"Once upon a time" takes on a whole new meaning in David LaRochelle's hilarious backwards collaboration with Caldecott winner Richard Egielski.

"...And they lived happily ever after."

So begins David LaRochelle and Richard Egielski's wacky original fairy tale THE END, which traces the courtship of a handsome knight and a beautiful princess . . . backwards! Before you reach the beginning, you'll meet a temperamental giant, a beleaguered cook, a dragon who's scared of bunny rabbits, an oversized tomato, and an impish figure on a flying pig who just might be the cause of all the madness. It's a conventionally perfect and perfectly unconventional take on the fairy tale -- guaranteed to convert the Grimmest reader to giggles.