Falling for Rapunzel

written by Leah Wilcox and illustrated by Lydia Monks
grades k-3

Rapunzel is having a bad hair day- her hair has lost its shine! Misinterpreting her whine for a plea for help, the Prince "sallies forth to set her free." The silliness mounts as her inability to hear the Prince's requests correctly leads to all sorts of misunderstandings. All that the Prince wants is for her to throw down her hair and instead he gets, well, everything else. He calls for her to send down her curly locks and she throws down dirty socks. He calls for her hair and ends up covered in pairs of frilly underwear; his cries for a ladder end up with a face full of pancake batter. The Prince certainly gets all of the things that he is asking for, if only Rapunzel would hear it correctly. Rapunzel is thrilled when at last she thinks that she understands what the Prince is asking her for- but does she?

This twist on the traditional Rapunzel fairytale is clever and entertaining. Falling for Rapunzel is precisely what a fairytale, albeit a silly one, should be. The vivid illustrations, rhyming text, and silly predicaments make this book at once delightful and whimsical. This book is a reminder that what we expect and what we get are often very different things, but the outcome can be delightful.