Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
17th out of 49 books
—
1,421 voters
Tender Morsels
Tender Morsels is a dark and vivid story, set in two worlds and worrying at the border between them. Liga lives modestly in her own personal heaven, a world given to her in exchange for her earthly life. Her two daughters grow up in this soft place, protected from the violence that once harmed their mother. But the real world cannot be denied forever—magicked men and wild...more
Hardcover, 436 pages
Published
October 14th 2008
by Knopf Books for Young Readers
(first published October 1st 2008)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
3,000)
I need to think about the rating and review for novel. It has me flummoxed in a way I haven’t been over a book before.
While I was trawling Melbourne bookstores for a copy (which was a saga in itself) I had a discussion with a bookseller about Tender Morsels. In passing, I mentioned the brouhaha it had been caught up in a while ago, (along with several other novels), over its inclusion a feminist YA reading list. The subsequent fallout and discussion made for interesting reading, specifically wh...more
While I was trawling Melbourne bookstores for a copy (which was a saga in itself) I had a discussion with a bookseller about Tender Morsels. In passing, I mentioned the brouhaha it had been caught up in a while ago, (along with several other novels), over its inclusion a feminist YA reading list. The subsequent fallout and discussion made for interesting reading, specifically wh...more
25 likes · like · see review
view all 25 comments
this is a book that concerns itself with damage and healing. and i think it is a very powerful book filled with Important Lessons. my only problem with it is that there are too many voices, too many characters, which i think makes for a strained and disjointed read. there were so many voices, it became hard to care about any one of them individually.this is not always a problem for me in fiction- i love sprawling narratives, but in this book, i think the real strength of perspective was found in...more
47 likes · like · see review
Tender Morsels is a modern retelling of Grimms’ Snow White and Rose Red. Liga had a painful past and was magicked away to another world where she was safe and could raise her two daughters free of violence and the small-mindedness of the villagers in the town she once inhabited. Once the security of their safe world was breached, Liga and her daughters had to learn to adapt to living in the real world.
Beautifully written, rich, disturbing, compelling, yet hopeful, with vividly drawn characters...more
Beautifully written, rich, disturbing, compelling, yet hopeful, with vividly drawn characters...more
19 likes · like · see review
Once upon a time, the skeleton of this story was called Snow-White and Rose-Red. Like all fairy tales, it left much unexplained. Too much. Well, Margo Lanagan took those bones and added muscle and guts, bracing the loose joints of the plot with her characters' emotions, motivations, and histories. That's the secret of successful retellings: fleshing out the gaps that relied almost entirely on the readers' willful ignorance or suspension of belief, yet still leaving room for the existence of magi...more
34 likes · like · see review
Though I thought Tender Morsels was a fantastically-written and unbelievably well-imagined story, my first instinct is to throw my hands up in warning at any teenager (or - in fact - any adult) who might come strolling along in search of just another typical fairytale retelling. Because that's what this is in it's barest form, it is a retelling of the Brothers Grimm's tale of Rose Red & Snow White: A Grimms Fairy Tale. And don't we all just love the call of the "dark" retellings? We imagine...more
48 likes · like · see review
I actually had no expectations of this book. I suppose, since I already knew about a few of the more disturbing things about this book, that I was already prepared to face it.
What I wasn't prepared for was how utterly bored I'd be. It was quite infuriating really. There were many characters I severely disliked and the plot was very awkward.
I made it about half way through the book before I threw my hands up in disgust and gave up. It just didn't seem to be going anywhere!
So I really can't give...more
What I wasn't prepared for was how utterly bored I'd be. It was quite infuriating really. There were many characters I severely disliked and the plot was very awkward.
I made it about half way through the book before I threw my hands up in disgust and gave up. It just didn't seem to be going anywhere!
So I really can't give...more
14 likes · like · see review
“born to make a real life however it cracks your heart”
Margo Lanagan’s retelling of the fairy tale, Snow White, Rose Red is a novel that succeeds in the way that the most compelling of fairy tale retellings or fantasy novels do: through using the fantastic/magickal elements to tell a story that feels more real and believable than if the reader imagines the story without these elements.
Tender Morsels explores aspects of experience many people dont like to look at closely(brutal violence against...more
Margo Lanagan’s retelling of the fairy tale, Snow White, Rose Red is a novel that succeeds in the way that the most compelling of fairy tale retellings or fantasy novels do: through using the fantastic/magickal elements to tell a story that feels more real and believable than if the reader imagines the story without these elements.
