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    Land of Stories, The: The Wishing Spell
    Unavailable
    Land of Stories, The: The Wishing Spell
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    Land of Stories, The: The Wishing Spell
    Audiobook9 hours

    Land of Stories, The: The Wishing Spell

    Published by Hachette Audio

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    Alex and Conner Bailey's world is about to change, in this fast-paced adventure that uniquely combines our modern day world with the enchanting realm of classic fairytales.

    The Land of Stories tells the tale of twins Alex and Conner. Through the mysterious powers of a cherished book of stories, they leave their world behind and find themselves in a foreign land full of wonder and magic where they come face-to-face with the fairy tale characters they grew up reading about.

    But after a series of encounters with witches, wolves, goblins, and trolls alike, getting back home is going to be harder than they thought.

    A Hachette Audio production.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHachette Audio
    Release dateJul 17, 2012
    ISBN9781611133417
    Unavailable
    Land of Stories, The: The Wishing Spell

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    Reviews for Land of Stories, The

    4/5

    503 ratings56 reviews

    What did you think?

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    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 4/5
      This was so much fun and such a nice change of pace for me. I loved seeing all the old fairy tales come to life in such a different way. It was exiting, nostalgic, and captivating all at the same time. I look forward to continuing on with the twins. 🌟🌟🌟🌟
    • 4/5
      As a fan of Chris Colfer (as an actor and a person), I was disappointed at how...trite this was. It really doesn't bring much of anything new to *any* genre. In fact, much of it seems ripped directly from the movie The 10th Kingdom.
    • 3/5
      Three stars since my daughter loved it.

