Book Review: The Inside Story

TITLE: The Inside Story
Book 8 in the Sisters Grimm series
AUTHOR: Michael Buckley
PUBLISHED: 2010
CATEGORY: Childrens
GENRE: fantasy
PREMISE: The Grimm sisters are back along with their friend Puck chasing a villian through a storybook that tells all the tales of the EverAfters...
MY REVIEW: For those that have no clue what this series is, I'll sum it up as best I can. This series follows two girls, Sabrina and Daphne Grimm who after going to live with their grandmother discover they are descendants of the Grimm brothers and the tales in storybooks are actually real life tales. All the people, such as Puck, Snow White, etc. are actually real people and still living today trapped in a town known as Fairyport Landing (where their grandmother lives). As Grimms it's their job to keep them (known as the Ever Afters) safe and investigate when things go wrong which in this town, it usually does.
This series starts off as a really simple (yet kind of brilliant) idea but as it goes on the plots and ideas slowly start to get more complicated. I will say the writing isn't the best and pacing could be better but these books are so much dang fun you don't care. I dare you to crack open one of these and not grin at the thought of Rip Van Winkle driving a taxi, or the fact that the Three Pigs are in construction (no, seriously), or my personal favorite: Snow White not only ditching her prince but starting a Kung Fu group for women called the Bad Apples. I'm telling you this series is comedy GOLD.
Could it be better? Yes, possibly. But I don't care. I enjoy this series and where the author is taking it. Even better is he goes by the BOOK VERSIONS of these tales not the better known movie versions of them. Oz in this book goes by the book, therefore silver slippers instead of ruby ones, Glinda is not from the North, and so on. I really appreciate this fact because very rarely do kids these days actually read the book versions so I'm hoping this book inspires them to read them instead of merely watching them. The Inside Story isn't the best of the Grimm series but I will say it's a good continuation and I'm still eager to read the next book whenever that comes out.
WHO SHOULD READ: Those that have read the first seven Sisters Grimm books, fairytale fans
MY RATING: Four out of Five munchkins from Oz

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