Each of the stories begins with a tongue-in-cheek "once upon a time" line designed to set the stage for the modern reader by highlighting conveniences and institutions that we tend to take for granted. For example, the first story begins "Once upon a time, before there were pizzerias or Taco Bells, there was a troll named Rumpelstiltskin who began to wonder what a human baby would taste like." In each story, the miller’s daughter is given a different name (her name is not mentioned in the original tale), and the sort of being that Rumpelstiltskin is varies. Sometimes the daughter and her father are the protagonists, sometimes Rumpelstiltskin is the protagonist, and in one instance it’s the king.

The stories contained in this book include:

A Fairy Tale in Bad Taste: As you can imagine from the beginning line quoted above, this story takes a stab at the question of why Rumpelstiltskin would want the first born child of the miller’s daughter. Rumpelstiltskin is a thoroughly disagreeable character in this version, and his unholy hunger drives him to trick the miller and his daughter into their predicament so he can manipulate the situation to get the child he craves. We learn a bit about Rumpelstiltskin’s family, and this information is crucial to his ultimate defeat. You have to love the ending to this one—it’s, well, gloriously in bad taste.

Straw Into Gold: Della is an intelligent girl, but her father, though well intentioned, isn’t the brightest bulb in the light fixture. When their mill burns down, he hatches a scheme to sit by the side of the road until a rich person came by, at which point he will offer to have his daughter spin straw into gold for that person in exchange for three gold pieces—which they’ll actually use to rebuild their mill and eventually pay back the person they’ve tricked. Della points out the multitude of problems with this convoluted plan, but since they’re desperate and she has no better ideas, she goes along with it. The first person to come by is the king, and of course the plan goes awry. The king in this story is a pompous twit, and Rumpelstiltskin is a kind elf who helps Della out of genuine concern for her, rather than because of sinister ulterior motives. This is a love story, and though Della does marry the king, Rumpelstiltskin ends up with the royal couple’s first-born child. This was one of my favorites because it’s the first instance of a totally different perspective on Rumpelstiltskin, and because of the messages it contains regarding true love and the value of children.

The Domovoi: In this version, Rumpelstiltskin is a domovoi, a creature that lives beneath a house and strives to ensure the safety and happiness of all the people who live in that house. He hears Katya crying, and since a domovoi can’t tolerate unhappiness in its household, he goes to investigate. Katya is an impatient and irritating girl, whose father, the miller, meets the king by chance one evening in the tavern. Her father has been drinking too much, and he and the king begin buying each other drinks. Before long, they’re both drunk, and the miller makes the foolish claim that Katya can spin straw into gold. The king, in his state, demands she do so for him, or he’ll have her killed (something out of character for him). Rumpelstiltskin tries to convince Katya that the king wouldn’t actually harm her, and that in the morning, he’ll be himself again and let her go. But, Katya isn’t convinced, and since he can’t bear for anyone in his house to be unhappy, Rumpelstiltskin decides to help her, even accepting items she offers as payment because she won’t be happy unless he accepts them. In this tale, Rumpelstiltskin is a very benevolent creature that only wants to help because this is in his nature. The humans in the story are hard to please, and Rumpelstiltskin learns that some people aren’t happy unless they can find a reason to be unhappy. Goodness knows I’ve met people like that before. For me, this story was particularly enjoyable because I learned a little new folklore. (Incidentally, in real Slavic folklore, domovoi are not always so benign as Vande Velde’s. See the Wikipedia entry on this subject for more information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domovoy.)

Papa Rumpelstiltskin: Christina’s father Otto is loving and very proud. He often brags about his daughter, having a tendency to exaggerate her abilities and good qualities. He is particularly proud of her spinning ability, and sometimes goes so far as to say that she could spin straw into gold (speaking figuratively, of course). The king, who is a greedy and unlikable character, hears of this boast, and takes it literally, showing up one day at the mill with his chamberlain to collect Christina so that she may perform this feat for him. Otto got his poor daughter into this mess, and now he has to try to get her out of it. This is a really funny version of the story, and it’s very entertaining to watch the father and daughter work together to try to get themselves out of a horrible situation. Otto’s actions and claims will be familiar to anyone who has ever been embarrassed by a proud parent.