Tender Morsels explores aspects of experience many people dont like to look at closely(brutal violence against...more
14 likes · like · see review
May 05, 2010
Tatiana
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
those whose sensibilities are not easily offended
Recommended to Tatiana by:
ALA
Evidently, Tender Morsels is a modern retelling of Brothers Grimm's fairy tale Rose Red and Snow White: A Grimms Fairy Tale. If I have to look for an analogy among better known fairy tale retellings, Tender Morsels is closer in its audacity to Anne Rice's version of Sleeping Beauty - The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty than to Robin McKinley's Spindle's End. Is Tender Morsels a remarkable work of literature? Yes. Does it cross the boundaries of what is YA appropriate? Yes, again.
Liga has had an awfu...more
Liga has had an awfu...more
41 likes · like · see review
what an interesting book. i imagine 50 or 100 years from now, if liberal arts education is not laughed off university campuses, students of English lit might actually be studying this one.
it's that layered, yep.
about halfway through i realized i was reading something i have run across so rarely: a book where men don't actually matter much. i've read a zillion books where women were just plot devices, getting things kicked off or causing a plot twist. in these cases the men of the story were indi...more
it's that layered, yep.
about halfway through i realized i was reading something i have run across so rarely: a book where men don't actually matter much. i've read a zillion books where women were just plot devices, getting things kicked off or causing a plot twist. in these cases the men of the story were indi...more
At first, Tender Morsels drew me in, but the middle kind of lost me (it seemed a little tedious to me).
Lately, I've been hearing "If you don't like a book, put it down. There are too many other good books out there you could be reading."
But I'm not very good at that. If I see the tiniest bit of merit in a book, I'll keep plugging away. And I saw that in this book. The end did actually pull me back in, but mainly because it did a good job of tying up all the loose ends and revealing what happened...more
Lately, I've been hearing "If you don't like a book, put it down. There are too many other good books out there you could be reading."
But I'm not very good at that. If I see the tiniest bit of merit in a book, I'll keep plugging away. And I saw that in this book. The end did actually pull me back in, but mainly because it did a good job of tying up all the loose ends and revealing what happened...more
12 likes · like · see review
I'm enjoying this. Lanagan is skilled enough with her prose that I find myself noting particular phrases, or rereading some paragraphs. She's good enough with plot and pacing that I've been reading fast, eager to know what happens next. I don't remember the story of Snow-White and Rose-Red, so I can't say if she's true to it, but she does weave the fairy tale/folk elements into a gritty story of childhood sexual abuse and violence against women. The weaving isn't seamless. Indeed, I thought at f...more
5 likes · like · see review
Tender Morsels. WOW! Let me say that again- WOW! I
finished this one this morning and I have been thinking about it
nonstop. This is a full length novel, a fantasy, and, unlike her short
stories, uses a fairly conventional narrative style so it may be more
accessible for many readers. It is still a very challenging book
however and demanding of its readers in a different way. The emotional
wallop is extremely intense, especially in the first 70 pages of the
story. It is the story of a young girl...more
finished this one this morning and I have been thinking about it
nonstop. This is a full length novel, a fantasy, and, unlike her short
stories, uses a fairly conventional narrative style so it may be more
accessible for many readers. It is still a very challenging book
however and demanding of its readers in a different way. The emotional
wallop is extremely intense, especially in the first 70 pages of the
story. It is the story of a young girl...more
Whew, this is an amazing book. I started it a while ago and stopped because it was too intense. After reading other enthusiastic reviews I returned to it and I'm glad I did. It all feels so fresh and original. While the world Lanagan has created is a familiar one of fairy, it stands alone--- the language, living, and magic feel completely unique.
How Lanagan pulled off the shifting points of view is impressive. I still can feel and smell and hear what it must have been like to be Bear. While iss...more
How Lanagan pulled off the shifting points of view is impressive. I still can feel and smell and hear what it must have been like to be Bear. While iss...more
4 likes · like · see review
I want to recommend this book to survivors, but I must clarify lest they pick it up thinking my recommendation means it is safe to read. Do not read this without a support system in place, if you have even ever once had a flashback.
The book starts out with an accurate and well-described incest and rape situation involving a young teen and her widower father. It is realistic, not otherworldly, though set in the Middle Ages somewhere. He soon dies, but it's still a very realistic treatment of the...more
The book starts out with an accurate and well-described incest and rape situation involving a young teen and her widower father. It is realistic, not otherworldly, though set in the Middle Ages somewhere. He soon dies, but it's still a very realistic treatment of the...more
Tender Morsels is dark and disturbing... and a fairy tale. The Brothers Grimm would be proud. The story has it all - fairy godmothers, princesses, transmogrification, violence, joy, sadness, death, babies, magic and murder. It is not for the faint of heart.
This is one of the most beautifully written novels I've read this year, the imagery is vivid, the characters have form and emotion, and the plot is complex, and yet, still a fairy story. Lovely.
This is one of the most beautifully written novels I've read this year, the imagery is vivid, the characters have form and emotion, and the plot is complex, and yet, still a fairy story. Lovely.
