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Pay the Piper

by Jane Yolen, Adam Stemple (Goodreads Author)

3.33 of 5 stars 3.33 · rating details · 400 ratings · 73 reviews

A rock 'n' roll band to die for….

When fourteen year old Callie McCallan scores a backstage pass to interview the lead singer of the famous band Brass Rat, she's thrilled. Peter Gringras is so cool. When he plays his flute, it's as if he has some kind of hypnotic power. But there is something strange about him, something Callie can't quite put her finger on. Then, on Hallow...more

Paperback, 192 pages

Published June 27th 2006 by Starscape (first published June 27th 2005)

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(showing 1-30 of 712)

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Jun 27, 2011 Winslow Schmelling rated it 2 of 5 stars

I had picked up this book in one of my usual library raids amongst a stack of other fairytale books. I was actually really excited for it because of the whole, "a rock'n'roll' fairytale" aspect thinking it would be similar to one of my favorite books, War for the Oaks, also a fantasy book revolving around rock'n'roll. And a modern retelling of an old story always has its possible upsides, especially since this one was about the Pied Piper, certainly a tale that has yet to be overdone. But my ent...more I had picked up this book in one of my usual library raids amongst a stack of other fairytale books. I was actually really excited for it because of the whole, "a rock'n'roll' fairytale" aspect thinking it would be similar to one of my favorite books, War for the Oaks, also a fantasy book revolving around rock'n'roll. And a modern retelling of an old story always has its possible upsides, especially since this one was about the Pied Piper, certainly a tale that has yet to be overdone. But my enthusiasm for the book was soon quashed.
While it has a lot of potential to be something good, the writing is nothing special, the story too one-dimensional and the characters no one to care about. My biggest qualm was the main character, fourteen-year-old Callie, written to be a stereotypical, embarrassed-of-her-family teenager whose dialogue and attitude is more that of a nine-year-old rather than a freshman in high school. I'm not sure which of the authors was most in charge of her but, whichever one, they highly underestimate the intelligence of young teenagers and write them to be far more ignorant than any I know. Without a main character I can get interested in, it's very hard for me to care about the rest of the story.
Now, whoever wrote the fairy-side of the story was pretty good. The writing was well done, the characters far more interesting and the story well-developed. But it just wasn't expanded upon enough. There's potential for a really good story. But the caliber of the authors didn't really seem strong enough to handle it. Instead, the book was short and admittedly weak. Not enough time was spent in the fairy world versus the real world and I just couldn't find myself invested in the story in the least.
This certainly isn't a bad book. I've definitely read worse. But, there's really nothing special about it at all aside from the very initial idea. That's not to say that it shouldn't be read; I mean, it makes a good enough children's book, I wouldn't recommend it for anyone older than maybe... eleven. But I don't expect this to make its way into many readers' list of favorite books.
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Mar 12, 2011 Christian rated it 3 of 5 stars

I find it interesting how often Yolen co-authors books. It makes me wonder how much of her own voice I'm getting and what not. This isn't to say I don't like her work. I do. I find her to be an interesting author who tackles a wide range of subjects and styles. There's something a bit admirable about that. This time, she teams up with her son, a professional rock musician.

Pay the Piper is an interesting book. It takes as its premise that the Pied Piper of Hameln was an outcast prince of faerie....more I find it interesting how often Yolen co-authors books. It makes me wonder how much of her own voice I'm getting and what not. This isn't to say I don't like her work. I do. I find her to be an interesting author who tackles a wide range of subjects and styles. There's something a bit admirable about that. This time, she teams up with her son, a professional rock musician.

Pay the Piper is an interesting book. It takes as its premise that the Pied Piper of Hameln was an outcast prince of faerie. Every seven years, he must return a teind to his father of gold, silver, or souls. Typically he manages to scrape together his teind in money, but occasionally he falls short, and children are more susceptible to his magic than adults. Hence Hameln and the number of children who disappeared during the Children's Crusades.

Now, with the name Peter Gringras, he is the lead singer in a band called Brass Rat. They have performed for years now. People are captivated by their music. Callie McCallan is a school reporter in a small Massachusetts town. The band is playing her town just a few days before the teind is due. Unbeknownst to Brass Rat, this concert is for charity, so they don't make the teind, which means that Gringras must resort to souls.

Callie, because of things she's accidentally seen, has nearly figured out what's going on. When the children of the town disappear on Halloween, Callie sets out to save them. In the process she tries to figure out a way to break the curse that subjects Gringras to his fate.

