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This month participants will read about those fairy creatures who are not so nice: goblins and imps and any other smallish creatures that like to harm or play tricks on people and other creatures.

Is there a listopia or blog post list that you recommend? I'm not sure where to start, and I don't want to just randomly read what comes up in my library catalog (too many hits would be a waste of time).

Meanwhile, I enjoy most of the different iterations of the story that is further explored in the delightful The Rumpelstiltskin Problem by Vivian Vande Velde. Some, unsurprisingly, are from the imp's perspective & are more sympathetic to him.... but in the bare-bones version it's pretty harmful to demand one's first-born child!

Cheryl wrote: "Is there a listopia or blog post list that you recommend? I'm not sure where to start, and I don't want to just randomly read what comes up in my library catalog (too many hits would be a waste of ..."

There is a Listopia called "Best Goblin Books" which has a mix of children's, young adult, and adult books.

/list/show/4... does remind me that I can highly recommend The Princess and the Goblin. Though the goblins have a lesser role than the princess, Curdie, and the grandmother they do still have personalities.

(Otherwise that list has too many 'rainbow magic' books and at least three editions of Goblin Market, Rossetti's poem for older teens and adults.)

I am going to be looking on Open Library for the following entities:

Goblins
Imps
Kobold (German)
Klabautermann (German ship goblin)
Duende
Hobgoblin
Pukwudgie
Dokkaebi
Erlking (in German Erlkönig)
Muki
Kuttichathan
Tikoloshe

Not sure how much I am going to find, but most of these entities are considered either goblins/imps or similar to them.

Check out these wikipedia articles for information and extra links.

Rumpelstiltskin: The Graphic Novel

The retelling is alright, but Martin Powell does not manage to have that condemnation of the miller and of the king that is present in a sub-current in the Brothers Grimm original. And the artwork is too creepy and just does not at all work for me (so that my two star rating is in my opinion also rather generous).

(view spoiler)[Just to point out that I read Rumpelstiltskin: The Graphic Novel (2008) in Spanish translation because only Rumpelstiltskin: La Novela Grafica is currently available on Open Library, and that truth be told, I also was not really interested enough to consider trying to purchase a copy of Rumpelstiltskin: The Graphic Novel for my personal bookshelves since aside of the fact that I own far far too many books already, well, the majority of the Graphic Spin fairy tale retellings I have read to date have proven more than a bit disappointing to say the least (and not to mention that the cover image for Rumpelstiltskin: The Graphic Novel totally and utterly visually creeps me out).

And sadly (but not all that unexpectedly and surprisingly), I really have not found the combination in Rumpelstiltskin: The Graphic Novel of Martin Powell's text and Erik Valdez y Alanis' accompanying comic book artwork at all successful and doing in any way a decent job adapting Jakob and Wilhelm Grimm's Rumpelstilzchen story as a graphic novel.

Sure, Powell's presented text for Rumpelstiltskin: The Graphic Novel is content and thematics wise decently akin to what the Brothers Grimm show in Rumpelstilzchen, although frustratingly and annoyingly so, Rumpelstiltskin: The Graphic Novel does not really ever try to actively or even surreptitiously condemn either the miller or the king for placing Mirabella in the unfortunate and dangerous position of having to keep spinning straw into gold (and that in Rumpelstilzchen, there is in my opinion a definite and continuous sub-current of sly condemnation of both the father, of both the miller and also of the greedy king shown by the Brothers Grimm throughout their tale and which Martin Powell just does not manage to verbally capture in Rumpelstiltskin: The Graphic Novel).

But while I think Martin Powell's words for Rumpelstiltskin: The Graphic Novel are a bit lacking (although I do very much appreciate the interesting and informative author's note), it is in fact Valdez y Alanis' accompanying illustrations that I visually totally and utterly despise (and which have lowered my star rating for Rumpelstiltskin: The Graphic Novel from a low three to a very annoyed and grudging two stars, and furthermore, with no recommendations from me for Rumpelstiltskin: The Graphic Novel either).

