Traditional Literature

Rapunzel
by Paul O. Zelinsky

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Zelinsky, Paul O. 1997. RAPUNZEL. Ill. by Paul O. Zelinsky. New York: Penguin Books. ISBN 0-525-45607-4.

PLOT SUMMARY
This classic tale begins with a married couple deeply in love that had finally conceived after many years of trying. The wife had cravings for the rapunzel that grew in a sorceress' garden. This sorceress found the husband stealing the herb, and insisted that he give her the infant when she was born. The sorceress took the baby, named Rapunzel, to live with her and put her in a tower in her teen years. The only entrance into the tower was gained by Rapunzel letting down her hair and allowing someone to climb up the hair into the tower. A prince wandering by learned of this secret entrance one day, and he and Rapunzel secretly married. Soon she became pregnant. When the sorceress found out, she chopped off her hair and cast the pregnant Rapunzel into the wilderness. The prince was pushed out of the tower window by the evil sorceress and became blind. He wandered into the wilderness where he found Rapunzel, whose tears healed his blindness, and his twin children. The family made its way back to the prince's kingdom and lived happily ever after.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS
I will admit that I do not remember much about the Rapunzel tale I was told as a child, but this tale surprised me in many ways. It does not seem appropriate for elementary-aged children, though it was found in my school library. Pregnancy was introduced in the book by the women's clothes growing tighter. Rapunzel's parents did not seem very upset about giving up their only child, and they were not mentioned again. The prince was pushed out of the window of the tall tower, but was not killed. In true fairy tale fashion, his blindness was cured by the tears of his true love. The ending was also a fairy tale ending, complete with the marriage to royalty and a perfect family. Zelinsky chose elements from Grimm's version as well as older version of the tale in order to compose this adaptation. The pictures in the book are beautiful paintings with vivid color and exceptional detail. The characters' clothing alone captures the detail of billowing robes and silks. It is truly beautiful to look at.


REVIEW EXCERPTS
Kirkus Reviews: "Grandly evocative, composed and executed with superb technical and emotional command."
Horn Book: "Simply put, this is a gorgeous book; it demonstrates respect for the traditions of painting and the fairy tale while at the same time adhering to a singular, wholly original, artistic vision."
Winner - Caldecott Medal, 1998

CONNECTIONS
This book can be read along with other versions of "Rapunzel" and used as a tool for comparing/ contrasting characters and events throughout the variants of the tales.
"Rapunzel" Grimm's Fairy Tales
Disney's Tangled (Book and movie)
"Rapunzel and Other Maiden in the Tower Tales from Around the World (SurLaLune Fairy Tale Series)" by Heidi Anne Heiner