Rumpelstiltskin

Rumpelstiltskin

Retold and Illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky

Penguin Group, 1986

31 pages

Traditional Literature

       I have hear this story since I was a little girl, so that is why I chose this paticular book. Rumpelslitskin is a little man who comes out of thin air to the beautiful miller's daughter's aid. She has been given over to the king by her father to spin straw into gold. Her father bragged to the king about this, and she was told she would be sentenced to death if she didn't produce gold. So, Rumpelstiltskin comes and turns it for her and she ends up promising her first born child in return. The miller's daughter becomes queen and eventually outsmarts Rumpestiltskinl in the end.

       The illustrations are gorgeous! I think that they are done on watercolor. They are extremely life-like. The colors are so vibrant they look like they could be animated to me. The expression and details in the pictures is amazing.

       As far as using it in the classroom,you could have a discussion with your class about gold and how it is formed in the earth. It could also be a history lesson where you showed your stuedents how people used to spin fabric together to make clothes. You could use the name "Rumpelstilskin" to teach muli-syallabic words. This book recieved the Calecott Medal in 1986.