For one and first and foremost, Rumpelstiltskin is being depicted by Erik Valdez y Alanis in a much too creepy manner, in a way that is visually horrifying and almost nightmare producing to and for me. And come on, why would if faced with such a visually devilish, green skinned and fanged, utterly vile looking entity, why would Mirabella then so readily and immediately accept help from Rumpelstiltskin? For yes, I would definitely NOT consider asking for support from someone, from anyone so physically horrifying, with such nasty, beady eyes, and that indeed, most of the illustrations of Rumpelstiltskin I have encountered both as a child and as an adult show him as a gnome like individual, a bit uncanny, a bit strange looking perhaps but definitely not like the hideous creature straight from hell, straight from doomsday drawn and shown by Valdez y Alanis in Rumpelstiltskin: The Graphic Novel.

And for two, the huge greenish, almost glowing eyes of basically ALL of the humans encountered in Rumpelstiltskin: The Graphic Novel and that Mirabella with those green eyes and paper white skin looks not really human but rather like either an alien or a vampire, yes, this certainly makes me further be aesthetically offended, grossed and creeped out by Erik Valdez' y Alanis' pictures for Rumpelstiltskin: The Graphic Novel and to also totally not only cement my two star rating for what Martin Powell and Valdez y Alanis have created but to also think that my two star rating for Rumpelstiltskin: The Graphic Novel is probably also majorly and overly generous. (hide spoiler)]

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Definitely a story that features a goblin like entity, but this graphic novel adaptation just does not really work for me.

Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins

An entertaining, engaging (as well as informative) folktale-like offering of how Hershel of Ostropol, arrriving at an anonymous Eastern European village on the Eve of Hanukkah, with clever wile, with courage and perseverance rids the village synagogue of an army of nasty demonic goblins that had been preventing Hanukkah celebrations, both Eric Kimmel's narrative and Tricia Schart Hyman's accompanying illustrations are absolutely fabulous (to quote the Brit Com series, and with no pun intended).

There are both humour and pathos present in Hershel and the Hanukkah Demons, both joy and potentially ominous threats depicted and related, although personally, I would leave a bit of a caveat that particularly the illustrations do get more and more frightening and creepy as the tale progresses, and that especially the depiction of the Goblin King, with his vast size and black pointing fingers seems rather satanic in scope and might well frighten younger or more sensitive children.

With regard to folklore and culture, Eric Kimmel's narrative really does seem to feel and read like a delicious buffet of traditional themes. The greedy goblin who stamps his foot so hard that he shatters himself into a millions pieces (on the second night) has palpable and definite (appreciated) shades of Rumpelstilzchen type tales, while the main protagonist's ever more challenging and dangerous obstacles (which get progressively worse until there is a final, destructive but ultimately cleansing and positive climax) is actually a globally common folkloric concept. And of course, Hershel of Ostropol himself represents a glowing and lively portrait of the noble trickster of tradition and lore, the clever outcast, who primarily through cunning and wiliness, and not magic, succeeds and triumphs, even overcoming evil and sorcery (and saving Hanukkah in the process).

The informative author's note on the history and significance of Hanukkah is an added bonus (much appreciated, it significantly raises the potential educational value of Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins). That being said, I do think Eric Kimmel should also have provided details on the narrative itself (or rather, on its folkloric contents). Is this tale an original Jewish folklore inspired offering, or is it based on, is it adapted from specific Yiddish, Jewish folktales? Is Hershel of Ostropol a constructed character, or was there really such a person, either historically or in folklore? On an academic and folkloric level, I am thus left with more questions than answers and while the author's note is more than adequate concering the significance of Hanukkah as a Jewish holiday, it does feel somewhat lacking with regard to the historical background and origins of the text, or rather the potential origins, as I do realise this might well be a completely original tale (but even if that were the case, this should all have been duly noted and explained by the author).

EDITED TO ADD: My curiosity and desire, or rather my need to know finally did get the better of me and I decided to check Wikipedia with regard to Hershel of Ostropol. It seems that he is indeed a prominent figure in Jewish humour, a Ukrainian prankster, who often, like other similar European tricksters (such as the German Till Eulenspiegel whom he very very closely appears to resemble) specifically targets the rich and powerful (Robin Hood also comes to mind here). And the literary/folkloric Hershel of Ostropol is actually based on a bona fide historical figure (who lived in what is now the Ukraine in the late 18th and early 19th century) and became court jester to Rabbi Boruch of Medzhybizh. And therefore, why did Eric Kimmel not consider including this in my opinion both interesting and important educational cultural/folkloric information in his otherwise excellent author's note? Truly, I have to say that the fact that NONE of the details on Hershel of Ostropol that I found during my own online research have been mentioned by Eric A. Kimmel (and to me, these are supremely important and essential supplemental details) have proven enough of a recurring disappointment to now consider only a high three star rating to and for Hershel and the Hanukkah Demons and no longer the four star ranking I originally had chosen.

