Rump by Leisl Shurtliff

I quite enjoyed this book. I sat down and read the book pretty much one sitting. It kept my attention and was a lot of fun. I read a lot of J fiction to look for books to test out on children. This is definitely one I will test out on the children in my life!

I found, as I was reading this, that I nodded in agreement as I went, "Ah yes, that makes perfect sense!" Liesl Shurtliff fills in the holes that are missing in this fairy tale.

The Goodreads website sums up the story as:

In a magical kingdom where your name is your destiny, 12-year-old Rump is the butt of everyone's joke. But when he finds an old spinning wheel, his luck seems to change. Rump discovers he has a gift for spinning straw into gold. His best friend, Red Riding Hood, warns him that magic is dangerous, and she’s right. With each thread he spins, he weaves himself deeper into a curse.

To break the spell, Rump must go on a perilous quest, fighting off pixies, trolls, poison apples, and a wickedly foolish queen. The odds are against him, but with courage and friendship—and a cheeky sense of humor—he just might triumph in the end

I loved how the story defined a rump and a stiltskin. I loved the fairies and the trolls. I loved how he had an ache to spin. I love the focus on names and how important a name is. And I loved how sometimes we get our destiny wrong and don't really realize all our potential.