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Tinder (Moments in History) Paperback – December 1, 2015

by Sally Gardner (Author), David Roberts (Illustrator)

4.4 109 ratings

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Otto Hundebiss is tired of war, but when he defies Death he walks a dangerous path. A half-beast half-man gives him shoes and dice which will lead him deep into a web of dark magic and mystery. He meets the beautiful Safire—pure of heart and spirit—as well as the scheming Mistress Jabber and the terrifying Lady of the Nail. He learns the powers of the tinderbox and the wolves whose master he becomes. But will all the riches in the world bring him the thing he most desires? Fairy tales are often the cruelest stories of all; in this exquisite novel Sally Gardner writes about great love and great loss.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Tinder explores addiction, passion, greed, love & psychological injuries of war. It is another jewel in Gardner's crown." —Times

"Gardner follows up her Costa-Carnegie double with an exquisite reworking of The Tinderbox fairytale, as dark and captivating as you would hope." —Bookseller

"A powerful blend of timeslip fantasy, science fiction and coming of age novel, its central theme is memory and the part it plays in constructing who we are." —School Librarian

About the Author

Sally Gardner is an award-winning novelist from London. Her books have been translated into 22 languages. She is the author of The Boy with the Lightning Feet, The Little Nut Tree, and Maggot Moon, which won both the Caregie Medal and Costa Award. David Roberts is a hugely successful illustrator who has illustrated books by Philip Ardagh, Julia Donaldson, Jacqueline Wilson, and Chris Priestley. He's also the creator of Dirty Bertie.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Orion Children's Books; Reprint edition (December 1, 2015)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 352 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1780621485
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1780621487
Reading age ‏ : ‎ 12 years and up
Grade level ‏ : ‎ 7 and up
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.15 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.75 x 7.75 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #3,270,221 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #4,140 in Teen & Young Adult Fairy Tales & Folklore
- #26,143 in Children's Folk Tales & Myths (Books)
- #36,668 in Children's Fantasy & Magic Books

Customer Reviews:
4.4 109 ratings

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4.4 out of 5

109 global ratings

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Amy G.

GREAT BOOK

Reviewed in the United States on March 14, 2018

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I saw this book in a store in Italy and had no idea what it was about because it was in Italian. I looked it up and read a synopsis and it sounded interesting. I am so glad I went ahead and got it!! I read it in 3 days because I could not put it down. It is a smaller story and geared towards kids/young adult, but it is extremely interesting and beautifully written. Gardner created an enchanting story that lingers in my mind to this day. I have re-read it and still am captivated by the story. The illustrations are lovely as well!

Reviewed in the United States on November 10, 2015

Amazing!!

Reviewed in the United States on June 26, 2015

Deliciously creepy.

Fairy tales are often the cruellest stories of all indeed

Reviewed in the United States on December 5, 2015

I didn't buy this one from Amazon but I have to say the tale it told which took inspiration from Hans Christian Anderson's The Tinderbox is a great modern knock-off. I have completed the dark fairy-tale's journey and left with a mishmash of emotions. This is a good book.

One person found this helpful

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Kristin Yodock

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United States on July 12, 2016

I look this book.

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Top reviews from other countries

Priyanka Barman

GREAT GREAT!!! 🤩✨👍

Reviewed in India on August 11, 2021

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AESTHETIC✨, SPOOKY😰, SCARY😱, INTERESTING😍, I'm in love with this book right now!! So, I'm giving some of my favorite illustrations from this AMAZING NOVEL... Thank you SALLY GARDNER & AMAZON! 🥰💕

One person found this helpful

Mr James E Gamble

Five Stars

Reviewed in Canada on February 3, 2017

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Great book!

Geertje

interesting story, gorgeous illustrations

Reviewed in Germany on November 19, 2014

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Tinder

You know you are reading an adult or young adult book when there are no pictures involved any more. Sally Gardner, who also writes books for children with illustrations, decided to do things a little different when she wrote her adult novel ‘Tinder’. This fairy tale retelling of ‘the tinderbox’ by Hans Christian Andersen is accompanied by beautiful illustrations made by David Roberts. Did this combination leave me with a hunger for more illustrated novels? Let’s find out!