      Certainly no Harry Potter, and the dialogue and writing is extremely stilted and left a lot to be desired. The fairy tale characters are cookie-cut outs and very one-dimensional, which was extremely disappointing. However, it did have a cute premise.
    • 5/5
      Chris Colfer has written the reader into the magical world of fairytales and legends we love! He truly lets us experience much more than a moral tale. He has a gift for helping the reader discover himself/ her-self. I was most impressed by the author's insight into the characters. Each of the characters was introduced to me again with a keen observation and understanding. The book is filled with adventure and intrigue!-Breton Kaiser-Shinn
    • 4/5
      Delightful twist on fairy tales! There were several "rescues" that were too convenient and miraculous, but, hey, they're fairy tales, right? It was also clever and well-written. I'd recommend it for grades three to eight.
    • 4/5
      The story takes a very, very long time to draw wind into its sails, but once the actual excursion into the Land of Stories begins it finds some legs. The idea is fairly basic: a world populated by characters from every classic fairy tale, all living in close proximity to one another and after their stories we know have already ended. Creativity shows up in new twists on how the tales interrelate. Red Riding Hood, for example, is behind Goldilocks' trip to the Three Bears House. The Prince Charmings are all brothers. The big bad wolf is leader of a roving gang of never-do-wells. These speculations were the story's primary pleasure, from my perspective. The main characters Alex and Connor are fun to adventure with: Alex for her love of fairy tales, feeling awestruck by most of their encounters and discoveries, and her brother Connor for his almost opposite attitude of not being terribly impressed. My wife picked this up as a book to read to our kids, attracted by the author being a star from the TV series Glee. I was less enthused, setting aside trips to Narnia and adventures with Harry Potter in exchange for this. Our youngest kids were below the target audience, but my seven year old was interested enough to soldier on and we made it our nightly read. It's nothing fabulously literary, no new classic in the making, but there are no great faults either - much to my surprise, to be honest. The pacing needed to be faster and the book is overlong, but the humour and allusions are good entertainment for both children and the adults who read to them.
    • 4/5
      My 11yo daughter recommended this one. It was a fun, entertaining twist on classic fairy tales. We'll be reading more of this series together. Highly recommended for middle grade fantasy readers!
    • 4/5
      Unlike most of the reviewers, taking a look, I've come to this from a place where I was REALLY looking forward to this book. It's a fairy tale re-imagining from an actor I adore, that's like crack for me. I don't know if it's just those different starting places but I really didn't enjoy this as much as other people seemed to. The story follows twins Alex and Conner who fall through a magic book in to the Land of Stories and have to find their way out. To do this they need to go on a magical quest to collect some items to make the wishing spell, a magical spell that will grant their one true wish. Right, I'm going to get the bad out of the way first to clear my head. I KNOW this is a children's book but, for me, there was still a LOT of lazy story telling. Basically, what I'm talking about is crazy random happenstance. So, for example, the children fall in to the magical kingdom and the first person they meet just HAPPENS to have a journal that tells them exactly what the wishing spell is and how to collect the items which he's willing to give to them, what a crazy random happenstance! I call it lazy story telling because it is. Instead of having the protagonists work for things, things just fall in to their laps. In an adult novel I'd like none, in a children's novel I'll tolerate a few, arguably this novel works on fairy tale physics so can have a few more, but the children literally spend the entire novel tripping from one crazy random happenstance to another and it gets really thin. Especially by the time they break in to a castle, are caught by the princess and she's like like "Meh, you seem like good kids hanging out here in my royal store room with good I know were stolen from another castle though I've never seen you before. I'll help you escape". The children's ages. I'm not sure why they were written as 12. I presumed from the initial school scenes and their attitudes and snark they were maybe 14 (and don't get me started on the school setting. My kingdom for someone who can write teaching well) but the second they're out of that environment I'd say they act about 8/9. Certainly not like any 12 year olds I've met (and yes, I have recently interacted with 12 year olds). Maybe even younger. I have one more problem and it's with the structure of the writing. While I think this novel is incredibly well written for someone...he was either just leaving or just out of his teens when he wrote it, I can't remember. Anyway, given that, so much better then anything I wrote at that age. That said, his inexperience does show. He tends to give people random emotional outburts that aren't hinted to in the text at all so people will be having what you think is a calm conversation and suddenly everyone will be in tears. He also has a terrible habit of telling you what happened then telling you how which takes all the suspense out of the writing. What I mean is, he'll write things like "X-fell over. Y had snuck up behind him and stabbed him in the back". You lose all the impact of Y making that desperate play, sneaking up on X, because you already know they're going to succeed. It just makes it a little boring to read at times. The good: Right, now I've cleared my mind. This was very well written considering the level of writing experience that went in to it. Though the core plot (collect x-number of magical items and win a prize) is a little cliche and the story telling is a little lazy, for an author of his age with his experience it's a LOT better then many people's first attempts as a published novel. What Colfer seems to do really well, though, is character. And that's what really shines in this novel. In a way it's all about character and exploring people as multifaceted, understanding what they do and not just putting them down as good or evil. The outlaw was framed, the evil queen has her reasons I won't spoil, and not every princess is angelic. For all the twins don't act like they're twelve, they are complex characters with distinct personalities and they're both flawed and both have strengths and he doesn't feel the need to apologise for their flaws and have them come back 'fixed' as is often the way in children's books. They are very believable and very well written. His princesses do occasionally come of as a little cookie cutter but the ones who get decent amounts of page time are a lot better drawn out and more interesting. This is definitley worth a read. It's fun, a good effort for a first novel and has some real bright selling points. Just don't expect anything interesting in the story department, read for the characters.
    • 5/5
      So goooooooooooooooooooooooooood I love this story so much I is fun and easy to learn and listen to.
    • 5/5
      My daughter (10) and I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this together on drives to/from school!
    • 5/5
      I loved this book! Really enjoyed reading it! :D Recommend it for young and old!
    • 5/5
      My kids liked it a lot. They want to hear them again.
    • 5/5
      This audio-book was fantastic!!! Chris Colfer read it amazingly and flawlessly (as to be expected)!!! Can't wait to read book #2!!!
    • 5/5
      It was a really great book filled with adventure
    • 5/5
      A new outlook on The Fairy Tales from my youth.
    • 3/5
      I read this aloud to the kids and they enjoyed it, but I found myself removing words and restructuring sentences while reading aloud. I also thought the plot a bit predictable and the dialogue corny.
    • 5/5
      Well written book and keeps you wanting to read more. I was hesitant, at first, wanting to read a book from a celebrity I knew on television show Glee. However, the book was different enough and I like how the twins seemed more realistic (being a twin myself), rather than the stereotypical good/bad twin or the everything is the same twins. Excited to read the rest of the series when I get around to it.
    • 5/5
      I loved the idea, and the reading made it feel so real.
    • 5/5
      Very good, that I bought two books from this series.
    • 4/5
      Very well written and interesting book. I, first time ever, used audiobook and was very pleased by author´s reading.
    • 5/5
      Not a fairytale and not Harry Potter, the Land of Stories creates an intriguing mythology behind the familiar of children’s fiction, peoples it with almost fairytale characters plus the obligatory misfit children, and offers an interesting adventure with sensible goals and well-timed background revelations. It’s one of those books where the story is intriguing enough to carry adult and child readers eagerly forward without pausing for critique. The children and their real-world situations are sadly believable—neither sibling fitting in at school, but each using a different technique to overcome obstacles. The hidden world they discover is delightful with its slow reveals of secrets, the fun of discovery, and the enchantment of looking for more. I shall definitely look for more in this series, and I’m very grateful to the young boy in the store who told me “You have to read these!” Rumor has it, boys don’t like to read, but this young man clearly did.Disclosure: A child recommended this to me, so I bought it, read it, loved it, and offer my honest review.
    • 5/5
      The Land of Stories is a book that takes all of your classic fairy tales and adds a new spin. The book is written for children new to the world of fairy tales as well as for adults that love the classics. The book is perfect to keep you on your toes and enjoy the stories you grew up with.The Land of Stories: The Wishing Spell follows Alex and her brother Connor down a rabbit hole, or, in this case, a fairy tale book. When the twins get their bearings they’re being helped by a frog man, herded into caves and eventually sent on an adventure to send themselves back home where their recently widowed mother awaits.The two must face the evil queen, steal from red Riding Hood, befriend Cinderella and sneak into Snow White’s palace all while avoiding the lands knights, the treacherous wolfpack and the mute huntress. In this twisted world, your favorites are dismissed and given a new title. No more little miss Goldilocks, no more Jack and the beanstalk, no more towers. It’s a battle against time and forces to collect all the items that Alex and Connor need to get their wish. The secrets are out and the lies have been branded, all that’s left is pure, mortal abilities. Strength, bravery, intelligence and heart. But will it be enough to save Alex and Connor and send them back home? Will they want to go back home?Chris Colfer’s created the ultimate fairy tale quilt, stuffed with all your favorites and patched together. If you grew up wanting to be a princess with your own godmother or envying the knights of the round table I would highly recommend you check this book out at the library and continue the joys of childhood memories that it takes you on.
    • 3/5
      This book was actually better than I expected it to be. There were definitely moments where I was rolling my eyes, but I did enjoy it overall, especially for a middle grade book.
    • 3/5
      Narrated by the author. Twins Alex and Connor find themselves in the land of fairy tales where all the characters have lives beyond the stories the twins know and love. The story of the Evil Queen from "Snow White" plays out to a clever backstory that explains her motives. Colfer's soprano tone is ideal for this children's story and he voices the various characters with entertaining aplomb. A nice choice for car trips.
    • 2/5
      I wanted to like this book, I really, really did. I was looking forward to reading it and was so excited when I picked it up, but I could barely finish it. It just wasn't for me. I mean, it was okay, but it was really cliche and I'd seen it all before. Would some in the right age group like the book more than me? Probably. It wasn't a BAD book my any means, the illustrations were super cute, but it just wasn't as much for me as I was hoping it would be and that really bums me out. I'm so sad to only give this a 2.5 out of 5 stars, but it is what it is. I would still recommend this book to younger kids though, just to try it out and see if they like it, and if they do, hey! They've got a whole series of these books to read to keep them entertained for awhile.
    • 2/5
      Reads like it hopes to be made into a screenplay aimed at 12 year old girls.
    • 4/5
      Alex and Conner Bailey’s world is about to change, in this fast-paced adventure that uniquely combines our modern day world with the enchanting realm of classic fairy tales.The Land of Stories tells the tale of twins Alex and Conner. Through the mysterious powers of a cherished book of stories, they leave their world behind and find themselves in a foreign land full of wonder and magic where they come face-to-face with fairy tale characters they grew up reading about.But after a series of encounters with witches, wolves, goblins, and trolls alike, getting back home is going to be harder than they thought.
    • 4/5
      I am not going to lie, I wasn't entirely expecting much from the guy from Glee. A couple other books by celebrities that were clearly people trying to capitalize on the kids book craze had made me a little skeptical, but I actually really loved this.