Overall, it's a charming tale and a fairly quick read. It's not stellar, nor is it Yolen's best work/collaboration. But it's an imaginative take on the fairy tale genre, and you get the added bonus of having Brass Rat's lyrics at the end of the book. That's kinda cool. Supposedly, this is the first in a series of Rock 'n' Roll fairy tales. But if you want a good imagining and retelling of the Pied Piper story, I recommend turning to Donna Jo Napoli's Breath instead.(less)

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Apr 02, 2012 Grace rated it 3 of 5 stars

I chose the book “Pay the Piper” because the book blob was interesting. Callie, the school news reporter, lives in a Massachusetts town where nothing ever happens, so when the news broke out that a band, Brass Rat, was performing everyone was excited. Callie got a chance to interview them and she figured out something that she hopes she never knew. On Halloween everyone went out for trick a treat except her (she didn’t know how to write an article about Brass Rat that people would actually belie...more

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Oct 28, 2010 Louize rated it 3 of 5 stars

On the 26th of June 1284, “came a colorful piper to Hamelin and led 130 children away…”

More interesting, of course, is the why of it. And so, many tales have stemmed from this brief account… tales that had been weaved and threaded to give reason to these unfathomable bare facts. I’m sure you’ve heard or read some of them. Well then, there is no harm in giving way to one more; but this time the Piper came to Northampton, Massachusetts. The question is, “Who will pay the Piper this time?”

Calcepho

...more

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Apr 18, 2013 Fairytalecritic rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: pied-piper-retellings

The book’s chapters go back and forth between telling the story of a banished fairy prince and Callie, a high school student. The meat of the story happens in Callie’s chapters. Everyone at Callie’s high school is excited because the band Brass Rat is coming to town. At the concert, Callie gets to go backstage and interview the band members because she’s writing an article about Brass Rat for her school newspaper. After the concert, she eavesdrops on the band and overhears some very unusual thin...more The book’s chapters go back and forth between telling the story of a banished fairy prince and Callie, a high school student. The meat of the story happens in Callie’s chapters. Everyone at Callie’s high school is excited because the band Brass Rat is coming to town. At the concert, Callie gets to go backstage and interview the band members because she’s writing an article about Brass Rat for her school newspaper. After the concert, she eavesdrops on the band and overhears some very unusual things and begins to suspect that Gringras might be the pied piper himself.

I didn't like this book for several reasons. The main character, Callie, did not come across and very intelligent or resourceful, but she did seem a lot smarter than everyone else in the story, which I guess is a plus. She spent the majority of the book wondering what to do, and very little of the book doing anything.

The plot had potential. I think if the story had focused on Gringras instead of Callie, then it could have been very interesting. The fact of the matter is that I don’t care about Callie. She is boring and uninteresting. Gringras was interesting, but there was so little to say about him because his story was mostly summary. Although the book alternated chapters between Callie and Gringras, Gringras’s chapters were usually very short, held little detail, or were just reiterations of what Callie had already seen or was about to see. It was as though it was only included for the sake of explanation rather than the plot or the story. This book was all about Callie, which means that it was about very little, as there isn’t much to Callie to begin with. She is predictable and uninteresting. Yet all the other characters in the book are even blander than she is.

And above all, the characters had very little depth. I think that if Yolen and Stemple had maybe spent a bit more effort developing their characters into real people, then I might have appreciated the book a lot more.

Read my full review (including spoilers) here: http://fairytalecritic.tumblr.com/pos...
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Apr 25, 2010 Sarah rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: tweens

The prolific children's author Jane Yolen attempts to create a rock n' roll rendition of the Pied Piper of Hamelin, in which the piper is really an exiled faerie prince. The initial narrative begins promisingly enough, with 14 yrld burgeoning journalist Callie, convincing her hippie but protective parents to let her attend a rare local Brass Rat concert, so that she can interview them for the school paper. Yolen and her co-author and son Adam Stemple admirably connect the mesmerizing power of ro...more

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Jan 25, 2010 Cindy rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: teen, fantasy-children

Callie is a high school student and reporter for her school newspaper. When she hears that Brass Rat, a major band, is coming to her little town, she manages to get a press pass to interview the band. She overhears a weird conversation between the hot piper and the venue manager that makes her wonder. And where those really RATS she saw? Dancing? But when her little brother disappears, she knows she has to discover the truth, no matter what happens.

I really enjoyed Troll Bridge, which was by th...more

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Feb 01, 2011 Corinne rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult

Interesting twist on the Piped Piper fairy tale -fourteen year old Callie's backstage pass to hear the rock band Brass Rat only makes the secret to their hypnotic music skills more elusive. When all the other children disappear in town, it's up to Callie to put all the pieces together, but will she figure it out in time?

Of course, we see where the plot is going, but the fantastical-fairy element gives the story way more umph, that was the part that kept me interested - it had an element of darkn...more

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Aug 25, 2008 Susan rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: children-juv

Jane Yolen, practically the Pied Piper herself of children's fantasy lit (but in a good way, ho ho) and her (adult) musician son have kickstarted a fun series with this first book. Turning classic fairy tale lore into modern day teen angst and mystery works well, and I think will find a wide audience.

