School Library Journal Review
Gr 4-6-Michael Buckley starts off with a bang in this energetic book (Abrams, 2005). Daphne and Sabrina Grimm have been tossed from one bad foster home to another after the disappearance of their parents. Now the grandmother they had been told was dead has sent for them. Naturally there's a measure of distrust, and it only increases when their new home of Ferryport Landing starts getting stranger and stranger. The girls soon learn they are from THE family Grimm, and their new home is full of "Everafters"-fairy-tale and other literary characters who are held in this town by the existence of the Grimms, and who are not necessarily happy with the situation. When Grandma is kidnapped by a giant, the girls must suspend their disbelief and go to her rescue, using whatever magical tools come to hand. But in a world of pixies, witches, and giant-killers, finding a trustworthy companion might be a problem. This is a wild ride with a corrupt Prince Charming, the Three Little Pigs in charge of the police department, and a wise-cracking Puck who may or may not be on their side. Facing problems together stretches the girls' ingenuity, and brings all the Grimms closer, while setting the stage for the next book in the series. L.J. Ganser reads the story with good pacing and a lot of verve, creating different voices and accents for the characters and bringing Buckley's story to vivid life. Listeners will enjoy the fast-paced action and grin at the humor, while delighting in the chance encounters with characters they should recognize from other stories. This definitely bodes well for the rest of the series.-Teresa Bateman, Brigadoon Elementary School, Federal Way, WA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
Buckley's imaginative if meandering debut children's book launches the Sisters Grimm series, a contemporary tale starring two descendents of Jacob and Wilhelm. Sabrina, 11, and seven-year-old Daphne, whose parents have mysteriously disappeared, go to live with their grandmother Relda Grimm. This jolly, big-hearted woman resides in a small town on the Hudson River built by the "Everafters," characters from fairy tales who (thanks to a 200-year-old spell) are trapped in the town until the last Grimm dies. When a giant's footprint is found near a crushed farmhouse, Relda tells her granddaughters that whoever unleashed the giant must possess a magic bean (even though the woman "thought we had accounted for all of them"). While Relda and her companion, Mr. Canis, attempt to solve this mystery, the giant snatches them and holds them captive. During the siblings' quest to rescue the duo, they are either helped or hindered by a host of familiar characters, including Prince Charming, mayor of the town; Shakespeare's Puck; and Jack of beanstalk fame, who is determined to kill not only the giant but the sisters-to end the curse. Buckley fills his tale with ample comical flourishes and plot twists, and readers will enjoy identifying favorite characters. Yet the narrative sometimes moves at a sluggish pace. Still, the novel's good-natured inanity and eccentric personalities may well inspire kids to join the sisters in their next sleuthing mission, The Unusual Suspects (0-8109-5926-7). Ages 8-12. (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved