So I did this class back at university called Children’s Literature, and we talked a lot about Young Adult fiction and how it’s become popular to change it up in these kind of stories and rewrite Greek myths and fairy tales into young adult narratives. It’s quite true, really, but I bought this book with much higher expectations, and I was a bit disappointed when I finished it…

The book is split into three sections, each one being a novella previously published by Block that’s been put into this collection. The first one, Psyche in a Dress, is a modern retelling of the story of Psyche and Cupid. What I liked about this is that it’s written in free verse, and as time goes by and the woman representing Psyche starts to change and grow, she starts to take on different personifications of Greek Goddesses, including Persephone, Echo, and Demeter. Each person she meets is a reflection of a Greek God, from Hades to Aphrodite to Eros himself. It’s a wonderful story once you get the hang of the writing style, and I found myself appreciating it for what it was eventually.

The second story, Echo, is a retelling of the story of Echo and Narcissus, told through the eyes of a Hollywood girl who’s trying to find her way again after her father falls ill. It’s actually very poignant and goes through her journey of discovery after she falls in love with someone who she knows she can never be with, and spends the rest of her life trying to find him. She meets so many different people, and basically ends up becoming an Echo of almost every person she meets in her quest to find love again.

The third set of stories is called The Rose and the Beast, and is basically a retelling of some classic fairy tales such as Snow White, Beauty and the Beast, and Thumbelina, among others. The stories are very short and take on new ways of looking at the fairy tales. In each one, the stories take place in the present day, like the ones that came before it, but there are elements of them that are very obviously linked to the original fairy tales. I think my favourite from this collection was ‘Ice’, because it explored the lesser known fairy tale of the Ice Queen.

I think my problem with this book in general lies in how I walked into it with much higher expectations than I actually should have had. I had bought this book under the impression it would be a lot better. While it isn’t badly written at all, it’s just not what I expected. It’s saving grace is the originality of the stories it shows and the intelligence that it was planned out with, but while reading it there were some monotonous or repetitive elements to it that did put me off a bit.

Final rating: 3/5. It’s not bad – really! It just could have been better somehow… ( )

Note: This book is actually a compendium of the previously published "Psyche in a Dress", "Echo", and "The Rose and the Beast".

That said, reading these books again is just as magical as the first time I read them. This compendium, if you don't already own the original three, is a wonderful bargain and a great intro into Francesca's work. Can't wait for the next book! ( )