The Girl Who Spun Gold

A wonderful Caribbean Rumpelstiltskin type tale

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Tom Tit Tot

Evaline Ness' Tom Tit Tot is simply and basically an old English version of the universally known and famous Rumpelstilzchen folktale type. And although both the presented story, the narrative, and the accompanying illustrations are expressive and do work well enough together, the combination of text and image is also in my humble opinion most definitely more than a bit potentially creepy in set-up and general expression (while I can kind of appreciate text and rendered pictures as adult, I would have likely had major issues with them as a child, but especially with the illustrations, as I strongly feel their colour schemes as well as how both the human figures and Tom Tit Tot have been aesthetically, artistically conceptualised and depicted would have given me nightmares, the fact that Evaline Ness won a Caldecott Honour designation for them very much and quite notwithstanding).

Now while I both enjoy and even applaud that Evaline Ness has chosen to not modernise the dialect (the vernacular) words of the featured text, I do think that Tom Tit Tot could have and would have much benefitted from a glossary of some type, as even I had a few instances where I did not know the dialect words, where I had to actually rely on my linguistic training to figure out meanings, and I cannot help but wonder if this would not be very much annoying and frustrating not only for children but also for parents, teachers, caregivers reading Tom Tit Tot to children (and with this salient fact in mind, I really do have to also consider whether this story, whether Tom Tit Tot would even interest children today, perhaps those who are into fairy and folktales, but even then, the sometimes hard to understand and figure out vernacular dialect words, along with the in my opinion rather strange and potentially creepy accompanying pictures and their colour schemes might be a bit off-putting to and for some if not many youngsters).

However, the issues above are not really all that much of a heavy-duty frustration for and to me, for what really does and continues to majorly grate and even anger me with regard to Tom Tit Tot is that while Evaline Ness has most likely (and actually almost certainly in my opinion) gleaned this story (and seemingly verbatim at that) from Joseph Jacobs' English Fairy Tales, this salient fact is never in any manner, in any way even acknowledged. Now I do well realise that Joseph Jacobs' copyright had by then expired, and that therefore, there was actually no legal obligation for Evaline Ness to have acknowledged his name, but I still find it rather academically dishonest and insulting for her not to have even mentioned Jacobs and the fact that she more than likely got this story from his collection (especially considering that Joseph Jacobs' compilations of English fokltales were a labour of love that took decades to amass).

Little Goblins Ten

Although there is nothing really all that novel and exciting about Little Goblins Ten (which is basically just a typical Halloween-based picture book adaptation of the traditional Over in the Meadow song), I certainly and smilingly have found the combination of Pamela Jane's adapted lyrics and Jane Manning's accompanying artwork both sweet and engaging, never in my opinion potentially too creepy and frightening, and indeed especially visually providing a fun introduction to all things Halloween for the very young (but of course, if you actually do consider Halloween as a no-no, as something inherently evil and uncanny, Little Goblins Ten should probably be avoided).

And yes, with Little Goblins Ten it is in fact Jane Manning's illustrations that have made me rank this with four stars. For while the author's, while Pamela Jane's verses are basically just a standard adaptation of Over in the Meadow, Jane Manning's pictures are totally and delightfully detailed and full of colour and expressiveness (and not to mention that the pictures of the galavanting baby goblins, witches, skeletons, dragons etc. also provide fun counting practice of the numbers from one to ten). Highly recommended, albeit that yes, I certainly would have enjoyed Little Goblins Ten just a trifle more, if at the back of the book, Patricia Jane had also provided the musical score and perhaps even the original lyrics for Over in the Meadow, as while so very many picture book adaptations of the latter seem to exist, the majority of them sadly do not bother including the original (and I do think that this is somewhat of a shortcoming, as not everyone will automatically know the original lyrics and more to the point, the necessary melody).

