Customer Reviews

Golden: A Retelling of "Rapunzel" (Once Upon a Time (Simon Pulse))

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

When the sorceress Melisande catches her neighbor stealing the herb known as rapunzel for his pregnant wife, she makes a deal: the wife can have as much rapunzel as she likes, but if she cannot love her baby just as she is, Melisande will take possession of the child. Of course, the vain, selfish mother cannot bring herself to love the baby when it is born completely bald, so Melisande takes the child, who she names Rapunzel. Rapunzel never grows hair and is therefore considered something of an oddity by most people, but she is loved by Melisande and is, for the most part, quite happy. Rapunzel also makes friends with a tinker named Mr. Jones and his handsome adopted son, Harry.

When Rapunzel is sixteen, a heatwave causes a drought and crop failure and Rapunzel is rightly worried that a mob will take its frustration out on the local sorceress and her oddly bald daughter. After abandoning their home, Melisande reveals her secret to Rapunzel: she has a biological daughter named Rue who has been trapped in a tower and Melisande thinks that Rapunzel is the one who can free her. Although Rapunzel agrees to help save Rue, doing so will not be easy. Fear, hurt feelings and jealousy threaten to come between the girls. Both girls are envious that there is another daughter in Melisande's life and Rapunzel fears that Harry, who has come to the tower to watch over her, has fallen in love with the utterly beautiful Rue, whose perfect golden locks contrast sharply with Rapunzel's bare head.

This is definitely one of the best of the Once Upon a Time series, and my favorite after another of Dokey's works, Beauty Sleep: A Retelling of "Sleeping Beauty" (Once Upon a Time). My biggest complaint for this book is the same for most of the Once Upon a Time books: it's too short and needs at least another 50-100 pages to be properly fleshed out. However, even given its short length Dokey does an amazing job of bringing the Rapunzel story to life and creating characters to really care about. Melisande is not the wicked witch she is usually portrayed as, but instead is a wise old woman who genuinely cares for both her daughters. Rapunzel is a clever and strong heroine who nonetheless deals with the typical teenage concern that the guy she likes favors the prettier girl. I especially liked Harry, the tinker boy, and his interactions with Rapunzel. GOLDEN is cute, sweet and funny (I laughed out loud at some points) and a great addition to the Once Upon a Time series.

A retelling of the fairy tale Rapunzel from the Once Upon a Time series reimagined with a completely bald Rapunzel. How can that possibly work, you say? Well, all I can say without giving anything away is that Dokey makes it work. With the exception of Belle, all of Dokey's retellings have been filled with inventive and often unexpected twists that somehow manage to be not only enjoyable, but also beautifully compliment the original tales. It also helps that her characters are endearing and fun to read, and Golden's characters are no exception. Also continuing her pattern is the presence of not one, but two sets of lovers whose eventual pairing is left up in the air until the very end. Recommended.

Wow. I appreciated the reason behind writing this version of Rapunzel this way and "Rapunzel" herself was entertaining, but there were just too many strange happenings in the story. It seemed very random. A trinket seller, a nearby prince, a lost daughter: yeah, it was just really bizzare. I love retellings of fairy tales but this one was just not my favorite. Dokey's "Wild Orchid" is much better.

I am appreciating Cameron Dokey's amazing creativity at re-inventing fairy tales! The story starts the same - husband sneaks into the witch's garden to steal some rapunzel for his pregnant wife with crazy cravings. He gets caught, and the witch strikes a bargain with him that involves possession of his child-to-be.

The unique aspect of Rapunzel is that she is born bald and forever remains that way. So how exactly does she "let down her long hair" for the prince to climb up and rescue her? Good question - the "truth" behind this fairy tale involves a case of swapping places.

The witch Melisande had been cursed by a wizard who locked her daughter Rue in a tower. She raises Rapunzel with the hopes of rescuing Rue, though over time Melisande comes to love Rapunzel as her own flesh-and-blood daughter. Neither Rapunzel nor Rue knew of each other's existence until they met, and you can imagine the awkwardness and jealousy that comes about between two girls who had been under the impression of being the single most important person in Melisande's life.

