The Sleeper and the Spindle: WINNER OF THE CILIP KATE GREENAWAY MEDAL 2016

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Common Sense is the nation's leading nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lives of all kids and families by providing the trustworthy information, education, and independent voice they need to thrive in the 21st century. Families can talk about why folk and fairy tales have endured for centuries. What is it about these stories that make them so compelling to modern audiences?

The Sleeper and the Spindle - Bloomsbury Publishing The Sleeper and the Spindle - Bloomsbury Publishing

The Sleeper and the Spindle" is a short story by Neil Gaiman, which manages to be both a Fractured Fairytale and a Canon Welding of " Snow White" and " Sleeping Beauty". It has also been published as a picture book illustrated by Chris Riddell. This is a 3+ week Writing Root using The Sleeper and the Spindle by Neil Gaiman and Chris Riddell in which children explore and discuss fairytales and how this fairytale subverts the genre. They go on to create a number of varied written outcomes using the text as a starting point including narratives, dialogue, character descriptions, setting descriptions (estate agents’ adverts), and diary entries before using the ideas and authorial devices identified within the text to plan, draft, edit and publish their own subverted fairytale using the idea of The Queen and the Glass Coffin to write a sequel. Synopsis of Text: This novel is filled with some of the most gorgeous illustrations I have ever laid my eyes on. Chris Riddell is an epic, pencil-wielding Wizard who I can't believe I've never heard of before. After stalking some of his other collaborations (Goth Girl, etc) I can definitely see myself buying more of his works! *grabby hands*Her wedding day was the next day, but she suddenly cancelled it. She begins to get all her necessary material for what seems to look like a fight, or war. The dwarfs talk about how wise the Queen is. In this book, the female role is much higher than other stories like this. In all other stories about Snow White and Sleeping Beauty, it was the man being brave and wise. The man always getting the spotlight unless it was about how pretty the princess was in her dress. It revolves around the flight of the princess to escape the awful marriage to his father (Perrault, 1977).

The Sleeper and the Spindle Summary | SuperSummary

The Sleeper and the Spindle isn’t the first retelling to stray away from the ”boy-kisses-girl” bias of traditional fairytales. Although Gaiman’s book features a big, central illustration of the queen kissing the princess, it’s not a gay love story. But Malinda Lo’s Ash, an evocative and compelling take on Cinderella, is one. Ash, short for Aisling, grieves for her mother’s death and her enforced exile from her beloved childhood home as she works for her stepmother, paying off her father’s inherited debts. To win the freedom to ride with the King’s hunt, she pledges herself to Sidhean, a cruel but besotted fairy – but it’s not him Ash really wants, it’s the King’s Huntress … And we can't forget the one thing which made me adore this book the most! THE GIRL POWER. Who needs a Prince to wake you up with a kiss whilst he parades around in his clinking armour, riding on his mighty pale steed? Why can't a Queen, a beautiful and incredibly courageous young woman (one you might have seen somewhere else before!) save the day? If you've ever wished that Prince had stayed home and let his fiancée be the hero instead, this book IS FOR YOU. Go and buy this book today. Be that Queen and go and wake up that Princess yourself!I have enjoyed reading The Sleeper and the Spindle as it was very mysterious and interesting. In some parts of the book the description of the scene was so powerful that it made me feel as if I were really there! However, the book was also very frightening and creepy. I did not find that very amusing but the book still had its own jokes which made it bearable to read. Weaving together a sort-of Snow White and an almost Sleeping Beauty with a thread of dark magic, which will hold readers spellbound from start to finish. Heroic Sacrifice: It's revealed the princess gave up her sleep and youth to the witch, to protect her people. When she became an old lady, that's when the curse spread. One illustration shows a young woman about to kiss another young woman, although the context is not romantic.

The Sleeper and the Spindle by Neil Gaiman (9781408859643 The Sleeper and the Spindle by Neil Gaiman (9781408859643

You think you know the tale of Sleeping Beauty? Think again. If you're an avid fan of fairytale re-tellings, this book is exactly the one for you as it managed to blow my mind on the classic tale I thought I knew so well (I so obviously didn't). On the eve of her wedding, a young queen sets out to rescue a princess from an enchantment. She casts aside her fine wedding clothes, takes her chain mail and her sword and follows her brave dwarf retainers into the tunnels under the mountain towards the sleeping kingdom. This queen will decide her own future - and the princess who needs rescuing is not quite what she seems. Twisting together the familiar and the new, this perfectly delicious, captivating and darkly funny tale shows its creators at the peak of their talents. Text rationale: Which brings me to my main point because old literature based stories like the “Monty Python” there is always a princess that sits at the top of a guarded tower waiting to be rescued by her true love, Instead you have a prince trapped at the top of a tower watched by two foolish guards and with only one dream and that is to sing and not have to be married off unwillingly. Bittersweet Ending: The curse is broken, the witch defeated and deceased, everyone who was enchanted has woken up and the queen decides to choose her own path in life with her friends, rather than resign herself to a role she doesn't want — but the princess remains an old woman whose life was stolen from her, and she might never wake again.

Once again combining the magic of author Neil Gaiman and illustrator Chris Riddell, this text won the CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal upon its release in 2016. Children’s understanding of traditional fairytales will be strengthened in studying this ‘subverted’ version of the genre which cleverly weaves together elements of other familiar stories. Featuring strong female protagonists, the story explores themes of empowerment, positive female representation and breaking free of social expectations. It will also provide a gateway for children to explore other traditional tales such as those by the Brothers Grimm. Links and themes: Traditional tales, modern fairytales, fairy tales, twisted tales, female empowerment, strength, courage, bravery Twisting together the familiar and the new, this delicious, captivating and darkly funny tale shows its creators at the peak of their talents and was the winner of the 2016 CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal.

Sleeper and the Spindle Book Review | Common Sense Media The Sleeper and the Spindle Book Review | Common Sense Media

In a beautiful collaboration, New York Times bestselling and Newbery and Carnegie Medal-winning author Neil Gaiman and Kate Greenaway-winning illustrator Chris Riddell have created a thrillingly reimagined fairy tale, "told in a way only Gaiman can" and featuring "stunning metallic artwork" (GeekInsider.com).

Rapid Aging: When the witch is defeated, she withers into dust. All the youth she stole from the world is returned. On the eve of her wedding, a young queen sets out to rescue a princess from an enchantment. She casts aside her fine wedding clothes, takes her chain mail and her sword and ventures into the tunnels under the mountain towards the sleeping kingdom. This queen will decide her own future – and the princess who needs rescuing is not quite what she seems.