      Alex and Connor get sucked into a book of fairy tales and get to meet many of Alex's favorite characters while they journey around fairy land gathering the items they need for the Wishing Spell so they can get themselves back home. There are lots of side stories with various fairy tale characters such as Goldilocks outlaw status and how in love Jack of Beanstalk fame is, there are various kingdoms and you get to see the characters after the story. There is also a great tale about the Wicked Queen from Snow White and how she became the way she was.

      I am a huge fan of fairy tales so this book was almost perfect for me. I would have like to see a little more definitive growth in Alex and Connor. They are almost caricatures now, they are so extreme in their opositeness. Can't wait to see what happens next in what is apparently at least a trilogy, possibly a series?
    • 4/5
      The author does a wonderful job of having a pair of young twins have an adventure in a book of fairy tales. The twins have interesting character and some of the well know fairy tales are retold with insight and care. If you enjoy playing with fairy tales such as done in Into the Woods, I'm sure you will enjoy the Wishing Spell.
    • 4/5
      I started this because

      a) My friend made me
      b) Chris Colfer from Glee wrote this so how could I not...

      But I kept reading because it was such a sweet story. I don't usually read middle grade but when I do it reminds me of a sort of innocence that I've forgotten about. This is one of those books that's not about the destination, but about the journey and boy what a fun journey it was.