Rapunzel by Paul O. Zelinsky

Bibliography

Zelinsky, Paul O. Rapunzel. New York: Dutton Children's Books, 1997.

ISBN 0525456074

Plot Summary

          A classic tale of love and loss, “Rapunzel” is retold and illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky. The story involves the circumstances produced when a father is caught by the sorceress stealing rapunzel from her garden.  He tells the sorceress that this wife will die if she does not have this herb.  The sorceress agrees to allow him to leave with the rapunzel if he, in turn, agrees to give her their child.  The husband agrees, and on the day the child is born, the sorceress claims her.  The child, named Rapunzel after the forbidden food, is kept a prisoner in a tower until one day love finds her.  The prince figures out a way to reach his true love when he sees the method of climbing the tower the sorceress uses.  Once he can reach Rapunzel, will they live happily ever after, or will the sorceress doom their love?

Critical Analysis

          Paul O. Zelinsky, retells and illustrates the traditional fairy tale, “Rapunzel” by retaining its familiar plot and theme but in a meaningful way.  His variant enchants children and intrigues the older reader.

          Zelinsky stays close to the original tale in his retold plot by having Rapunzel taken by a sorceress as payment for her father’s theft.  Rapunzel is kept at the mercy of that sorceress until she outwits her and is punished.  The resolution of the plot involves Rapunzel’s true love unrealistically surviving a fall and wandering as a blind man into Rapunzel’s exact location in a “wild country,” a happy ending that fairy tales characteristically possess.

          The theme of “Rapunzel” is traditional: good triumphing over evil.  The sorceress denies Rapunzel a normal life and fate provides one.  What was meant for retribution ends in reunion.

          It is Zelinsky’s descriptive powers and his illustrations which enrich the tale and deserve recognition.  Such passages as “The herb looked so luxuriant, so green and thick and fresh” play into his use of Italian Renaissance illustrations.  The rich colors and historically accurate details of the characters’ clothing and hair, the furniture and architecture, and the landscapes engage and educate the reader.  Both the language and the pictures provide a sense of humanity for the reader.  For example, there is a large illustration of the sorceress who “rose up before him” as the husband is on his knees reaching to steal the herb.  This picture’s use of facial expression and of swirling aqua color on a black cape makes emotion visible.  The portrait of the royal family on the last page is in a familiar Renaissance arrangement, one that blends story and art into a satisfying new variant of an old tale.      

          In a note to the reader about the literary tradition from which “Rapunzel” arose, Zelinsky speaks about his efforts in saying, “It would please me if my pictures served in some measure to spur an interest in the magnificent art from which I have drawn.  My great hope, of course, is that this book may give pleasure to readers in and of itself.”

Review Excerpt(s)

Winner of the 1998 Caldecott Medal

"Suffused with golden light, Zelinsky's landscapes and indoor scenes are grandly evocative, composed and executed with  superb technical and emotional command." - KIRKUS REVIEWS

"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." – HORN BOOK

“breathtaking interpretation of a favorite fairy tale” – PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

“uses dramatic images to express powerful emotions and depicts one specific era in rich detail” –SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL

Connections

·        Exposure to Italian Renaissance art.  Use several paintings of portraits and landscapes from Botticelli, Raphael, Titian, etc.  Note characteristics.  Hold up other paintings – ask if each is Italian Renaissance or not and why.

See: http://www.italian-renaissance-art.com

·        Build towers of different kinds (or just make a drawing) (Legos, tinker toys, blocks, cardboard, etc.)  Have students create two characters, human, animal, or natural forces, which they describe on separate 3x5 cards.  All cards are put in a box.  Each student draws two cards and writes a story which fits one of the kinds of towers and his characters.

·        Geography/History

Famous towers – Which? Where? When? Its history?

(ex: Twin Towers, Pisa, Babel, Eiffel, and Big Ben)

·        Compare/contrast skills:

Disney’s “Tangled”

Another culture’s variant (or two)

·        Writing – Whatever happened to the Sorceress?

The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs! by Jon Scieszka

Bibliography

Scieszka, Jon. The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs. Ill. by Lane Smith.  New York, N.Y., U.S.A.: Viking Kestrel, 1989.

