Recently, as I was perusing the numerous bookshelves at
Barnes and Noble, I stumbled across an interesting cover. Now, they say not to
judge a book by its cover, and that’s a hell of a metaphor when not referring
to books, but we all do it. The cover is the aspect of the book that initially
draws us in, along with the title and the synapsis of the story. So as I looked
upon this black cover with bright pink lettering, titled ironically Grim, it sparked my interest. It was
when I read the back cover that I was immediately hooked. It promised dark and
twisted stories unlike most young adult novels these days, so I had to buy it
to see for myself.
I was
impressed, to say the least. The book itself was composed of seventeen
different short stories by seventeen different authors, which was a nice change
from the standard one narrator. Not only that, but the variety allowed me to
see the contrasting styles of writing of each of the authors. Ellen Hopkins,
for example, was featured in the book, and her poem-styled story flowed unlike
any of the others. Some of the stories were too “fairy tale” for my personal
taste, but there were multiple stories that left me gaping in shock, or
thoroughly intrigued and wanting more.
Sarah
Rees Brennan’s story Beauty and the Chad
was a unique twist on the classic story Beauty and the Beast that dealt with
not only had different sexual orientation representation, but also dealt with
gender identity and social pressures on teenagers, both male and female. Better by Shaun David Hutchinson left me
reeling with questions and the brutality that mankind can have. Its ending is
eerie and keeps you inquiring that maybe advancement’s in technology will lead
down a darker path than we anticipated. My personal favorite is called Figment by Jeri Smith-Ready, which points
out the different ways a person can grow and the things they can accomplish,
all while emphasizing the things they leave behind in the process. Most of the
stories in Grim pose questions leading towards humanity, and lead to deeper
thinking while simultaneously providing the reader with an engaging story.
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