The Crimson Thread

The "Once Upon a Time" collection is a perfectly delightful way to rediscover the old Grimm, Andersen, and Perrault tales. I must confess that Rumpelstiltskin has to be among my least favorite. However, I had read a number of the others in the collection and I do enjoy sewing, so I was still excited to read this book.

I had every reason to be intrigued. The Crimson Thread is a fascinating re-imagining of the old story. For the author to set the story during Irish immigration at the end of the nineteenth century is a brave beginning. In a world where there only seems to be harsh reality, there is a sense still of the mystical. One hardly expects to find magic in a New York City tenement, and textile factories are hardly palaces of tyrant kings. But heroines are similar the world over--they're mostly ordinary people coping with extraordinary situations. It makes sense that in America there is more to a poor person on the street than meets the eye. And that is the essence of the story of Rumpelstiltskin, only this version has a great deal more warp and weave to it.

All the stories in this collection can be found under the call number YA Once.