Do you like fairy or folk tales? Do you like pure telling of said fairy tales with a small change? And do you like Rumpelstiltskin? Or at least the story, it is a little hard to like Rumpelstitskin. And if you answered yes to any of the above, you should read Mac Barnett’s version of the story.
It is the story we know: king meets a miller, who brags about how awesome his daughter is, the king is greedy and wants the spun gold, the girl can’t, enter ol’ Rumpy with three spinnings and the final bargain. The twist is that the narrator’s voice is more modern. This all knowing being is “like hey dude, let me tell you this like cool story, man is it a doozie!” (okay maybe not that hip but it’s not your grandfather’s completely serious telling.) There is humor (the miller daughter-slash-now-queen asks if the name is Cuthbert like a dozen times) and there is the unexpected twist of her and the young prince (who seems much too old to be an infant, so why did our villain wait so long to claim his prize?) taking a walk, going to her fathers cabin (not seeing him) and then walking past our dancing creature singing his name. Usually it is a soldier or man who helps save the day. So, go girl power.
The big difference between this and other versions is that Carson Ellis illustrated things in a classical format, but keeps a modern element too. I like the old-fashioned feeling, but it is not dated. Things are dark in color, shadows and details, but it is not “spooky” (even the night scenes). However, there are a couple images that are a bit mature and do go over into the “spooky” level. These are usually reserved for Rumple himself. Eyes and the fire of the fireplace do give off, frankly a bit of a demonic look. It is really the only parts that make this not for the sensitive reader as up to those, things were not necessarily “nice” but they were not unpleasant.
And like many of my readings of late, this was read via an online reader copy and is due in the future (February 2026). Until then, you can find Stephen King and Maurice Sendak’s Hansel and Gretel as they should be good companions. Which makes me think we might be seeing more classical stories by currently popular authors become a “thing.”