‘Tinder’ tells the story of a soldier named Otto Hundebiss (literally dog-bite in German). During a brutal battle, Otto sees Death walking among the men and decides he has finally had enough: he flees into the forest. There, he meets a half-beast half-man who collects shoes from the dead. He gives Otto a new pair of boots and some magic dice that will tell him where he has to go. During his journey into the forest, Otto meets the daughter of the Duke who rules the neighbouring lands. Safire is accused of being a she-wolf and is hunted upon by the men of the Duke because she has to marry a prince. Otto decides that he will safe her, but how exactly does a deserted soldier go about saving the daughter of a Duke, especially when he has his own demons to battle? This synopsis sounds more light-hearted than the story really is: it contains rape, murder, betrayal and trauma. It is dark and gritty and probably more gruesome than the original fairy tale. Otto is the narrator and through his dreams, we slowly learn more about the events that haunt him and made him into the man he has become.

First and foremost, I must say I really liked the idea of combining an adult novel with illustrations. David Roberts has captured the atmosphere well with his drawings in different shades of black, grey and white. The people he draws are often angular and fit their descriptions. ‘Tinder’ contains illustrations that cover an entire page as well as drawings that only cover up part of the page they are on. This, together with the fond that is quite large, makes ‘Tinder’ a book you can finish quite fast even though the themes it deals with are not easy. Otto is also an interesting character: he has a lot of traumas he needs to deal with and seems bitter at times, yet he remains loyal and determined as well.

Unfortunately, this book also had some weaker aspects. First of all, I feel like Otto and Safire should have been given more time to fall in love. I understand that both were lonely and hurt and quite eager to find someone they could love, but I would have at least liked to read a bit more about their blossoming love. Gardner has only devoted a few words to them falling in love, yet we have to roll with it for the rest of the novel. The story would have been stronger if she had taken her time there a bit more. Second of all, I found that the ending was quite a downer. I think it was unnecessary and I felt a little cheated.

All in all, I quite enjoyed ‘Tinder’. It is a book you can read in a few hours; though devoting a few minutes more to see the gorgeous illustrations is really worth your time. It deals aptly with difficult themes, yet the timing felt a bit off at times and I disliked the ending. I would advise everyone who enjoys fairy tale retellings, is a fan of Sally Gardner or enjoys somewhat creepier stories in general to read this. Stay away if one of your major pet-peeves is insta-love.

Title: Tinder
Author: Sally Gardner
Publisher: Indigo
Pages: 256
ISBN: 1780621493

FAMOUS NAME

A BEAUTIFUL & SUMPTUOUS BOOK!!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 3, 2014

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I don't usually buy hardback books; I find them difficult to hold and rather clumsy, yet when I first saw this in a shop, I was captivated and hypnotized by the title that was etched in the most beautiful dazzling magic metallic red imaginable, that it stuck in my mind, and I came right home and purchased it from here at Amazon!

When I read a book with pictures/illustrations (that isn't a children's book of course) they seldom hold my attention; indeed I hardly notice them at all, and I tend to flick past them, but I found my eyes feasting on the beauty of every single illustration in this rich and beautiful book!

The story is based on the Hans Christian Anderson tale `The Tinder Box', but this has a lot of twists and turns and is simply gripping from start to finish! The artwork is sumptuous, and the quality of the book in general is superb at this awfully and wickedly cheap price! I adore this book and am eager to read it again, and would recommend it to people of all ages! (best read late at night by the light of a lamp for atmosphere!)

jamjar

Storytelling at its best!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 7, 2015

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This is the first book I've read from the 2015 Carnegie Medal shortlist and it didn't disappoint. Based on a classic fairytale by Hans Christian Andersen, it's a story of death, love, jealousy, hate and revenge and is brimming with magic, sorcery, witchcraft and werewolves. The illustrations in the book are amazing and beautifully capture the essence of the characters and the story.

The writing is beautiful too. Some of the phrases Sally uses are breathtaking in their observational capacity and storytelling prowess. As an aspiring writer, I can only hope to be able to write like that one day!

Having sung it's praises, I have a couple of concerns. Firstly, I'm not sure who the target audience is for this book. The shortlist suggests it's for the 11+ age group but it would require an advanced reader to really be able to engage with the storytelling. Secondly, I would have liked Otto to have had to endure more conflict on his journey - it was there but I didn't feel like those scenes were exploited as much as they could have been to raise the tension and stakes as much as possible.

Overall though, I definitely recommend this book as a good read.

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