5 likes · like · see review
This has gotten fantastic reviews, but I think it's horribly overwritten. In addition, the only people reading this, as far as I can tell, are librarians. I've talked three teens into checking it out, and the farthest any of them made was halfway through.
Cross-posted from my blog E.M.Reads.
After 200 pages of Tender Morsels I just can't continue. I mean I'm half way there and I just can't plow through. I'm searching for the plausible chain of events that binds the plot. I understand that this is fantasy and plausibility isn't exactly necessary, but I need to be able to tie together these events with some semblance of belief. After 200 pages I just feel disconnected from the story. I'm sure in the last 50 pages Ms. Lanagan will tie all of the bea...more
After 200 pages of Tender Morsels I just can't continue. I mean I'm half way there and I just can't plow through. I'm searching for the plausible chain of events that binds the plot. I understand that this is fantasy and plausibility isn't exactly necessary, but I need to be able to tie together these events with some semblance of belief. After 200 pages I just feel disconnected from the story. I'm sure in the last 50 pages Ms. Lanagan will tie all of the bea...more
8 likes · like · see review
I really enjoyed this book.
The lush, vivid language is immersive. It has some beautiful paragraphs that really set you in the world.
The characters are flawed and multifaceted while being credible. Their speech is appropriate to their education and setting while being eminently readable. People learn from their past experiences – and how rare is that – and their journey shown. Interactions are true to life.
There is a beautiful sibling relationship shown. For a YA book it is important to be show...more
The lush, vivid language is immersive. It has some beautiful paragraphs that really set you in the world.
The characters are flawed and multifaceted while being credible. Their speech is appropriate to their education and setting while being eminently readable. People learn from their past experiences – and how rare is that – and their journey shown. Interactions are true to life.
There is a beautiful sibling relationship shown. For a YA book it is important to be show...more
1 like · like · see review
I have to admit that the thing that first attracted me to this book was the wonderful cover art. However, for once, it appears that I was right to judge a book by its cover. Tender Morsels is a retelling of the Snow White and Rose Red story and, as fairytales go, it is decidedly of the Brothers Grimm variety, dark, vivid and brutal, so do not expect it to be full of sunshine, rainbows and unicorns.
When we meet the main character, Liga, she is 13 years old, living with her father in a lonely hut...more
15 likes · like · see review
So far, it is horrible. By page 50, the main character has been raped multiple times by at least six different men, one being her father. She has been pregnant two different times, both her father's children.
After I wrote this review, I tried to continue but just couldn't. I didn't finish the book - I stopped on page 83. If someone actually gets through it and likes it, let me know!
After I wrote this review, I tried to continue but just couldn't. I didn't finish the book - I stopped on page 83. If someone actually gets through it and likes it, let me know!
I've liked Lanagan's short story collections, BLACK JUICE and RED SPIKES in particular, but they've never aroused as much of a visceral reaction in me as they seem to in other people, but this one is a different story. It started off a bit tedious for me, but grew on me as I read, and by the end, I was sure I was reading one of the best books of the year--perhaps *THE* best.
The words and phrasings flow through this book much like the title implies, like tender morsels of the most bitter pain imaginable, the greatest joy a heart can experience, the sweetest hurts of the heart and the sense experiences that accompany the magic and reality of being human.
I read this book slower than I've ever read any. The reasons varied: at times the narrative got stuck for me (but much like flies get stuck to honey), the plotline too painful to read quickly or too lovely not to stop...more
I read this book slower than I've ever read any. The reasons varied: at times the narrative got stuck for me (but much like flies get stuck to honey), the plotline too painful to read quickly or too lovely not to stop...more
2 likes · like · see review
This is a rich, visceral novel, that taps into the primal essence of humanity that we find at the heart of every folk fairy tale, and fleshes it out into a fully-fledged masterpiece.
It's not necessarily for the faint-hearted... but the faint-hearted could probably learn a lot from reading it. :)
It's not necessarily for the faint-hearted... but the faint-hearted could probably learn a lot from reading it. :)
Alright. I initially wanted to read this for two reasons:
1. The cover.
2. Something light to read between the expanses of Infinite Jest.
But mostly the cover. And I was not disappointed in that regard. There are lots of bear hugs and cuddling in Tender Morsels. But the delight of that was kind of ruined when, you know, you find out the bear you're hugging is a man from the real-world who is only trying to fumble at your skirts in his new bear-form.
What?
Before I get to that, there are other things...more
1. The cover.
2. Something light to read between the expanses of Infinite Jest.
But mostly the cover. And I was not disappointed in that regard. There are lots of bear hugs and cuddling in Tender Morsels. But the delight of that was kind of ruined when, you know, you find out the bear you're hugging is a man from the real-world who is only trying to fumble at your skirts in his new bear-form.
