THE FAIRY TALE FAN CLUB

Actor/comedian Ayoade presents a tongue-in-cheek collection of purported letters to and from well-known fairy-tale characters from Western tradition.

Bibliophiles will love this story from the beginning, where the supposed narrator—C.C. Cecily, the Senior Secretary of the Fairy Tale Fan Club—explains how he came to compile and edit this work. He considers himself a physical coward who possesses great literary skills—supposedly in contrast to most fairy-tale folk. Less enthusiastic readers will perk up if they skip the nattering introduction and start with the hand-written letter from “Ira (aged 8)” to Little Red Riding Hood. Ira questions how Red could possibly have mistaken a wolf for her grandmother. Red’s response, which explains how much her grandmother resembles a wolf, is supported by humorous art. Cecily’s comment about Red being “literally wolfed down” is the first of many puns. The text also abounds with literary, historical, and biblical references—and even some potty humor, as when Prince Charming offers Prince Farty Pants advice on coping with gastrointestinal woes. Each epistolary set riffs on different aspects of humankind and of literature. Sleeping Beauty snarkily defends her lifestyle by expounding on sleep science. Cinderella assumes an iPad is a cleaning supply. The laugh-out-loud letter from Humpty Dumpty scrutinizes anthropomorphism. Facts occasionally surface, including the original plot of Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Little Mermaid.” Droll sketches, rendered in pencil with bits of digital color, perfectly complement the text.

Happily ever after, mortal reader!