A Tale Dark and Grimm by Adam Gidwitz is a different take on fairytales, focusing on Hansel and Gretel as the main characters and while they do encounter an old witch who tries to bake them, they encounter a whole lot more as well. While Gidwitz described this book as being extremely bloody, he also focuses on the fact that there is a great deal of comic relief--and boy is he right! While this book has tons of blood, gore, and unattached body parts, it is also written in such a way that there are frequent interruptions by Gidwitz to 'check-in' on his reader, make sure everything is okay, and tell readers to make sure there are no little kids around!
While I can't say I would have enjoyed this book when I was ten (I would have been too scared), kids now seem to love it and I, as an adult, also enjoyed it very much. I would say that fifth grade is the right age to introduce this book, both for word choice and content. It's a great style of writing and a very entertaining story. Definitely looking into Adam Gidwitz's second book of the Grimm Tales.
While I can't say I would have enjoyed this book when I was ten (I would have been too scared), kids now seem to love it and I, as an adult, also enjoyed it very much. I would say that fifth grade is the right age to introduce this book, both for word choice and content. It's a great style of writing and a very entertaining story. Definitely looking into Adam Gidwitz's second book of the Grimm Tales.