Rapunzel

Title: Rapunzel

Author:  Paul O. Zelinsky

Illustrator: Paul O. Zelinsky

Picture book for ages (approximately) 5 and up

Rating: 4of 5 stars

Summary:

This book is a re-telling of the popular Brothers Grimm fairy tale Rapunzel. It won a Caldecott in 1998.

Opinion:

The illustrations in this book are amazing. They are so detailed and they have an old world feel to them. It makes you feel like you’re looking at the original illustrations. Looking at the picture of Rapunzel playing by the water you feel a little like you’re in a long lost paradise. The water looks so clear and the sky looks so dreamy. Each picture takes you back in time with the story.

Though I do enjoy this classic fairytale, it does have its problems that should be noted from a critical literacy standpoint. There are many issues and questions this story brings up. For instance, why is the witch so old and scary looking? Why couldn’t she have been young or pretty or both? What kind of father did Rapunzel have if he was instantly willing to give her up for a handful of leaves? Why did her mother have no say in it and did she even care? Why did both men in this story feel it was okay to trespass? These questions need to be brought up and considered before stories like this get shown to children as quality literature.

I would use this book in my classroom, not only on my library shelf, but for genre studies as well. I would also use it for its critical literacy potential, maybe doing a comparative analysis of several versions of Rapunzel and asking my students the questions I’ve listed above, forcing them to think from a critical literacy standpoint.