Plot summary:
Once upon a time there lived a young girl named Rapunzel in a castle with her mother. But, her mother wasn't really her mother. And, the castle wasn't all it was cracked up to be, so the young girl got bored and tried to escape. Her mother, who wasn't her mother, didn't like that her darling daughter, who isn't her daughter, tried to escape and banished her to a small room at the top of a tree and cursed her with hair that grew and grew and grew. Sounds sort of familiar, right? Wrong! This smart young girl doesn't need anyone to save her! She uses her hair as rope and the adventure begins with one more caveat: this isn't some magical fairytale castle world, it's the wild west where the hero is a horse thief, Mother Gothel puts a price on Rapunzel, and Rapunzel is determined to get rid of Mother Gothel.
Critical Review:
First and foremost, Rapunzel's Revenge is a graphic novel, one of the better ones I've read. The illustrations and incorporation of text make this novel engrossing, interesting, and, at times, hysterical because Rapunzel's Revenge takes the Rapunzel myth and turns it on its head. Hale's illustration (by the way, the illustrator is NOT related to the authors) flow through the story using detail and color effectively to convey the action and the setting. Hale makes the setting look both beautiful and desolate in turns, which reinforces that this is not the typical Rapunzel story.
Rapunzel herself is quite different. Disney's recent portrayal of Rapunzel in Tangled (which, right now, is both my daughter's and son's favorite movie), showed her to be somewhat courageous, but mostly dependent (on a man), and, in my opinion, slightly air headed. Yes, she saves her life and Flynn's, but ultimately, she needs Flynn. This Rapunzel is none of those things. She frees herself, defends herself, and doesn't need a Flynn to save her. Instead, she saves the boy this time; a boy named Jack with a goose (that lays an egg...Mother Goose anyone?) and they team up to return to Gothel's castle in order to defeat her, free Rapunzel's real mother, and end Gothel's harsh rule of the land.
The story of Rapunzel and Jack's return to Gothel is complicated by kidnappers, villains, wild dogs, and more. They also save other people and villages along the way back to Gothel, which again, reinforces how different this Rapunzel really is from the Rapunzel myth because she does the fighting instead of relying on luck and a man to fight for her.
The hardest part of this book is letting go of the typical Rapunzel and becoming part of this Rapunzel myth, but this story is so appealingly different that letting go of the blonde-haired, girly-girl princess Rapunzel doesn't take more than the first few pages. This red-haired, smart as a whip, creative, courageous Rapunzel who takes no prisoners or guff from anyone is a refreshing break from the Tangled Rapunzel. She's not a tomboy, and she's not a princess, but she is a mix of the two. This Rapunzel balances the best of female heroines.
Happily-ever-after comes at the end of the adventure. Rapunzel frees her mother, gets rid of Gothel, kisses the boy and lives happily-ever-after in this book, but what a different ride (literally) to get to the happily-ever-after.
What I loved about Rapunzel's Revenge is that after having the Disney version shoved down my throat nearly everyday for the last several months (because I am a sucker and let my children whine and cajole their way into watching the movie constantly), I found a Rapunzel I could admire and one I can show my daughter to show her that Rapunzel doesn't always need to be saved. Sometimes, Rapunzel saves herself and a lot of other people, too.
Review Excerpts:
"Starred Review. Grade 5 Up–This is the tale as you've never seen it before. After using her hair to free herself from her prison tower, this Rapunzel ignores the pompous prince and teams up with Jack (of Beanstalk fame) in an attempt to free her birth mother and an entire kingdom from the evil witch who once moonlighted as her mother. Dogged by both the witch's henchman and Jack's outlaw past, the heroes travel across the map as they right wrongs, help the oppressed, and generally try to stay alive. Rapunzel is no damsel in distress–she wields her long braids as both rope and weapon–but she happily accepts Jack's teamwork and friendship. While the witch's castle is straight out of a fairy tale, the nearby mining camps and rugged surrounding countryside are a throwback to the Wild West and make sense in the world that the authors and illustrator have crafted. The dialogue is witty, the story is an enticing departure from the original, and the illustrations are magically fun and expressive." Cara von Wrangel Kinsey, New York Public Library, School Library Journal
"This graphic novel retelling of the fairy-tale classic, set in a swashbuckling Wild West, puts action first and features some serious girl power in its spunky and strong heroine. Young Rapunzel lives a lonely life, never knowing what lies beyond the high garden walls of her mother’s royal villa until one day she climbs the wall to see what’s on the other side. When she finds that the world outside is a dark place oppressed by her mother’s greed for power and uncovers the real secret of her own birth, she is imprisoned in a magic tree tower. In her years of captivity, she learns a lot about self-reliance and care for her exceptionally long hair, and eventually she is able to escape, vowing to bring down her mother’s cruel empire. Hale’s art matches the story well, yielding expressive characters and lending a wonderful sense of place to the fantasy landscape." Tina Coleman, Booklist
Awards:
ALA Notable Children's Book (ALA)
Amelia Bloomer Project Selection (ALA)
Cybils Award (Graphic Novels)
Great Graphic Novels for Teens (YALSA)
Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults (YALSA)
Connections:This is a book I would love to see someone do a brown paper bag book report over just to see what all they put inside the bag. I would put a crown, a lock of hair braided into a rope, a horse, a witch, and Jessie from Toy Story 2 (simply because that's the only cowgirl in our house and the red hair would fit!).
A comparison and discussion of the Rapunzel myths would be appropriate after reading this tale of Rapunzel.
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