Sleeping Beauty: Lost Chords

Love this!

Maleficent - yet another new trailer!

The wings! The friggin' DRAGON WINGS OF AWESOME!! I am SO excited for this!!

can. not. wait.

Absolutely STUNNING. Have I mentioned lately how excited I am about this film? :)

Maleficent "Dream" trailer

And I just keep getting more and more excited for this film! Be awesome Maleficent, PLEASE BE AWESOME.

Once Upon a Dream - today only at Teefury!

My favorite Doctor Who/Disney artist extraordinaire Karen Hallion has a new t-shirt available today only (1/15/14) at Teefury -- a variation of her first Sleeping Beauty/Doctor Who mash-up entitled "Once Upon a Dream."

Isn't it THE BEST?!

Maleficent!

I am SO excited that we're finally starting to see promotional materials for next summer's Maleficent, exploring my favorite villain's backstory! Here's the first trailer:

Sleeping Beauty

I've become a little obsessed with collecting images for my Fairy Tales: Sleeping Beauty board on Pinterest lately, so I thought it was time to share a few of my new favorites:

Disney classics

These photos are SO COOL. Disney characters spliced with photos of the real-life models that inspired them!

The Sleeping Beauty ones are my favorite. :) Photos via The Mary Sue/jamieleto.

Disney Designer Villains

Last week I shared with you my discovery of Disney's Designer Princess collection from last year. This year their limited-time collection features some of their most famous villains, reimagined in a gorgeous collection of  prints, mugs, clothing items, and dolls. Here is the concept art (and yes, I was lucky enough to discover this in time to purchase a notecard set!):

Maleficent

Mother Gothel

Source: beckyrox.buzznet.com via Ruth on Pinterest

Cruella de Vil

Source: beckyrox.buzznet.com via Ruth on Pinterest

Queen of Hearts

Source: fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net via Ruth on Pinterest

Evil Queen

Source: fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net via Ruth on Pinterest

Ursula

Source: fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net via Ruth on Pinterest

Do you have a favorite? I think I'm torn between Maleficent (of course!) and Gothel at the moment...

Disney Designer Style

Despite my love of fairy tales and Disney classics and Sleeping Beauty in particular, somehow I missed it when Disney released their "Designer Princess" collection last year. The collection consisted of dolls, prints, notes, and make-up, taking its inspiration from fashion design from the 1950s and 1960s.

This notecard image features my favorite princess, Aurora from Sleeping Beauty...isn't it gorgeous?

I am SO annoyed I missed out on this collection last year and the chance to order at least the notecard set in order to collect a set in miniature prints. Oh well, thank goodness for the internet! *wink*

Here are the rest of the princesses featured in the collection:

Do you have a favorite? I pretty much love them all. :)

Maleficent - first look!

This afternoon the first image of Angelina Jolie as Maleficent (in the upcoming film of the same name retelling  Sleeping Beauty) was released, and it is SO. COOL.

Sleeping Beauty is not only my favorite Disney animated film, but it is my favorite fairy tale, so I'm really looking forward to this movie -- I just can't believe we have to wait until 2014! *sigh* :)

The Merchant's Daughter trailer

Zondervan has really outdone themselves in the book trailer department -- this is the trailer for Melanie Dickerson's newest release, The Merchant's Daughter, based on the story of Beauty and the Beast.



Too good not to share. :) Though I think I have to give the edge to the trailer for Melanie's first book, The Healer's Apprentice, since it is SUCH a mini-movie!



So which is your favorite?

Review: The Healer's Apprentice by Melanie Dickerson

The Healer's Apprentice

By: Melanie Dickerson

Publisher: Zondervan

ISBN: 978-0-310-72143-7

About the book:

Rose has been appointed as a healer's apprentice at Hagenheim Castle, a rare opportunity for a woodcutter's daughter like her. While she often feels uneasy at the sight of blood, Rose is determined to prove herself capable. Failure will mean returning home to marry the aging bachelor her mother has chosen for her -- a bloated, disgusting merchant who makes Rose feel ill.

When Lord Hamlin, the future duke, is injured, it is Rose who must tend to him. As she works to heal his wound, she begins to understand emotions she's never felt before and wonders if he feels the same. But falling in love is forbidden, as Lord Hamlin is betrothed to a mysterious young woman in hiding. As Rose's life spins toward confusion, she must take the first steps on a journey to discover her own destiny.