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Nov 21, 2007 Molly rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya, 6th-7th-8th-fic

I really enjoyed this book, maybe because it was a short, quick read. I thought the premise was fun and the characters were quirky. I've not read a lot of Yolen's work (and what I have is the Children's lit not YA) so I can't say how it compares to other books, but I would certainly read more after this one.

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Jun 30, 2009 Mary rated it 4 of 5 stars

Surprisingly good. I mean, I heard good things about this book from various people, but I thought to myself, "But this book is meant for 13 year old kids, not for me." Then I shrugged and read it anyway and boy howdy am I glad that I did. Fairly quickly I realized that the writing style was quirkily marvelous and refreshing (after reading some heavier books of late). It gives a new twist not only on the tale of the Pied Piper but on fairy tales in general, tweaking the ending in such a way that...more

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Feb 27, 2011 Heather rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, ya

Callie McCallan has a case of the middle child blues. Her parents refuse to let her do the exciting things her friends are doing. Luckily she has come up with a plan to go to the best thing to happen in her town ever, a Brass Rat concert. While gathering information for her article, Callie starts to notice some odd things about the band and its lead singer, Peter Gringas. Mixed in with Callie's story is the real background of Peter Gringas. The Pied Piper of Hamelin has come to town.

I couldn't...more

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Jan 28, 2011 Highland Library rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: as-erin-s-pages-turn

This is an up to date version of the classic tale, the Pied Piper of Hamelin. Jane Yolen partners with her musical son, Adam Stemple, to tell the story of fourteen year old Callie. Callie and her brother will have to out wit evil rock stars to escape a world that's far far from home.

I would recommend this book for guys and chicks ages fourteen and older. While there is no foul launguage in this book, there are some images that might be disturbing to younger readers. However, if a little blood (...more

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Apr 23, 2013 Roberta rated it 4 of 5 stars

Callie is a reporter for her school paper. She has a back stage pass to see The Brass Rats. She has a feeling something is wrong when her "old" parents say they know the group. She over hears the band talking about owing gold, silver, or blood. During trick-or-treating all the children disappear but Callie.....
After reading star ratings on this book, I wasn't sure if I wanted to read it or not. I finally gave in and checked the book out. I usually do not read a book written by two authors.
The b...more

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Sep 16, 2011 Matia rated it 3 of 5 stars

I really hope Jane and Adam will team up to write more of these rock-and-roll fairy tales. This one is based on the legend of the Pied Piper. You guessed it: the Piper is the lead musician in a rock band. It turns out that he is really a prince of Faerie, not a nice fairy land, but the somewhat formidable place of very long-lived, magical people who do not particularly care what happens to humans. The heroine of the story is a fourteen year old girl who attends a rock concert and accidentally di...more

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Apr 28, 2013 Anie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Pay the Piper was an impulse purchase for me. The book had an interesting title, and fairy tales always drag me in. I was rewarded with a quick read that made me smile and laugh. Callie is going to interview a well known band who is coming to play in her area, who could ever guess that the band would be lead by the legendary Peter Piper? Callie does her research when she finds things not to be right and learns the true history of the town of Hamelin, Germany. I was about her age when I learned t...more

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Dec 21, 2008 Tamora Pierce rated it 4 of 5 stars

This was a riveting extension of the Pied Piper of Hamelin, grounding the story in the exile of a Faerie murderer who owes a tithe to his father every seven years: "Silver, gold, or human souls." Modern-day Callie, doing a story on the folk rock band Brass Rat for her high school paper, discovers that two of its members are exiled Fae with dangerous intent. Somehow she has to turn what she knows into a way to save the kids of her town, including her little brother, when they vanish while trick-o...more

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Jan 24, 2012 Cristy rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: faeries, fariytale-retelling, young-teen-fiction

The Pied Piper goes rock ‘n’ roll with PAY THE PIPER. Interesting and modern twist on the classic tale Peter the Pied Piper of Hamelin. A clever retelling with rock bands, and Faerie lore as the famous piper is portrayed as the middle son of the Sidhe Faerie King, who has been cursed and banished to live among humans for a treason committed against his brother.

I found PAY THE PIPER to be an easy and entertaining enough read as far as the concept went; but the story was hindered by its overly ju...more

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Jun 04, 2010 Bridget R. Wilson rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya-fiction, fairy-tales, ya-contemporary, ya-fantasy

[The narrative was a little disjointed to start, but I really liked the story once I got into it. It's possible that my own unfamiliarity with the Pied Piper story was what held me back. The Grimm Brothers collected a version for their book German Legends. Alas, I can't find an English translation. And there's also the Browning poem.:]

When Callie sees the lead singer of Brass Rat making rats dance, she knows she’s stumbled onto more than the eccentricities of the music world. She’s found the Pie...more

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Aug 11, 2011 Lisa Rathbun added it

I enjoyed this book as another alternate tale (this time the Pied Piper of Hamelin), but I did find the story a bit slow at times. Strangely it seemed to lack some of the magic one would associate with the faerie world. I did like that it was set in Northampton (where I used to go to school), and I liked how the curse was able to be broken, but overall it didn't matched others of Yolen's works. (For example, I'm in the middle of her Dragon Blood series and LOVING it!)

