All who know me will know that I awaited the release of The Land Of Stories with what you could say... 'bias', meaning that I'm a huge fan of Chris Colfer and would probably have loved it if it was the phone book with a fancy cover. Chris Colfer is incredibly talented, and as an avid Glee fanatic I've been emotional invested in his 'Cinderella Story' and the not so Cinderella story of his character Kurt Hummel. You could even call us kindred spirits, since we were both the heads of failed writer's groups in highschool (yay!)
Of course he hasn't been sitting on his backside after getting a cushy role on 'Glee', as of now he's a Golden Globe winner, two time emmy nominee and the writer and lead of his new movie 'Struck By Lightning'. All this was naturally done while writing The Land Of Stories between sets on the national sell out 'Glee Live' concert tour. With all this on his plate many would pass this off as just another actor who thinks he can write, but as someone whose had a passion for writing since boyhood, this first novel will not disappoint.
The Land of Stories follows twin siblings, Alex and Connor, as they are sucked - Narnia style, into a family heirloom, a novel called The Land Of Stories. The book plummets the pair into a world of fairytales, where Classic fairytale characters are living out their surprisingly troubled post-happily ever after lives. To get home Alex and Connor are forced into the greatest scavenger hunt of their lives - gathering familiar fairy tale relics to form the wishing spell. Its a path home littered with danger and familiar characters with untold stories.
The story itself makes the (thankfully not stone) heart of my inner child beat wildly, and sparks my love of the classic stories, the way I'm sure Colfer intended. It's imaginative, homourous and as witty and its author, targeted towards children but appealing to a range of ages. Given Colfer's fame and how 'hot' fairy tales are recently (see: 'Snow White and The Huntsmen', 'Grimm' or 'Once Upon A Time) this debut was bound for success, and success it has had in its cushy position as The New York Times #1 bestseller these last two weeks. There are let downs in the form of cliches and minor repetitive sequences, but there are made up for in character, inventiveness and one liners. Colfer has delivered a truly page turning read rather than the standard 'failed actor-writer' kiss of doom some people experience. Personally I can't WAIT for the next two parts of this trilogy.
Rating: 4.5/5
