Guest Post: A reading list of Rapunzel retellings from Kate Forsyth

Todays guest post is kindly provided by Kate Forsyth

I've wanted to do a retelling of the Rapunzel fairytale for a very long time, and so naturally I've read as many different versions of the tale as I could find. I have a shelf full of them! I thought I'd share my favourites with you.

Rapunzel, adapted and illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky

This is a really beautiful picture book version of the Rapunzel fairytale, drawing upon the original Italian setting of the tale. Gorgeous artwork.'For younger children.

Petrosinella: A Neapolitan Rapunzel, retold and illustrated by Diane Stanley

'Petrosinella' was a Maiden in the Tower tale told in the early 1600s by the Neapolitan writer Giambattista Basile. It was later retold by French writer Charlotte-Rose de la Force, and then adapted by the Grimm Brothers. This picture books retells the original Basile story. There are a number of key differences it is Petrosinellas pregnant mother (not her father) who steals the parsley from the ogress, the event that leads to the giving up of the newborn baby. The tower and the impossibly long hair are the same, but in this tale Petrosinella uses three magic acorns to create magical obstacles so she and the prince may escape.
For younger children

The Stone Cage by Nicholas Stuart Grey

I read this book when I was a young girl, and it was one of the first inspirations for my own desire to write a retelling of Rapunzel. It was first published in 1963, three years before I was born, and I borrowed a copy of it from my school library. Many years later, Garth Nix gave me a first edition copy of it for my birthday and it reignited my old wish to retell the tale.

The Stone Cage is still my favourite Rapunzel retelling. It's a children's book, written by one of my all-time favourite children's authors, Nicholas Stuart Gray. Told from the point of view of the witch's cat, it's a magical, funny and romantic story that does not veer from the Grimm version of the tale, but breathes fresh life into it. My only gripe with this book is the character of Rapunzel, who is sweet and rather passive.'For children.

Golden: A Retelling of Rapunzel by Cameron Dokey

This book is part of a whole string of fairytale retellings that Cameron Dokey wrote for the 'Once Upon A Time' series, published by Simon Pulse, an imprint of Simon & Schuster.
Books in the 'Once Upon a Time' series retell fairy tales for a young adult market, usually with some light romance and a fresh take on the story.
Rapunzel, the heroine of Golden, was born bald and stayed bald. Her mother had made a deal with a sorceress called Melisande ' if she could not love her baby just the way she was, she would give her baby up. The inevitable happens, and she gives up her daughter to the sorceress. When Rapunzel is sixteen, Melisande reveals to her that she has another daughter, Rue, who was cursed long ago by a wizard. Rue and Rapunzel had two nights and the day that falls between to break the curse but only if they can learn to work together.'For young adults.

Zel by Donna Jo Napoli

Zel is my second favourite retelling of the Rapunzel fairytale. Donna Jo Napoli is a sensitive and imaginative writer, and she is faithful to the essential plot of the Grimm version of the story. 'She deals well with Zel's horror at being locked in the tower, and the romance is beautifully done.'For young adults.

The Tower Room by Adele Geras

This is the first novel in a trilogy of books that loosely retell favourite fairytales in the setting of a 1960s English girls' school. It tells the story of Megan who, with her two best friends, are given the tower room as their dormitory. Megan falls in love with Simon, the young science teacher, and he climbs the scaffolding to seduce her. The headmistress, who is also Megan's guardian, is in love with Simon herself. When she discovers their affair, she sacks him and expels Megan, and the two young lovers have to find some way to survive. In the end, Megan cuts off her long hair, leaves Simon, and goes back to school. It is an interesting use of the key motifs of the Rapunzel fairy tale ' tower, illicit love, long hair, angry mother-figure ' in a 1960s setting.'For young adults.

'The Tale of the Hair' by Emma Donoghue

'The Tale of the Hair' is a short story in Emma Donoghue's collection of lesbian fairytale retellings, Kissing the Witch. Emma Donoghue's stories are unsettling and subversive. In this story, the heroine is blind and has withdrawn from the world to an old stone tower. The old woman who guards her loves her and tries to make her happy. In the end, the girl cuts off her hair and uses it to get down from the tower, but her escape is not her salvation.'For adults.

About the author:

Kate Forsyth is the award-winning author of 25 books for children and adults, translated into 10 languages. 'Her latest book for adults, Bitter Greens, interweaves a retelling of the Rapunzel fairytale with the scandalous life story of one of its first tellers, the 17th century French writer Charlotte-Rose de la Force. It is very definitely written for adults!

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