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Aug 23, 2012 Leigh rated it 5 of 5 stars

Found this little gem for $3 on a table at Books of Wonder. Check your library -- I think it may be out of print. Call up the publisher and beg for a re-release! It's a fantastic modern telling of the Pied Piper of Hamelin as a rock star with a compelling back-story, and how he is foiled? saved? by a smart young woman.

It's brief length and pop culture/music references will make it popular with reluctant readers, while giving them plenty to chew on.

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Mar 22, 2011 C.j. rated it 3 of 5 stars

This brief ballad of modern-meets-folklore, I'm enjoying for all manner of reasons. 'Tis brief, but tight. And the craft both Yolen and Stemple show in their wordsmithing is a pleasure in itself. Each characters has eyes, and a voice. Each description, comparison, naming is layered, telling both of interiors and exteriors. And the plot pulls on, piping like the pallid, direly playful lyric and song which weave their way through the story.

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Apr 18, 2011 branewurms rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: childrens-and-ya, sci-fi-fantasy

I only got about 30 or 40 pages in. This was terrible. Honestly, it was terrible. The characters are cardboard and unbelievable, and my God, the dialogue! I have never in my life heard children that speak like this! I was actually sitting there flailing around angrily at how stiff and inexplicably unbelievable the dialogue was, yelling "HAVE YOU EVEN EVER SPOKEN TO A TEENAGER." Plus, a whole high school all excited about a folk rock band with a medieval schtick coming to town? Idk, maybe there a...more

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Oct 04, 2010 Kirsten rated it 1 of 5 stars

Gosh, I wanted to like this, but it was just terrible. The writing was uneven and weird. The story didn't always quite make sense or hang together. The "rock 'n' roll" sections were just embarrassingly bad. Yowch. I flipped through to see what would happen, but it just got weirder and worse. An unfortunate offering from Yolen, who is usually So Very Good.

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Feb 03, 2008 Lacey Louwagie rated it 2 of 5 stars Recommends it for: no one, actually

Shelves: fairy-tales, retelling, youngadultfantasy

A modernization of the Pied Piper story in which the Piper is a rock and roll star who lures children away has so much potential, especially since it could play in to all the fears that adults have about kids and rock and roll. But the characters all felt half-developed and none of them struck me as particularly interesting. I couldn't feel any sympathy for the Piper (he was under a curse) and I wasn't sure if I was supposed to or not, but I would have liked to have felt something. The whole boo...more

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Jul 26, 2011 Trina rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: teens

Lyrically and magically woven! Sweeping action that invites you to devour the book in just one sitting, if you have the time. The love the two authors have for music and story telling shine beautifully from this great young adult novel. This is keeper; I want my daughters to experience the joy of reading and enchanting story.

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May 21, 2011 Laura rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction, scifi-fantasy

I love it when an author reminds me why I read fantasy (and kids' books). This is a great reinterpretation of the Pied Piper of Hamlin story with all the standard fairy tale elements brought up to modern times. There's not a lot of character depth or plot twists here, but it's a wonderful story nevertheless.

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May 15, 2011 Alison rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy-scifi

A twist on the Pied Piper tale. Pretty average fantasy, nothing terribly special. The rock'n'roll part of the title is bit misleading. It's not so much rock'n'roll as it is folk music. I do give them props for having a character named Alison, which is very rare in Fictionland. Overall, this was disappointing.

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Sep 27, 2009 Phair rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fairy-tale-retellings, young-adult-childrens

For a book set in the world of faerie I think Holly Black does a better job than this one. An interesting take on the motivation of the Pied Piper and the whole modern world, rock 'n' roll setting was different. This seemed kind of superficial & needed to be fleshed out more to be really enjoyable.

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May 21, 2009 Stephanie rated it 5 of 5 stars

I have to say that I wasn't all that fired up about this after reading reviews. Never will i judge by a review again. I loved this book because it's something that I would never read. It gave me chills about Noho and the Summit House, because I was there. "The Piper's calling you and you're in him..." Read it!

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About Jane Yolen

Yolen was born at Beth Israel Hospital, the first child of Isabel Berlin and Will Hyatt Yolen. She and her family moved to California when she was young but returned to New York a few years later. After her younger brother was born, her father joined the army and served on the European front during WWII. Yolen spent her childhood taking piano lessons, ballet dancing and writing a neighborhood news...more

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