Review
It's starting to get a little taxing to think of more adjectives to describe the fabulous work of illustrator Trina Schart Hyman. I think the best thing I can say here is that her work on fairy tales (Little Red Riding Hood, The Sleeping Beauty) is distinctly NOT cutesy - something that I think is hugely important. There are a handful of contemporary illustrators who 'get' this - Kinuko Craft and Gennady Spirin come right to mind. I've got nothing against cuteness – in fact I enjoy it in its place. But these are epic, sweeping tales full of archetypes and weighty themes. It blunts and diminishes them somehow to pair them with silly and benign illustrations.
Rapunzel is probably one of the most uncomfortable fairy tales a parent (especially a mother) can share with a child. (Donkeyskin is the father equivalent, but its premise is really so abhorrent that I don’t imagine it will ever be fully adapted for a picture book) Anyway, Rapunzel’s birth mother trades her only daughter to sate an impulsive craving. Next the adoptive mother is a controlling hag intent upon suppressing and hiding her daughter's emerging sexuality from the world. But 'it' will tumble out of tower windows and make itself attractive and accessible to any old prince who happens to wander by!
Which leads me to a teeny quibble about this version - there are two typical ways in which Rapunzel reveals her secret to Mother Gothel. In this (and most other children's adaptations) she slips and mentions her prince in passing. In others, however, Rapunzel innocently mentions one day that her dress is getting tight. Well, what did you think they were doing up in that tower room day after day? Or, perhaps he was bringing her chocolates. But seriously, I do get why some might want to gloss over this little moment, but then one has to wonder how on earth Rapunzel ends up with twin babies at the end of the story. Perhaps you could say the stork brings babies to fat ladies as a consolation for outgrowing their clothes. No matter, I’ve only seen one picture book version so far which had the cojones to go the tight dress route and it’s awesome.
But, back to the art here… in this story it’s all about the hair and boy does Hyman deliver. It’s portrayed as a swirling, tangled mess with a mind of its own – beautiful, but also no small burden. How apt is that? I just love how Hyman’s super detailed style captures both the mundane and the fantastical all at once. She also somehow really imbues her characters with personalities. One that really stands out to me is how she portrayed the mother in The Sleeping Beauty – a character so often overlooked rendered immediately and intimately relatable. Here, Rapunzel has the childish, awkward, almost daft look of a young lady who’s been sheltered and locked up in a tower her entire life. If I had to pick only one version to share with a child (and thankfully I don't) this might be the one I'd pick.
Rapunzel is probably one of the most uncomfortable fairy tales a parent (especially a mother) can share with a child. (Donkeyskin is the father equivalent, but its premise is really so abhorrent that I don’t imagine it will ever be fully adapted for a picture book) Anyway, Rapunzel’s birth mother trades her only daughter to sate an impulsive craving. Next the adoptive mother is a controlling hag intent upon suppressing and hiding her daughter's emerging sexuality from the world. But 'it' will tumble out of tower windows and make itself attractive and accessible to any old prince who happens to wander by!
Which leads me to a teeny quibble about this version - there are two typical ways in which Rapunzel reveals her secret to Mother Gothel. In this (and most other children's adaptations) she slips and mentions her prince in passing. In others, however, Rapunzel innocently mentions one day that her dress is getting tight. Well, what did you think they were doing up in that tower room day after day? Or, perhaps he was bringing her chocolates. But seriously, I do get why some might want to gloss over this little moment, but then one has to wonder how on earth Rapunzel ends up with twin babies at the end of the story. Perhaps you could say the stork brings babies to fat ladies as a consolation for outgrowing their clothes. No matter, I’ve only seen one picture book version so far which had the cojones to go the tight dress route and it’s awesome.
But, back to the art here… in this story it’s all about the hair and boy does Hyman deliver. It’s portrayed as a swirling, tangled mess with a mind of its own – beautiful, but also no small burden. How apt is that? I just love how Hyman’s super detailed style captures both the mundane and the fantastical all at once. She also somehow really imbues her characters with personalities. One that really stands out to me is how she portrayed the mother in The Sleeping Beauty – a character so often overlooked rendered immediately and intimately relatable. Here, Rapunzel has the childish, awkward, almost daft look of a young lady who’s been sheltered and locked up in a tower her entire life. If I had to pick only one version to share with a child (and thankfully I don't) this might be the one I'd pick.
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