A wonderful collection of fairy tales! Each story has it's own voice and is unique. The author's notes and poems are very nice to read too.

This is a collection of fractured fairy tales, legends and traditional stories, most previously published elsewhere but brought together for the first time. Like most anthologies, it is difficult to rate as I loved some stories and found others rather boring. As a result, I could see this being a book where favourites would be read and reread, while other stories are skipped over. At the back of the book the author provides an insight into the inspiration behind each story and the choices she made when fracturing the story. This was fascinating, but I felt that it would have been better placed if interspersed between the stories rather than clustered together at the end.
If you are a fan of fractured or reimagined fairy tales, this is a collection not to be missed!

I usually don't read or enjoy anthologies or story collections, but the cover of this book was so beautiful that I decided to give it a shot anyway. When I first started reading it I didn't know much about it, but searching around and reading other reviews has made me realize that it's based on Jewish folktales, which is something I don't think I've ever seen around before.

How to Fracture a Fairytale is a book I would recommend for anyone who likes folk/fairytales or who enjoys diverse stories.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the arc in exchange for my unbiased review. I’ve been reading retelling of fairy tales by Yolen for almost thirty years, and they never disappoint. I found this to be an intriguing and different sort of fairy tale collection, however, as it more explicitly than ever modifies (fractures) the original tales. I didn’t need the poems at the end, but otherwise I found this very enjoyable! The stories were occasionally quite dark- but not more so than the source material.

How to Fracture a Fairy Tale is a collection of short stories that are retellings of various fairy tales. They are all unique. Some reference real life events while others create completely new scenarios for famous characters. Yolen's writing is so lovely and transports you into each story, no matter how short it is. Some of these stories made me laugh out loud, and some pulled at my heart strings. I am very happy with this collection of stories and plan to revisit it often.

I’ve never read this author before but these fairytale retellings are extremely refreshing and such different takes than what we would usually expect. Can definitely be read again and again.

You think you know fairytales but you've never seen them like this. This is a brilliant collection of stories each with their own voice. At first this bothered me but as I continued through each story I was blown away with the Author's talent to bring me a fresh new voice. The tales took me by surprise and shed a new light on the tales I've read a thousand times before.

Though I'm not usually a fan of extremely short stories, it is definitely a style that can work well for fairy tales. Every one was amazingly well written and thought provoking. The sort of "behind the scenes" at the end was also really great and very educational. If you enjoy fractured fairy tales at all, I would strongly encourage you to give this a try, even if you aren't traditionally a short story fan!

I should start off by saying that I was very excited to get approved for this novel, as I am both a fan of Yolen, fairy tales, and anthologies. Some of these stories were very well done, while others did not seem to make any sense. It took my long over a month to get through this collection, and put me into a massive reading slump. I was not captivated or blown away, and I think future readers should read each story a while apart, otherwise they may blend together.

Unfortunately this anthology was more a collection of good ideas rather than good stories, and I was disappointed with it overall.

I love Jane Yolen, and I was a little let down with this collection. Maybe it's because she was giving more energy to Mapping the Bones, or maybe I prefer her in a longer format, but this didn't click with me. I may have also just had expectations that exceeded the format. That aside, short story collections simply don't circulate well with my kids, so I will ultimately pass it by.

I have always had a fascination for fairy tales especially since I thought I was clever to identify the morbid undertones of most of them. I have since learnt that it is pretty much an open secret that before Disney decided to use them, they are meant to be extremely dark. Retellings have also been something that I have kept my eye out for but not yet found any that really appeal to me. The series Once Upon a Time came close before it got boring. This particular collection also came close. The stories I liked I really liked, the ones I did not I was equally against. This basically means that I gave it a three star rating. I found out how much I did not know about the jewish community though, which was a bonus.

I would recommend this book to those interested in reading an eclectic collection of 'fractured' fairy tales. The author gives detailed information about the tales as well as extra poems to go with each. Overall an interesting read.

