Grimm's Last Fairytale: A Novel [Hardcover]

Haydn Middleton (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 16, 2001

In September 1863 Jacob Grimm travels through rural western Germany with his devoted niece, Auguste-- who longs to learn, at last, the truth about her family-- and Kummel, their new and enigmatic manservant. As relations between the three reach the boiling point, Jacob's traumas and heartbreaks here in his original homeland are revealed in vivid flashbacks. Now, old, Jacob resists Auguste's attempts to make him take stock of his life, but memories that are repressed have a tendency to reappear in other places and in other guises.

Throughout Jacob's travels, he is reminded of the folk tales he and his brother Wilhelm collected in their Tales for the Young and Old. Although the brothers were renowned language scholars and passionate supporters of German unification, they were haunted throughout their lives by the Tales. Most notable is the feverish fairy tale of Sleeping Beauty, which holds a shattered mirror to a life, a country, and a history. The Sleeping Beauty recounted here is neither the Disney version nor even the Grimms' version, but an enchanting tale that goes beyond the marriage of the prince and princess to reveal the surprising truth behind the evil spell.

In his compelling historical novel, Haydn Middleton re-creates the life story of literature's most famous brothers. It is a history that could almost be a fairy tale itself, with its fabulous changes of fortune, tests of duty and honor, arrogant princes, lost loves, and twisted family relationships-- all unfolding in a world of dark forests and even darker politics.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

"Happily ever after" and "once upon a time" have no place in this complex novel by British author Middleton, based on the lives of the world-renowned fairy-tale masters, the Brothers Grimm. In 1863, Jacob Grimm; his niece, Auguste; and their manservant, Kummel, travel from Berlin to Grimm's hometown of Hesse, where Auguste hopes to shed some light on family secrets. Her reticent uncle, however, is preoccupied with private memories of his humble childhood, his deceased brother and partner, Wilhelm, and their work on their first collection of stories, Tales for Young and Old. As the journey continues, a third narrative surfaces: Jacob Grimm's final telling of "Sleeping Beauty." In this troubling rendition of the fairy tale, a young man traverses a fractured yet magical countryside in search of the fabled princess, but his kiss fails to wake her immediately. When she finally opens her eyes, they marry, but the new prince's mother turns out to be the witch who first cast the sleeping spell. On the return trip to Berlin, Grimm's health is failing, and his niece is haunted by his reminiscences and her newfound feelings for Kummel. Beneath the surface of his narrative, Middleton (The People in the Picture; Son of Two Worlds, etc.) deftly surveys the German political landscape of the late 19th century and reveals a connection between Jacob Grimm's world and the horrors to come in the 20th century. Dense and many-layered, the novel requires much patience, but readers willing to invest the effort will reap a modest reward.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Eerie and erotic, Middleton's novel is a masterful re-creation of the life of Jacob Grimm, interwoven with a grotesque version of Sleeping Beauty, Grimm's last fairy tale, told from Prince Charming's point of view. Like many of the fairy tales published by the Grimm brothers, Middleton's fictionalized portrait is alternately gruesome and poignant. Mourning the loss of his brother and haunted by a startling family secret, Grimm is cared for by his brother's wife; his niece, Auguste; and Kummel, a mysterious young serving man. Desperate to learn Grimm's secret before he dies, Auguste enlists Kummel's help. On a grander scale, Middleton sets Grimm's interest in fairy tales against the background of political unrest in a Germany brutalized by the Napoleonic regime. Fearing that German culture was being forgotten under French rule, and seeing that Germany's powerlessness was rooted in its political fragmentation, Grimm hoped that the publication of fairy tales would help to preserve Germany's heritage, and give his readers a sense of unity and hope. Bonnie Johnston
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books; 1st edition (March 16, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312272901
• ISBN-13: 978-0312272906
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.8 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.7 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,851,601 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars MAGICAL ARTISTRY, December 23, 2000

By 

Donald A. Newlove (Greenwich Village) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Grimm's Last Fairytale: A Novel (Hardcover)

Middleton's Grimm ranks with Angela Carter's bejeweled fairytale rewrites in BURNING MY BOATS. He weaves three plots into one story. First he tells of the life of Jacob Grimm in his last year as he takes a sentimental journey across Germany to an early home he shared with his brother during Wilhelm's marriage. He tells of Jacob and Wilhelm's youth and their mother's stories that burst with blood and suicide, and how these stories later lead into the the brothers collecting horrific children's tales. He tells of Jacob's tie to his late brother's daughter, who falls in love with their mysterious manservant, Kummel. And he tells the story of Sleeping Beauty as it has never been told before and which parallels Jacob's own life. All these stories are suffused with marvelous description and surreal imagery that at once rubs shoulders with gripping realism and such rich epithets as "Her face would split a pitcher." For me, this is a stunning invention and modern classic that follows the German soul into its darkest subterranean windings that lead later into jackboots on cobblestones. Do yourself a huge favor and dip in.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Mesmerizing, May 8, 2002

By 

Glenn Miller (Minneapolis, MN USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Grimm's Last Fairytale: A Novel (Paperback)

An incredible accomplishment. Middleton interweaves 3 stories: Jacob Grimm at the end of his life, key moments throughout Grimm's life, and a stylized version (related to Grimm's life) of the fairy tale, Briar Rose. All three stories are richly interwoven and overlapped, so you are never quite sure which is influencing the other. Middleton uses wonderful pacing, beautiful language and a "well-spun" yarn to keep the reader thoroughly engaged. As a history buff, I appreciated Middleton's ability to include historical and cultural background to help explain the purpose behind Grimm's actions. I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the history of fairy tales, German development during the early 19th century, the life and times of the Grimm's Brothers, or simply a well-told story.