From Powells.com
Discover the books that made our 2022 list.
Staff Pick
My all-time favorite fairy tale could be in the hands of no finer picture book duo. Barnett and Klassen know how to have the last laugh; this troll doesn’t know what’s coming to him. I would talk my way across a BILLION troll bridges to make sure you read this book. Recommended By Sarah R., Powells.com
Synopses & Reviews
The MOMENTOUS debut of a groundbreaking Fairy Tale series — a brilliantly crafted, hilarious twist on this beloved classic, The Three Billy Goats Gruff, from renowned, award-winning, and New York Times bestselling duo and picture book pioneers Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen!
Once there was a bridge and a terrible and VERY hungry troll lived underneath it. When the three Billy Goats Gruff decide to clip-clop across the bridge to get to the grassy ridge, the troll is already imagining all the way to prepare a delicious goat dinner. But the troll underestimates those seemingly sweet but oh-so-savvy goats! This is the first in a groundbreaking new collection of fractured fairy tales crafted by one of today's most celebrated and acclaimed authors, Mac Barnett, and brought to stunning visual life by award-winning and beloved creator of I Want My Hat Back, Jon Klassen.
Told with pitch perfect timing and pacing, hilarious detail, and Barnett's signature narrator voice, this is Billy Goats Gruff as never before. High-stakes page turns will have readers on the edge of their seats and giggling along, as they join each goat and anticipate the arrival of the hungry and terrible troll living under the bridge. With Klassen's brilliantly restrained scenes, arresting characters, and celebrated artistic style, this first of three fairy tales is destined to be a true publishing event!
With a multitude of Caldecott Medals, Honors, international awards, and New York Times bestsellers to their names both independently and in collaboration, this is a creative pairing that is electric. So get ready to experience picture book magic... all you have to do is cross the bridge!
Review
“Will be a favorite read-aloud among kids. Picture-book superstars Barnett and Klassen are known for their stellar collaborations, and their many fans will be waiting to snap this up.” Booklist (Starred Review)
Review
“It's hard to imagine a more appropriate pair of picture book rascals to remix this famous fairy tale, a series-starting retelling, than collaborators Barnett and Klassen.” Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)
About the Author
Mac Barnett is the New York Times bestselling author of many picture books, including The Important Thing About Margaret Wise Brown, the New York Times bestselling The Wolf, the Duck, and the Mouse, the Caldecott Honor Book and E.B. White Read Aloud Award-winner Sam and Dave Dig a Hole, and the Caldecott Honor Book and Boston Globe-Horn Book Award-winner Extra Yarn. He is also the coauthor of the bestselling Terrible Two series with Jory John. Mac lives in Oakland, California.
Jon Klassen is an animator and Governor General's Award-winning creator of children's books. His book This is Not My Hat won both the American Caldecott Medal and the British Kate Greenway Medal, making Jon the first person to win both awards for the same work. Jon was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and currently resides in Los Angeles.