Review:

Rose, the eldest daughter of a poor woodcutter, is newly apprenticed to Hagenheim Castle's respected healer, Frau Geruscha. She longs to prove herself worthy of her mentor's faith, for if she succeeds, being the next healer would mean a life of independence and freedom from her mother's desire to wed a lecherous merchant in order to elevate her family's social standing. Secure in her chosen path, Rose is certain her future is set until a chance encounter with Lord Hamlin, the duke's heir, awakens her heart to the possibility of love. But love between a commoner and a noble is unheard of, an impossibility particularly since the young lord is bethrothed to the daughter of a neighboring duke who has lived in hiding, under threat from a powerful sorcerer. As Rose struggles to suppress her feelings for the kind and handsome heir, her own life is thrown into turmoil thanks to the advances of both compelling and repulsive suitors, all with questionable motives. As the life she thought she knew comes unraveled, Rose's faith is brought to the breaking point as she must decide if she can trust the God she's always served with a future shadowed with danger and doubts.

Where on earth was this book when I was a teenager? As a life-long fairy tale aficionado, I was intrigued by the premise and captivated from the first pages, eager to discover how Dickerson translated the Sleeping Beauty story into novel form. Sleeping Beauty just happens to be my favorite fairy tale, so the stakes were particularly high -- and overall I was quite impressed with how Dickerson translated the fantastical, magical elements of the story into a real-world historical setting. Medieval Germany is the perfect backdrop for Rose's story, a world where the Christian faith she holds dear can believably collide with old pagan traditions, and princes like Lord Hamlin quested for their ladies fair, holding honor and duty above all else. The Healer's Apprentice is a heady mix of romance and adventure, grounded in the political and social history of the fourteenth century, rich with medieval mores and customs that flesh out the Sleeping Beauty story beats that were the heartbeat of my own childhood imaginings.

In my experience with her debut Dickerson has set herself up as something of a trailblazer in the realm of faith-based fiction by capitalizing on the enduring popularity of fairy tales and the growing demand for historical fiction in the young adult market. While Rose operates in the world of medieval Europe, she is an extremely likable and wholly relatable heroine as she attempts to navigate the murky waters of young adulthood in order to find her place in the world. I loved how Dickerson developed the romance between Rose and Lord Hamlin -- its sweet intensity is a nice complement to the story's origins, fleshing out one of the most famous relationships in the fairy tale world. This is a slim novel, its only drawback being the final third of the storyline where I felt the pace was bogged down by Rose and Wilhelm's respective longing for each other getting repetitive -- a lot of talk about feelings with little forward momentum to the story's climax. And while I appreciated the twist Dickerson applied to the storyline of obvious spiritual evil (instead of stock "magic") versus faith, I wish the faith element and spiritual warfare aspects of the story had been a little less pedantic and more organic in its portrayal.

However, those qualms aside The Healer's Apprentice is a sterling example of breaking new ground in Christian fiction, and it is to be applauded for its (mostly) successful integration of secular fairy tales and faith-based literature. As such this is a novel with potentially wide appeal, crossing markets and target audiences. Dickerson has delivered a promising debut here, and with her clear appreciation for fairy tales and historical research she is an author to watch!

Disney reimagined...

Thanks to a friend posting a link on Facebook, I was introduced to the work of a fabulous artist - Claire Hummel, at Shoomlah.com. She has a series of prints where she's reimagined classic Disney princesses in accurate period costume (and oh happiness, she sells PRINTS!).

Snow White, early 16th century Germany

Purchase prints

Pocahontas, 17th century Powhatan costume

Purchase prints

Cinderella, mid-1860s

Purchase prints

Jasmine, pre-Islamic Middle Eastern

Purchase prints

Sleeping Beauty, the year 1485 (and my favorite!)

Purchase prints

Ariel, 1890's evening gown

Purchase prints

Belle, 1770's French court

Purchase prints

I hope to purchase a print or two soon, I think they are amazing! I'd love to hear your favorite - mine is Sleeping Beauty, since that is probably my all-time favorite Disney film (and fairy tale - and the retellings - I could go on and on...). :)

The Healer's Apprentice book trailer

I love fairy tales, especially anything and everything related to the Sleeping Beauty story, since that is my all-time favorite. Yesterday I read an interview with debut author Melanie Dickerson, who will see the release of her debut The Healer's Apprentice this fall. Here's a bit about the story:

When destiny sleeps, it can only be awakened by true love's kiss.

In this historical romance loosely based on the Sleeping Beauty fairy tale, a woodcutter’s daughter becomes the town healer’s apprentice. Rose’s job is to care for the sick and injured in Hagenheim Castle. But Rose gets sick at the sight of blood and is more suited to making up stories than sewing up wounds.

Lord Hamlin, the future ruler of the region, is injured and Rose must overcome her squeamishness to save him. He is everything that is noble and good, but loving him is forbidden, as he’s already betrothed to a mysterious woman in hiding.

With two noble-born brothers vying for her affections, Rose learns that the people of Hagenheim are not always who they seem, and her own heart can mislead her.

Here's the book trailer Melanie's publisher, Zondervan, had made for The Healer's Apprentice. I have to say I am quite impressed - this has to be one of the best, most elaborate book trailers that I've ever seen!



I for one can't wait to get my hands on a copy of this book come September!