Cameron Dokey did an impressive job with this fairy tale - retelling it in a way that is wholly original. In her author's note, she describes how some members of her extended family suffered from alopecia areata, essentially baldness. As her editor discussed a retelling of Rapunzel, Cameron became inspired by her brother-in-law who asked if she could somehow make Rapunzel born without any hair.
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My sister and I enjoy the entire "Once Upon a Time is Timeless" series and this one fails to disappoint. It's an interesting take on the story of Rapunzel and an insightful story about how one person's misfortune can be another person's saving grace. I really liked how the author developed the characters of Rapunzel and her foster-mother, and the absence of some unrealistic super-villain to battle made the book much easier to connect with.

Please, Amazon, if you can make this and some of the other OUTT books available for Kindle! I would be one of the first to buy!

This retelling was one of the best I have read. I was never one for liking Rapunzel fairy tale but I liked this version. I liked the details and the description of love and the heart. I especially liked the story the Prince Alexander tells about his Great-Grandparents love. It's on page 154 to 157 or so. I like the making a home in the heart and making room for some one else inside your heart. I thought it was a good retelling Rapunzel being bald but in the end she gives her name to Rue the daughter of the woman who raised Rapunzel. And helped Rue to fall in love with Prince Alexander. So that Rue could break the Enchantment. I don't want to give too much away. It was a very good book. I recomend it to anyone that likes Fairy Tales, the Rapunzel tale, Love Stories, Enchanting Tales ect.

Cameron Dokey's version of Rapunzel certainly puts a new spin on the girl with the long golden hair. In Dokey's version, Rapunzel is born to a vain mother, who sees Rapunzel is born without hair, and rejects her. A sorceress neighbor takes the baby when she sees that the mother refuses love to the child. She names the baby Rapunzel because that it the herb the mother craved when pregnant with her. Rapunzel grows up knowing the sorceress isn't her mother but loving her as if she were. The Sorceress loves Rapunzel like her own and the two live together for many years in relative happiness. Now this may not sound much like the Rapunzel story we have all heard and loved, but I assure you there is a princess with long, golden hair locked up in a tower, there is a prince, and there is hair braid climbing! But the heart of this fairy tale is that love does find a way...whether love between family, friends, or with a handsome prince. The story was slightly shorter than most of the previous Once Upon A Time books I have read and I would have liked to have it thickened up a bit. Otherwise, this was a great mixed up fairy tale.

Cameron Dokey's "Golden" was one of the first of the "Once Upon A Time" books that I read, but it remains one of my favorites.

First of all, the twists Dokey adds to the story are so fresh. Who ever heard of a bald Rapunzel? And how does that work, exactly? Quite well, it turns out. The story was interesting, and I liked the way Dokey writes about magic. The themes are fresh and pertinent, and blend well with the story. They made the book thoughtful despite its brevity. The ending was also satisfying, and I was happy with how everything turned out.

Rapunzel is a good heroine. She's practical and likable. Her feelings are understandable, and so are those of the other girl, Rue. I really liked the romance in this one. It has substance and develops nicely.

"Golden" is a creative retelling with an interesting story and likable characters. It's a quick read, but it does have depth. One of the best in the "Once Upon a Time series", perfect for anyone who likes retellings or fantasy.

*If you like this, you may also like:
Beauty Sleep: A Retelling of "Sleeping Beauty" (Once Upon a Time)
The Storyteller's Daughter: A Retelling of "The Arabian Nights" (Once Upon a Time)

Golden was the first book I read of the Once Upon a Time series. It captured my imagination and now I own all the books of the series. I've always been a sucker for a great fairy tale and Golden did not let me down. The book is mesmerizing right from the first page and character development is remarkable. Cameron Dokey creates a Rapunzel never before seen. She is a stronge heroine and her journey to discover the value of herself is something that we can all learn from. This book is a must read for all ages.

My absolute favorite!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

ok...spoilers ahead....

my sister hated it that she was bald and she was sad and felt sorry for her,
but i love how it doesnt' become imporant to the guy she loves or the readers and he lovs her for who she is! i couldn't be happier!

when I say that the guy is perfect, hes perfect!