What?
Before I get to that, there are other things...more
4 likes · like · see review
Molested by her father, gang raped by her peers, Liga wishes for death but instead find herself delivered to a magical haven, safe from all sexual violence. But as she raises her two daughters there, overlaps begin to appear between her world and the one she's left. Tender Morsels is a brave, beautiful, but not untroubled book. In the line of McKinley's Deerskin, it manages to do what most novels are better off not even trying: combine rape and fantasy, without distorting one or diluting the oth...more
Tender Morsels is a hard book to review. I wanted to like it sooo much! After all, I like the writing, the world Margo Lanagan created, the magic and even the disquieting nature of the story. I've always had a fascination with the older, more violent and more disturbing versions of Grimms fairytales, so this book seemed to be right up my alley. Unfortunately, it had too many issues for me to over look.
What comes to mind, first and foremost is the fact that this book is geared towards young adul...more
What comes to mind, first and foremost is the fact that this book is geared towards young adul...more
12 likes · like · see review
Eh, fine. I had high hopes for this one, and I found the reading of it a bit disappointing. This book should have suited me to a tee with my love for fairy tales, retellings, and fantasy-shading-to-horror; but it fell rather flat.
While I liked how Lanagan trimmed and embroidered the tale of Snow White and Rose Red to suit herself, some of the details she changed seemed inexplicable. Sure, Snow White marries her bear prince, but it was her mother who spent the book in love with him? The book ends...more
While I liked how Lanagan trimmed and embroidered the tale of Snow White and Rose Red to suit herself, some of the details she changed seemed inexplicable. Sure, Snow White marries her bear prince, but it was her mother who spent the book in love with him? The book ends...more
Summary: Liga Longfield has been through hell. So when she stumbles upon her own personal heaven, she doesn’t ask questions. But her heaven isn’t as isolated as she thought. Will she have to face her hell again?
Review: This Printz Honor Book is not for the squeamish. I didn’t read much about the book before starting it, and the cover led me to believe it was going to be fairy tale-ish.
It does contain magic, but this book also deals with some pretty heavy topics. Incest, rape—happy little things...more
Review: This Printz Honor Book is not for the squeamish. I didn’t read much about the book before starting it, and the cover led me to believe it was going to be fairy tale-ish.
It does contain magic, but this book also deals with some pretty heavy topics. Incest, rape—happy little things...more
After enduring many unspeakable cruelties, Liga is granted a magical safe haven to live in and raise her two daughters. They live in this alternate reality free from anyone or anything cruel or unkind. Others begin to find ways of entering this magic haven and soon the barrier between the two worlds begins to break.
I heard so much praise about this book that I was very eager to read it. Unfortunately, this book turned out to be one that I did not enjoy at all and really probably should have stop...more
I heard so much praise about this book that I was very eager to read it. Unfortunately, this book turned out to be one that I did not enjoy at all and really probably should have stop...more
7 likes · like · see review
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| the ending-- poor Liga? | 7 | 86 | Dec 30, 2008 04:15pm |
Margo Lanagan, born in Waratah, New South Wales, is an Australian writer of short stories and young adult fiction.
Many of her books, including YA fiction, were only published in Australia. Recently, several of her books have attracted worldwide attention. Her short story collection Black Juice won two World Fantasy Awards. It was published in Australia by Allen & Unwin and the United Kingdom b...more
More about Margo Lanagan...
Many of her books, including YA fiction, were only published in Australia. Recently, several of her books have attracted worldwide attention. Her short story collection Black Juice won two World Fantasy Awards. It was published in Australia by Allen & Unwin and the United Kingdom b...more
Share This Book
6 trivia questions
More quizzes & trivia...
“You are pure-hearted, Branza, and lovely, and you have never done a moment's wrong. But you are a living creature, born to make a real life, however it cracks your heart. However sweet that other place was, it was not real. It was an artifact of your mam's imagination; it was a dream of hers and a desire; you could not have stayed there forever and called yourself alive. Now you are in the true world, and a great deal more is required of you. Here you must befriend real wolves, and lure real birds down from the sky. Here you must endure real people around you, and we are not uniformly kind; we are damaged and impulsive, each in our own way. It is harder. It is not safe. But it is what you were born to. (357)”
—
21 people liked it
“There is something about talking in the night, with the shreds of sleep around your ears, with the silences between one remark and another, the town dark and dreaming beyond your own walls. It draws the truth out of you, straight from its little dark pool down there, where usually you guard it so careful, and wave your hands over it and hum and haw to protect people's feelings, to protect your own . . . You can bring out the jaggedest feelings - if you are my wife and know how to state them calm - into the night quiet. They will float there for consideration, harming no one.”
—
12 people liked it
More quotes…