ISBN 0140544518

Plot Summary

This retelling of the fairy tale, “The Tree Little Pigs,” by Jon Scieszka and illustrated by Lane Smith gives a wise-cracking wolf a chance to set the story straight.  He was framed!  What really happened was so mundane that Alexander Wolf maintains newspaper reporters spiced up his story with motive and malice.  This betrayal of his innocent quest for a cup of sugar makes him, in his humble opinion, the victim in it all.  Read to see how the switch is accomplished – it’s a cup of fun!

Critical Analysis

Jon Scieszka’s recast of the traditional “Three Pigs” beast tale “in which animals act and talk like humans” (Vardell 88) is a witty take on the stock characters of good and evil.  The role reversal of the wolf as an innocent victim of newspaper reporters and portraying the pigs as stupid and, in the case of the third pig, insulting to women make for anticipation on the part of readers and/or listeners as to just what “really happened.”

The wolf reveals, during his innocent quest for a cup of sugar to bake his granny a birthday cake, how un-neighborly the pigs were and how the destruction of the first two pigs’ homes was only a result of a seriously unhealthy sneeze.  The fact that the pigs were also eaten is attributed to the wolf’s economical belief in not wasting “a perfectly good ham dinner.”  The wolf appeals to the reader/listener by addressing him directly with commands, admonitions, and questions.  The third pig, or “that rude little porker,” suffered the wolf’s ire when he insulted the wolf’s granny; otherwise, the wolf was going to leave to buy a card instead of bake a cake. 

This imaginative turn on the plot involves a quest and quick action.  It creates a sense of injustice for children to examine.  Since pre-knowledge of the plot is essential to appreciation of Scieszka’s retelling, children will sense that the wolf really is trying to fool the reader because he’s a wolf, a “big, bad” one in their recollection, not a vivacious vulpine or innocent, birthday-cake baker.

          Scieszka’s style maintains the structure of the traditional version with all of its repeated elements, such as the structural elements of the pigs’ houses, but it plays with the accepted ethic and universal truths of good over evil.  The wolf is saying he’s been “framed,” a concept that older children might understand more than younger ones.  Being framed implies injustice, and the words the wolf is saying don’t match his actions.  Eating the pigs in order to not allow meat to “spoil” will seem jarring in an ethical universe. 

          Lane Smith has provided illustration which portrays the wolf a cultured, bespectacled grandson.  The picture involving the sneezes help the reader see that the wolf’s defense isn’t exactly right because they are so destructive.  Nobody can sneeze that hard!  The wolf’s small eyes seem to deny innocence also since beady eyes aren’t associated with telling the truth.  The pigs, on the other hand, are illustrated mostly in edible pieces, such as arms, legs, and derrieres.  The only moral illustration is at the end when the police pig has a very stern face when he sees the wolf potentially victimizing the reader by asking him for a cup of sugar.

Review Excerpt(s)

Black-Eyed Susan Book Award (Maryland) (1991)

Flicker Tale Children’s Book Award (North Dakota) (1991)

#35 of the Top 100 Picture Books –SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL

"Older kids (and adults) will find very funny." - SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL

"Designed with uncommon flair" – PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

Connections

·        Point of View in literature (adapt the lesson to the intended age group)

Have students use another character’s viewpoint in a traditional fairy tale.  Some possibilities: “Hansel and Gretel” from the witch’s viewpoint or “Princess and the Pea” from the prince’s mother’s viewpoint.

·        Puns and Word Play Lesson

a. Find them in the book

b. Using a teacher-generated list of puns and play on words which are age-appropriate, students try their hand at writing a story incorporating their choice(s) from the list.

·        Oral Connections

Students create masks to dramatize Scieszka’s variant.  The teacher reads as the children act.

·        Read Jon Scieszka’s other book in the same vein: “The Frog Prince CONTINUED.”

Sources

Vardell, Sylvia M. Children's Literature in Action: A Librarian's Guide, Second ed. (Santa Barbara: Libraries Unlimited, 2014).

The First Strawberries: A Cherokee Story by Joseph Bruchac

Bibliography

Bruchac, Joseph. The First Strawberries: A Cherokee Story. Ill. by Anna Vojtech. New York: Dial Books for Young Readers, 1993.