"How To Fracture a Fairy Tale" features a variety of short stories and poems based on fairy tales. I really didn't know what to expect as I have not read any of Jane Yolen's work prior to this. I immediately fell in love with the title and cover.
Because this book consists of short stories, it is a little difficult to review as a whole. I enjoyed some stories more than others. There were a few problematic issues within a particular story as well as more than a few trigger warnings (those familiar with Grimm fairy tales and the like know just how dark they can get).
I really had high hopes for this book but it just kind of fell flat in my opinion. This, coupled with the problematic issues has led me to giving it a 2.5 rating.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with this review copy in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely love fairytales and retellings so I was EXCITED for this. However...I was let down. Not because the book was bad but because I didn't connect with the writing in the way that was intended. Besides the overall writing style I liked the different stories which really sucks. Anyways, it was somewhat enjoyable and I would recommend it to others!

There a number of stories and poems, as well as author insights which I enjoyed. Like most short story collections there were some that I really enjoyed and could read again and again and others that were just okay. Some of the twists in the tales I didn’t see coming which made it worth the read.

My favourite stories are;
Snow in Summer – retelling Snow White but she makes her own happiness. I didn’t see the twist with the stepmother and I had to say I enjoyed it!
The Bridges Complaint – POV of the bridge in Billy Goats Gruff.
Godmother Death – I love Godfather Death so I knew I would enjoy this! I loved this story, I loved that Death was a woman and the tale of her godson.
One Ox, Two Ox, Three Ox and the Dragon King – story with dragons! I love dragons in any form.
Sleeping Ugly – retelling of Sleeping Beauty which I really enjoyed and highly recommend! I loved the twist and did not see it coming! The ending is truly great and you should read it!

There was also a section on author reflections with poems which was interesting! The author reflects and gives insight into the stories which I really liked and it helped me understand the author and the stories better. I enjoyed seeing the authors thoughts on the stories. The poems were a nice added extra and I enjoyed reading them!
Overall I enjoyed the book and their were a few stories I loved and will read again but others I won’t.

I personally love Jane Yolen stories but story collections typically do not check out well in my library regardless of the genre.

Jane Yolen is one of the pioneer Young Adult authors and she has been writing for decades. This book is a collection of retellings of myths and fairy tales that she has written over the years. I liked that they weren't all Disney princess retellings, because were getting a lot of that in YA right now. She used some very well known fairy tales as well as some less recognizable ones. She even goes back to Greek mythology with Icarus. As with most short story collections, there are hits and misses within it but overall I liked it.

An exemplary collection of tales that depicts absolutely horrid and sweet stories. With that, you are warned; trigger warned. How to Fracture a Fairy Tale really did an amazing job of showing us that stories can never only be one thing. It adapts with each storytellers but almost always, the moral holds true.

Each tale really held up to their own. Every story had a unique twist that you wouldn't expect. If asked, what is my favourite from the collection, I'd definitely pick the "Great-Grandfather Dragon's Tale," simply because of the possibility that their might really be a dragon at some point in time. But on a more serious note, I definitely adored "Mama Gone," because of how close to heart the story is. It showed me that a mother's love truly exceeds and overpowers anything. Even in death.

Overall, it is ostensible that Jane Yolen can truly "fracture" a fairy tale. With her prowess in setting out her own vivid imagination into a wonderfully crafted story that she can definitely call her own.

If I didn't already love Queen Yolen, I do now. She is AMAZING - Come on, her output is just ridiculous and so unique! And then she brings out this, and you just think, how could I not love her work??? She has so much to give to the world and these stories are like her personality shining through, and I think that is what makes them better. Great writing, great plot weaving, and a cool cover - Read it!

This book gave a fresh look on some old tales!

Overall, the vibe was just in line with truly classic fairy tales - a little trippy, a little creepy, and yes! hello there moral of the story! nice to see you!

The writing style was refreshing and a great read - I'll be keeping my eye out for future works!

This is my first work from Jane Yolen and I was so impressed!! I was drawn to the book by the description of fairy tales retold. I have very recently gotten interested in reading more fairy tales and this fit the bill.
The book is a diverse set of fairy tales with some great twists to the stories. There were a lot favorites that I loved and a few that were just OK for me .Most of the stories ,I recognized the original fairy tale that inspired the short story but there were a few I had no idea where it came from. That in no way detracted from the enjoyment of the story though.
This is a strong anthology and I would recommend it to any one who enjoys fairy tales. One of the strongest, aspects of the book that I loved was the Author's Notes at the end , she describes what fairy tale each story came from and a lot of the back story. I loved this part of the book!!

****This eArc was supplied by Netgalley for an honest review****