<DIV><b>Once upon a time, fairy tales were grim.</b><br> <br> Cinderella’s stepsisters got their eyes pecked out by birds.<br> <br> Rumpelstiltskin ripped himself in half.<br> <br> And in a tale called ?The Mouse, the Bird, and the Sausage,” a mouse, a bird, and a sausage all talk to each other. Yes, the sausage talks. (Okay, I guess that one’s not that grim?)<br> <br> Those are the real fairy tales.<br> <br> But they have nothing on the story I’m about to tell.<br> <br> This is the darkest fairy tale of all. Also, it is the weirdest. And the bloodiest.<br> <br> It is the grimmest tale I have ever heard.<br> <br> And I am sharing it with you.<br> <br> Two children venture through forests, flee kingdoms, face ogres and demons and monsters, and, ultimately, find their way home. Oh yes, and they may die. Just once or twice. <br> <br> That’s right. Fairy tales<br> Are<br> Awesome. <br></div>