Mrs. Rumpelstiltskin: This was one of the more creative versions in the book, and I really enjoyed it. In it, Rumpelstiltskin is actually female. She’s a very unattractive woman, and as time goes on, she becomes more and more unattractive. The villagers are cruel to her, and no one courts her. In her isolation, she learns some magic, and the villagers stop associating with her altogether, convinced that she is a witch. Still, she longs to have someone to love her, and since it’s obvious there will be no man to fulfill this need, she dreams of somehow being able to raise a child that would love her unconditionally as a mother. One day she overhears a commotion next door, as the neighbor’s daughter is taken away by the king’s men. Curious, she follows the group to the castle and observes the girl being locked in a high tower room. At nightfall, she uses her powers to scale the tower and speak to the girl, Luella, who is the sort of pretty girl that always seems to get her way. Luella mistakes Rumpelstiltskin for a man, but even so, Rumpelstiltskin finds herself feeling a bit sorry for the girl, and agrees to help her. It eventually occurs to Rumpelstiltskin that she might be able to use the situation to get the child she has always dreamed of. I especially liked the ending of this tale, which ties the story of Rumpelstiltskin to another famous fairy tale. I won’t say which one, but it involves the neighbors on the other side of Rumpelstiltskin’s land and relates to her desire to have a child to care for. I must say though, that there is something a bit dissatisfying about this version as much as I liked it. This Rumpelstiltskin is likable and the people around her can be cruel and foolish. It seems a shame that Rumpelstiltskin doesn’t prevail, but I suppose there’s a lesson in this one about how unfair life can be.

As Good As Gold: This is probably the funniest version of all, and I thought it was very creative. Gregory is a handsome and kind-hearted king with a greedy rival king to the North that would like nothing better than to take over Gregory’s kingdom. To ensure his subjects’ loyalty, Gregory does his best to personally interact with the people he rules. While speaking to some villagers one day, he encounters a truly obnoxious miller that persists in extolling the virtues of his daughter, clearly in the hopes of getting the unmarried king interested in her. Gregory does his best to be polite while trying to escape the miller’s annoying company. A casual remark results in the miller sending his equally obnoxious daughter, Carleen, to the castle. Carleen makes preposterous claims about being to spin straw into gold and equally ridiculous claims that the king will kill her if she fails. Poor Gregory does his best to deal with this pushy, unwanted guest without being rude. When it becomes clear that Carleen intends to bully the king into marrying her, he comes up with a clever plan to kill two birds with one stone. Rumpelstiltskin, while crucial to the story, is really only a marginal character in this tale. I really liked this completely fresh perspective on the story, and enjoyed what Gregory eventually did with the gold that Carleen supposedly spun for him.

This was a quick read, and I really enjoyed all of the stories. I think the idea of recreating a well-known story from a different perspective or with some kind of twist is a very interesting one. This would be a great book to share with young aspiring writers, who might be inspired to try creating some fractured fairy tales of their own. I also think theater students might enjoy bringing some of these tales to life by adapting them for the stage.

I suppose some readers might find the repetition of the same basic story a little tiring, but for me, each story was unique enough to prevent any boredom and my curiosity about how each version would cover some of the gaps in the original tale made me keep turning the pages. I also think there are a lot of familiar situations and character types to be found in these pages, which a variety of readers will be able to relate to.

This is the third Vivian Vande Velde book I’ve read, and so far she has yet to disappoint me. For more information on the author and her work, see http://www.vivianvandevelde.com/. You might also be interested in reading my reviews of the following Vande Velde books:

Curses, Inc.
Witch’s Wishes

Recommended:
Yes