With a new translation by Anthea Bell, this picture book retells the familiar fairy tale Rumpelstiltskin in graceful, economical prose. Dramatizing the action in a series of large tableaus, Watts' pictures are pretty, but not too sweet. Children seeking princess books or parents and teachers looking for good picture books to read aloud will find this a satisfying choice. (Reviewed May 15, 1993)

K-Gr 4 Zelinsky's painterly style and rich colors provide an evocative backdrop to this story. The medieval setting and costumes and the spools of gold thread which shine on the page like real gold are suggestive of an illuminated manuscript. Without overpowering the text, the illustrations give depth and background, providing exquisite texture and detail: the castle interior; subtle facial expressions; the forboding landscape when Rumplestiltskin is overheard to reveal his name. The imp himself is deeply fascinating, with his birdlike features, tiny agile body, and Rackhamesque hands and feet. This retelling is based on the 1819 Grimm version. Zelinsky's ending, in which Rumplestiltskin flies away on his wooden spoon, is a departure from the source, wherein he stomps one foot deep in the ground, grabbing the other foot and tearing himself in half. Galdone's Rumpelstiltskin (Clarion, 1985), with its French Renaissance setting and pot-bellied unshaven imp, has a comic, earthy flavor. Zelinsky's smooth retelling and glowing pictures cast the story in a new and beautiful light. Susan H. Patron, Los Angeles Public Library