It’s Not a Fairy Tale

I know, two blog tours in one day! Josh Funk’s latest It’s Not… fairy tale is here, and his poor, beleaguered narrator is back, this time trying to tell the classic tale of…

It’s Not the Three Little Pigs, by Josh Funk/Illustrated by Edwardian Taylor,
(Nov. 2022, Two Lions), $17.99, ISBN: 9781542032438

Ages 4-7

The narrator shares duties this time with a fourth pig: Alison, the storyteller of the family. As the three pigs go off into the world, Alison changes up the story, leading to hilarious interactions with the omniscient narrator. There are fun STEAM elements to the story this time out, with each pig’s home showing off blueprints and comments on architectural and engineering elements (and one lament over bathroom placement that will leave readers giggling). There’s a Wolf at the door this time, too – but whether he’s big or bad remains to be seen. Narration broken up with comic dialogue and played for laughs; change up your voice during readalouds or invite a reader or two to join in. A spot-the-character ending will give readers the opportunity to chime in on who they can discover. Bright, playful cartoon artwork grabs readers’ attention, and endpapers show a host of objects from the story set off against a bright blue background.

Readers will love this addition to a fun series that never disappoints. An excellent addition to your fairy tales/fractured fairy tales collections.

“Those who love to make up their own stories will be inspired, and readers who march to the beats of their own drums will be delighted. Will leave readers as happy as a pig in mud.” ―Kirkus Reviews

Like the characters in his books, Josh Funk doesn’t like being told how stories should go―so he writes his own. He is the author of a bunch of picture books, including My Pet Feet, illustrated by Billy Yong; the popular Lady Pancake & Sir French Toast series, illustrated by Brendan Kearney; How to Code a Sandcastle, illustrated by Sara Palacios; and Lost in the Library: A Story of Patience & Fortitude, illustrated by Stevie Lewis. He lives in New England with his wife and children. Learn more about him at www.joshfunkbooks.com and follow him on social media:

Facebook: Josh Funk Books

Instagram: @joshfunkbooks

Twitter: @joshfunkbooks

Edwardian Taylor is the illustrator of multiple children’s books, including Hey, You’re Not Santa!, written by Ethan T. Berlin; Goldibooks and the Wee Bear, written by Troy Wilson; the Toy Academy chapter books, written by Brian Lynch; and the It’s Not a Fairy Tale books, written by Josh Funk, among other titles. He lives in Texas with his partner and their three dogs. Learn more about him at www.edwardiantaylor.com and follow him on Tumblr, Instagram, and Twitter @edwardiantaylor.

Two Lions is offering a giveaway of TWO titles from Josh Funk’s It’s Not a Fairytale series: It’s Not the Three Little Pigs and It’s Not Little Red Riding Hood (U.S. and Canada addresses). Check out the Rafflecopter giveaway!

Josh Funk returns with the latest in his It’s Not A Fairy Tale series with a sassy little girl who’s one step ahead of the narrator. Get ready, friends, because…

It’s Not Little Red Riding Hood, by Josh Funk/Illustrated by Edwardian Taylor,
(10/2020, Two Lions), $17.99, ISBN: 978-1542006668
Ages 4-7

Little Red is a little girl who lives with her family in a little cottage in the woods, so when the Narrator shows up and starts telling her to put on a red cape and go visit her sick grandmother in the woods, she’s got questions. Lots and lots of questions: why is the Narrator sending a little girl with a giant basket into the woods all alone? Why does she have to wear red? And why does she have to walk, when she usually takes a carriage? Regardless, she listens to the narrator and heads off to Grandma’s, in spite of being concerned about the Narrator’s willingness to keep putting her in danger, and meeting an amusing, if unexpected, cast of characters. The story of Red Riding Hood is turned on its head as the Narrator becomes flustered and Red keeps pointing out big problems in the story.

With different fonts to denote different speakers (Narrator in conversation mode versus Narrator in story narration mode, plus word balloons for character dialogue), expressive sounds and snappy back and forth banter between characters, the laughs come fast and frequent for readers here. Edwardian Taylor’s artwork is hilarious fun, loaded with little extras, exaggerated expressions, and fairy tale cameos aplenty.

The This is Not a Fairy Tale series is just too much fun, and a welcome addition to fractured fairy tale collections. The kids in my library love them – especially when I give Narrators and characters different, increasingly manic voices. You can’t read these with a serious voice, and that is a good, good thing. Let yourself be as silly as you want to be – your littles will appreciate it.

It’s been a while, hasn’t it? Let’s do it. I’ve got a great giveaway thanks to Two Lions/Amazon Publishing.

Two Lions is offering all three books in the It’s Not a Fairytale series–It’s Not Jack and the Beanstalk, It’s Not Hansel and Gretel, and It’s Not Little Red Riding Hood to one lucky winner (U.S. addresses only, please). Enter the Rafflecopter giveaway here!

Like the characters in his books, Josh Funk doesn’t like being told how stories should go—so he writes his own. He is the author of many popular picture books, including the popular Lady Pancake & Sir French Toast series, illustrated by Brendan Kearney, and the It’s Not a Fairytale books, illustrated by Edwardian Taylor. He lives in New England with his family. Learn more about him at www.joshfunkbooks.com.

Twitter @joshfunkbooks

Instagram: @joshfunkbooks

Edwardian Taylor is the illustrator of multiple children’s books, including Race!, written by Sue Fliess; the Toy Academy chapter books, written by Brian Lynch; and the It’s Not a Fairytale books, written by Josh Funk. He lives in Texas with his partner and their four dogs. Learn more about him at www.edwardiantaylor.com.