Zel Book

A few years back, I went on a big reading binge with fairytale retellings. All were somewhat brief and young adult. But the shortest, darkest take was definitely this one. Napoli did an excellent job of really developing the limited cast of the classic Rapunzel while staying pretty true to the given motives in the original and giving us a very rich setting. I read books in a very visual way, so when I can imagine a full cinematic concept for what I'm reading, I consider the book a success.

(This review from here on contains spoilers) Now, I'm seeing people say they didn't like it because it was dark and they didn't understand the characters. And that's completely fine. It's an opinion. But, I think, contrary to what appears to be a popular opinion, the characters are made to be completely believable in the time frames given to Napoli from the original story. Yes, the Duke is obsessive with his love for Rapunzel. Why wouldn't he be? He fell in love with her in a day in the original tale, as most princes do. Yes, Rapunzel goes insane; she goes from having access to a village that enjoys her company and open air to trapped in a tree with scant visits from her mother. And Mother's role is amazing. We've been given so many possible reasons for why the witch of he original tale traps her daughter as she does, from spite to Disney's latest idea of greed for magic hair. Napoli gives us a simple and very believable and sympathizing reason: because she's a mother afraid of losing her child.

That said, it is very heavy for such a short novel, and I definitely put it on the older end of young adult. (Parents: if your teen has not yet read the Giver or the Lord of the Flies or anything by Shakespeare, you might want to hold off on this book.) In the span of two lunch breaks, I got to see vividly how two obsessive characters can destroy someone who is relatively pure in nature with manic love, because that is exactly what this story is about. The triumph of the story is when circumstances help rebuild Zel's sanity, taking her from being a child, to a tragically mad creature, to a strong woman and mother. The duke faces his own adversity for the first time, beyond that of simply not being able to find a pretty girl, and grows from it. The tragedy is entirely in Mother, who simply wanted a child too badly and went about it in the worst of ways.

Overall, I really do love this book. Rapunzel is not one of my favorite fairytales, so the fact that I got to enjoy this so much was something pleasantly new. If you want a quick read and lack the stress to be able to get into something dark and emotional, I highly recommend it.