The Bookseller reports children’s graphic novel publisher Papercutz have acquired the rights to Scottish duo Metaphrog’s “Bluebeard: A Feminist Fairy Tale.” The retelling of the dark fairy tale, which will distributed in the UK by Diamond, will be published in the US and UK on May 5, 2020.
Metaphrog, which consists of artist Sandra Marrs and writer John Chalmers, commented “’Bluebeard’ is one of the darkest fairy tales and resonated with us when we were children because of this darkness. It felt necessary to create a feminist retelling and so we developed our heroine’s backstory to highlight her struggles in the patriarchy. We hope the result is a compelling, suspenseful read. ‘Bluebeard’ is seldom seen in children’s books nowadays and has never been adapted into a graphic novel, and we wanted our version to appeal to adults and children alike.”
This is the third fairy tale adaptation by the Eisner Award-nominated team at Papercutz, following “The Red Shoes and Other Tales,” and “The Little Mermaid.” The 176-page book has already received advanced praise, including from “The Walking Dead” artist Charlie Adlard, who has called it “perfect in every way.” You can read the official synopsis for the book before its release in May below:
“Award-winning duo Metaphrog transform the classic folktale into a feminist fairy tale, about the blossoming of a young child to womanhood striving for independence. Eve spends an idyllic childhood of long summer days with her sweetheart Tom, and together they dream of exploring the world. But that dream is soon shattered as she comes of age. The mysterious Bluebeard is looking for a new bride and has his sights set on Eve, and rumour has it that his former wives have all disappeared. What will Eve find in the castle beyond the enchanted forest? A forbidden chamber, a golden key and the most terrifying secret, take on a new life in this gothic graphic novel.”
