows the German soul into its darkest subterranean windings that lead later into jackboots on cobblestones. Do yourself a huge favor and dip in. ... Read more

Amazon.com
In Darkest Desire Anthony Schmitz turns the Brothers Grimm ontheir heads, retelling "Little Red Riding Hood" from the wolf's perspective. Whatever charm the reader might reasonably expect from such a conceit, however, rapidly dissipates under the beast's graphic and unpleasantly sexual descriptions of child murder:

If I close my eyes, I can still hear the sound of cloth shredding as I pulled with my teeth. I was mad with rage and joy for a moment, and then I was overwhelmed by guilt. Yes, yes, certainly he was a pathetic thing, so miserably, mistakenly confident. But he was as God had made him, and now he was torn asunder. I quickly lost my appetite. I left him almost whole, except for the upper ham. That I retched in the grass a few minutes later.

Customer Reviews (5)

A good and dark tale of morality
Schmitz has written a great book.There is so much to feed on on so many levels.I was so astounded by the wolf's understanding of his relationship with evil.He refuses to personify it and yet has realized that his ongoing companionship is not friendship.I think the story raises questions about humnan complicity in evil and the human tendency towards idolatry (knowledge, science, consuming).By the end of the book, one has to wonder where the center of the evil that is being described lies:in the devil, in the wolf, or in the Brothers Grimm?Schmitz ablilities to make the reader see situations from the view point of the wolf is truly amazing.It's a good tale and will keep the reader thinking about those big questions about good and bad and knowledge.

Enjoyable short read
Schmitz performs in 100+ pages what many writers cannot do with several hundred more.Presents us with an affable yet fallable protagonist, sets up themes and conflict we can relate (in our own desires), and resolves it satisfactorily.As it is so short, it would be unwise to summarize the plot and spoil things for the reader.Surely, however, a newly vocal wolf who preys on children, the Brothers Grimm, and the Devil should provoke anyone to read this appealing work.:)

A fur-raising tale
This is another book review by the boonie dogs, Wolfie and Kansas."Darkest Desire", allegedly by Anthony Schmitz, presents a wolf's-eye-and-snout view of the Brothers Grimm.We suspect that this bookwas ghostwritten by a fellow canine.Much of the book is too insightfuland too clever to have been written by a typical human author.

Thepassages about the tastiness of human puppies are somewhat offensive.Acanine is more likely to protect a human child from human predators than toeat the child himself.However, "Schmitz" does make it clearthat the child-eating wolf is no more typical of canines than HannibalLecter is of humans.In a nice twist on an idea used decades ago byClifford Simak in "City", Schmitz makes use of the canine abilityto perceive and interact with phenomena beyond human perception.

Twice Told Tails
Many postmodern deconstructions of legends and fairy tales are rather self-consciously academic and self-referential and are clever in a "hey, look at this fancy stuff" sort of way. Darkest Desire setsthe whole nature/culture controversy on its head in a most entertainingmanner with a notable lack of pretense. Strongly recommended for adults andmature teens.

A splendid and original idea well done
This is one of the most original books I've ever read. I was a bit skeptical when I heard about the premise. Who writes an adult book about the Big Bad Wolf? Once I cracked it, though, I couldn't put it down.Schmitz has fashioned fairy-tale characters that are not only interestingbut (who would believe it?) believable. His writing is precise, hisobservations droll. And as you might suspect, the story is hilarious. Thisis a book that I'm going to tout to my friends. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (11)

Hmmmm
I've owned this book for about five year and just could never get into it although it seemed like it would be interesting. I finally got into and boy am I glad I did. This is one of the most unique books I have ever read (and I've read A LOT). It's a book about finding out who you are through and in ways you never considered. The characters are highly entertaining, the situations are crazy and highly entertaining and the thought provoking ideas within this book leave you with things to consider long after you've finished reading. It's hard to describe a book like this! I rarely give five star reviews, but this one deserves it. Read this book!

