Paul O. Zelinsky’s version of Rapunzel is the traditional version of this old fairy tale. The story begins with a husband and a wife that have struggled with becoming pregnant for quite some time. One day the wife discovers that she will soon have a baby and begins having cravings for herbs in her neighbor’s garden, a herb called rapunzel. The wife’s husband agrees to go into the neighbor’s yard, who happens to be a sorceress, and brings rapunzel back to satisfy his wife’s cravings. Once the sorceress discovers that someone has been stealing from her garden she confronts the man and forces him to give her his baby upon the birth. The sorceress names the baby Rapunzel and raises her in a tall tower away from everyone else. Many years later a young man is riding his horse past Rapunzel’s tower and immediately falls in love with her after hearing her sing to the forest animals. The young man tricks Rapunzel into letting him climb up her hair, and once they meet they fall deeply in love. Soon Rapunzel and the young man decide to get married. One day the sorceress comes home and discovers that Rapunzel is pregnant, which means she betrayed her trust. The sorceress cuts off Rapunzel’s hair and pushes her from the tower. Once the young man attempts to climb to the top of Rapunzel’s tower the sorceress pushes him from the tower, blinding him. At the end of the story Rapunzel and her prince eventually find each other and live happily ever with their twins. This version of Rapunzel is close to the version that I have always known. However, this version seemed extremely violent for a fairy tale, and although children would enjoy the beautiful illustrations, it might be too harsh for some children to enjoy the story.
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