ISBN 0803713320

Plot Summary

In this Native American folktale, “The First Strawberries: A Cherokee Story,” spoken by the Cherokee people and retold by Joseph Bruchac and illustrated by Anna Vojtech, a husband speaks harshly to his wife.  The wife feels wounded and decides to leave.  Realizing his mistake, the husband goes after his wife, but to no avail; he can’t catch up to her.  The sun, sympathetic to the husband’s plight, tries to help reunite the couple.  Using his light, the sun attempts to slow the wife down by helping to grow delicious, tempting berries.  Will the husband catch up in time?  Would the wife forgive him if he did?  What will the berries symbolize in the story when telling it to others?

Critical Analysis

“The First Strawberries” is a Native American folktale retold by Joseph Bruchac and illustrated by Anna Vojtech.  It is a simple and timeless expression of relationships meant for sharing the values of apology and forgiveness involving misinterpreted actions.         

          The plot is simple yet speaks to children because life at home may sometimes become tense and strained.  Motives and actions can be misconstrued and result in conflict, either silent or noisy.  Since children are sensitive to justice issues, they will pick up on the misjudgment between the husband and wife, especially when the wife responds to angry words in kind and turns her back to leave.  Children do that, too.

          The setting is the simple, rural environment of the Native American.  It is not a moving force for the plot; it simply provides the context for the characters.  The wife is strong character who acts upon the perceived injustice, however misguided it is.  The husband is strong in his way also in that he immediately tells the Sun that he was “foolish to speak angry words.”  He shows not only strength, but a heart that doesn’t believe his mouth.

          The motif of “threes” is familiar to children.  Bruchac highlights the Sun’s efforts by citing the raspberries, the blueberries, and the blackberries, none of which catch the wife’s attention.  Strawberries, the Sun’s “hardest” effort, stops her in her tracks.  “They glowed like fire in the grass,” a phrase used to symbolize the anger which will dissolve into sweetness and forgiveness when picked and eaten.

          The simplicity of the tale hides profound meaning which can be stirred in children by the watercolors Vojtech contribute to the tale.  The mood of the soft watercolors invites the reader to anticipate all will go well with the husband and wife’s relationship.  Even as the wife walks away, she goes toward the soft yellow light of the Sun in the upper right corner of the page.  The Sun, as a representation of the light of reconciliation, plays the role of solution-provider, thus the creation of the strawberry and the tale. 

          The use of jagged line in the softly executed pictures symbolizes the hurt feelings and strained relationship.  The jagged leaf edges, hair, and tunic fringes remain in almost every illustration and until the couple is shown together holding the strawberries in their hands.  The illustrations are also culturally authentic in their portrayal of Cherokee appearance.

          Vardell mentions that “. . . we look for thematic value, for meaningfulness, for satisfying closure, and we’re leery of messages that moralize or over power the story itself” (60).  Bruchac has retold this folktale without a hint of didacticism.  He has presented a values lesson with sensitivity and creativity.

Review Excerpt(s) 

1993 New York Times Outstanding Children's Book of the Year

"Spare text, an uncomplicated story line and gentle illustrations keep this quiet but resonant tale accessible to even the youngest child." – PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

“Complete harmony of text and pictures: altogether lovely.” –KIRKUS REVIEWS

Connections

·        Acts of kindness.  Pay It Forward Week.  Children try to be kind to a pre-determined number of people and not be discovered in doing their kindnesses.  Example: pick up their rooms or do something without being asked.  At the end of the week, ask the children to write about their experiences.

·        Read other tales in which forces of nature, such as the wind or the trees, are main characters.  Children are more familiar with animals being like people, than nature.  One that is especially moving is the traditional folktale retold by Angela Elwell Hunt and illustrated by Tim Jonke, “The Tale of Three Trees.”  It is in the category of religious stories and tells the Christian salvation story in terms of anthropormorphic trees.

Sources

Vardell, Sylvia M. Children's Literature in Action: A Librarian's Guide, Second ed. (Santa Barbara: Libraries Unlimited, 2014). 60.