Probably the Most Unique Book You'll Read This Year...
I was hesistant to start The Wrestler's Cruel Study. Too many books like this have left me disappointed, with an empty feeling when the last page is finally turned. I'm happy to say that this sprawling novel is not one of those. Dobyns manages to fuse literature with entertainment, creating this bizarre amalgam that is part conventional mystery, philosophical pondering, and high humor. Somehow, it actually works. I was even more struck by the dazzling prose, and stark originality in some of the imagery and style Dobyns uses. As one would imagine, this book is now out of print, but I highly reccomend tracking it down.

smartly funny
I don't have much to add here, but I thought I should let potential readers know that this was the funniest and one of the most memorable books I read this year. So different from Dobyns' other stuff, but SO rewarding as well. It does help to have some interest in the history of theology/heresy and Grimm's fairytales, not to mention Nietzsche.

Gimmick is form pretending to be substance....
"The Wrestler's Cruel Study" was a staff recommendation at a local bookstore here in San Francisco several years ago; and, that brief review, placed on the shelf near copies of the book, was written with such enthusiasm and humor that it charmed me the rest of the day. However, I did not purchase the book as I assumed that the reviewer was the talent and that the review was meant as a kind of comic hyperbole. That was a mistake. After running across the book again at another store, I finally bought it. Now, some years later and after a second reading, I think I can say that it ranks among my very favorites.

As the book jacket suggests, we begin by observing an apartment complex where we witness two gorillas scale the outside wall to gain entry. Once inside, they kidnap a young woman wearing only her nightgown and steal her away. Her fiancé, a professional wrestler, is warned against soliciting the help of the police in her recovery; and he is given no motive for the kidnapping or asked for a ransom of any kind. In an effort to discover her whereabouts and gain her safe return, the wrestler embarks on a search that, he discovers, will do more to unravel the mystery of who he is than it will to find the one he loves.

Here is a book that manages to be, among other things: a study in identity and the perception of the self; a nightmare; a story of redemption; absurdist theater designed to illustrate philosophical argument; and a big-dicked perversion of Nietzschean philosophy, albeit a charming and gravely humorous one.

In the book Mr. Dobyns makes much of "gimmick." Put another way, he makes much of the masks that we wear, focusing on how they serve us, but more importantly, how they do us disservice. In illustrating the many ways that it is possible for one to bandage his or her wounds, and wear layer upon layer of these dressings or masks, he has created fully-realized characters with all manner of human strength and frailty. To have done so without judgment is, to my mind, a huge achievement.

Each of the characters that populate this wild and enormously entertaining novel is developed with the skill of one who really seems to understand what it means to be human. Each of them has much to learn about life, their connections with others and, perhaps most importantly, with themselves.

As lucky readers, this all serves to do the same for us. It asks rather big questions and gives no simple answers. Again, this is quite a feat for a fiction. We are asked, "When we look in a mirror, do we see ourselves or a committee?" I submit that if we look closely enough, this book, like any good looking glass, might just give us a glimpse of who we are.

Stephen Dobyns, always a cruel study with which to wrestle
One needn't be the least bit interested in professional wrestling, cruelty or studying to enjoy and grow from reading this absurdist, moralist, epic novel by Stephen Dobyns.It is truly a study in the human condition disguised as a day in the life of a professional wrestler.

The book simply works at many levels.I suppose a wrestling fan could almost read it literally and enjoy it as a hero/detective novel.Anyone with a taste for the absurd can merely enjoy the wonderful twists of fortune and circumstance the characters find themselves in.With an appreciation for Nietzche, arcane studies of Hebrew and Christian theology, a sense of Jungian analysis and a penchant for many-layered, indeed entwined metaphors on top of the rest, I was delighted.

If you like any of Dobyn's other works, or the twisted yet familiar view of humanity common to writers such asAnne Tyler, John Irving or Tom Robbins, you will likely enjoy this book as much as I did. ... Read more