Moser, Barry. Tucker Pfeffercorn: An Old Story Retold. Boston: Little, Brown, 1994. A brilliant adaptation of "Rumpelstiltskin" set in a coal town. Unlike her European predecessor, the heroine is a miner's widow who does not marry her rich and powerful oppressor—a coal boss who locks her up to cash in on the town gossips' claim that she can spin cotton into gold. The boss and the mysterious Tucker Pfeffercorn are both eliminated as the woman uses her wits to save her baby, and then leaves with her gold and her baby to find a better life in Cincinnati.
For discussion of several folklore adaptations by Moser, see "Transplanted in Appalachia: Illustrated Folktales by Barry Moser" - essay by Tina L. Hanlon. For teaching ideas and children's reactions, see Study Guide for "Ferradiddledumday" and Other "Rumpelstiltskin" Stories. Mushko, Becky. "Ferradiddledumday" (A Blue Ridge version of "Rumpelstiltskin"). Full text in this web site. First published in Blue Ridge Traditions, 1998. This poetically written tale is interspersed with many details from the natural world in the Blue Ridge Mountains. The poor heroine, Gillie, is not victimized by a domineering man and does not promise to give away her baby. When the mysterious little man who helped her spin gold from hay to pay her father's taxes demands her baby, the father reveals that he heard the little man say his name and the whole family lives happily ever after on their farm. Compare
with:
"Rumpelstiltzkin" from Andrew Lang's The Blue Fairy Book, reprinted online at Rick Walton, Children's Author: Classic Tales and Fables. The Name of the Helper, by D. L. Ashliman, also gives background on tale type 500, "in which a mysterious and threatening helper is defeated when the hero or heroine discovers his name." The texts of several editions from Grimm are reprinted, and variants from a number of countries, including "Tom Tit Tot" and "Duffy and the Devil" from England. Rumpelstiltskin, retold and illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky. New York: Dutton, 1986. An award-winning picture book based on the Grimm Brothers' 1819 edition, with detailed oil paintings in the style of the Italian Renaissance. Zemach, Harve. Duffy and the Devil: A Cornish Tale. Illus. Margo Zemach. Farrar, 1973. A comical variant of the tale from Cornwall, with humorous illustrations in muted tones, awarded the 1974 Caldecott medal. Hamilton, Virginia. The Girl Who Spun Gold. Illus. Leo and Diane Dillon. New York: Blue Sky/Scholastic, 2000. An adaptation of a West Indian tale, "Mr. Titman.," using colloquial language that, according to Hamilton, reflects "a lilting West Indian speech pattern, then and now." The artists used "acrylic paint on acetate, over-painted with gold paint. The gold borders were created using gold leaf." Last update: 10/14/01 |
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