Pay the Piper by Jane Yolen and Adam Stemple

Pay the Piper is "A Rock 'n' Roll Fairy Tale" as explained on the front cover. It is a modern take on the Pied Piper of Hamelin that, as the authors state, attempts to answer the "why?" of the Pied Piper story. In Pay the Piper, the piper is part of a rock n roll band with a folk influence (ie the pipe). A teenage girl reporter, at the concert, overhears a key conversation and witnesses rats dancing for the piper. She begins to piece things together, but when all the children disappear on Halloween it is up to her to save the day.

The story is told from two perspectives-- that of the girl and that of the Pied Piper (named Gringas). Gringas' perspective is told through his inner monologue and memories of his past. The text is italicized to indicate this to the reader. Initially, the reader has very little information about the individual with the inner thoughts. It was an effective way to draw me into the story. I was curious to figure out who the character was. Through his inner thoughts, the reader learns the "why" of his fate as the Pied Piper. Simultaneously, the young girl is piecing the clues together herself. I enjoyed the authors' way of conveying the back story to me. Each time Gringas had a thought, I was able to put a little more of the puzzle together-- much like the heroine of the story.

While the story didn't really feel like a fairy tale, the depiction of teenage girls and family dynamics was interesting. As a backdrop to the mystery of the book, the girl deals with over-bearing parents, an annoying little brother, and she has an assortment of comical friends. She even has a teenage crush. So, while the story of the Pied Piper is unfolding, I also laughed at the modern teenage drama depicted in the book.

Since many traditional tales include weak female characters, I appreciated that the teenage girl was smarter than everyone else-- even the 800 year old Gringas. She didn't ask for any guy's help, she solved the curse dooming Gringas as the Pied Piper, and took action to save all of the kids in town. While the author's proclaim Pay the Piper as a fairy tale, I am unsure as to whether it really is. It seems more like fantasy to me. But, hopefully I'll be able to figure it all out for sure in a few weeks when we learn about fantasy. :)

I have one major beef with the authors. They quoted what they said was the earliest account in their author notes at the beginning of the book, but I found no bibliography to back it up. Additionally, there were no source notes or references included anywhere to indicate that their assertions about the story's origins and scholarly theories were based on something.

I have definitely never read another book like this one.