The Goblin Squad

REVIEW OF THE KINDLE EDITION

So yes, Jeremy Hayes� 2015 The Goblin Squad most definitely is pretty derivative and continuously does make textual use of rather standard fantasy tropes which also and equally are pretty much basically (read a trifle simplistically) rendered and generally more than somewhat one-sided in scope and all-round feel (with for example really obvious but nevertheless delightfully sweet depictions of friendship and supportiveness, with a young girl defying her city’s cultural gender stratification norms and wanting to become part of the so-called Goblin Squad, with a typical and rather too stereotypical annoying bully who of course finally ends up totally redeeming himself, with the obligatory goblins, trolls, dragons, not to mention a featured prologue that totally and right from square one so to speak almost too annoyingly clearly shows what the main plot line of The Goblin Squad will then also more than likely include and indeed and finally also a mode of literary expression quite on the proverbial surface so to speak and with not ever enough nuance and character development for my reading tastes).

However, even though The Goblin Squad is indeed the kind of short middle grade fantasy and adventure tale which might well leave older readers actively and with a bit of frustration wanting more and for the author, for Jeremy Hayes to be delving just a bit more deeply, for younger middle grade readers (for children from about the age of seven to nine who are not yet quite ready both thematically and also textually for say the Harry Potter series), The Goblin Squad is (I think) a fun little reading interlude, an uncomplicated and stylistically simple story that while as an adult reader I certainly find a bit lacking in detail and especially in descriptive and thematic depth, my inner child of eight really does massively enjoy and appreciate (especially the further along in the story I am progressing). Warmly recommended with a low but appreciated four star rating (and yes, in particular to and for reading and sharing with the above mentioned seven to nine year olds), and since the Kindle purchasing price for The Goblin Squad is also less than five dollars, in my opinion, The Goblin Squad is most definitely and in my humble opinion an enjoyable and enchantingly fun for younger fantasy fans novel to try out.

Tom Tit Tot
I loved this story and I don't really care that Ness didn't acknowledge where she acquired the text. This was written for children, after all, and most children don't care about things like that. They just want a good story, and that's what this is.
Now the book won a Caldecott for the illustrations, and while these illustrations are not particularly to my taste, I have always thought that they went well with this story. The colors used are pretty dull, but that's 1965 for you.
As for the text, I didn't find any of it too difficult to understand, and I've always loved that lyrical Suffolk dialect. That the imp's pronouns are that/that's is pretty funny: "You don't know that," that said, and twirled that's tail round. I also loved the rhyming revelation of the name: "Nimmy, nimmy not, your name's Tom Tit Tot!"
As for whether children can understand the text or not, perhaps children in the UK will understand the language better than those in the U.S., but I don't think it would be that difficult for teachers or parents, who can also look up unknown words on the internet. (Well, so can children).
Anyway, as old as this book is, it is unlikely that very many libraries or homes have copies of it (I do have a copy of it). Although they can find it on Open Library if they wish.

Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins
This is another book that I love, mainly because I am a big fan of Trina S. Hyman's artwork.
This wonderful trickster story is definitely not for very young and easily scared children, although most of the goblins look rather bufoonish.
Kimmel wrote this book for children, and apparently did not think it was essential to include a lot of information about Hershel of Ostropol. And I personally didn't miss having that info in the book.

Duffy and the Devil
This is yet another Rumpelstiltskin story, only this time set in Cornwall. And no, the Zemachs do not share their source for the story in the book. I don't think this was uncommon practice, as these authors probably did not think that children would care about the origins of the story, just about the story itself.
My brief review:
A very humorous Cornish version of the Rumpelstiltskin tale. The skillful watercolors burst with vitality and humor.
(view spoiler)[ I especially loved the fact that when Duffy reveals the imp's name, all of the items of clothing it had knitted disappeared, leaving her poor husband, the squire, out on the moors, in the buff. (hide spoiler)]

Not sure if gremlins count, and the one in this book doesn't reveal anything about his nature other than laziness.... but here's my chance to shout out the charming The Little Green Witch. A clever, funny take on the Little Red Hen fable.

The Goblin Princess: A Branches Book
When a wish goes terribly wrong. This is the diary of Rainbow Tinseltail, who lives in Sparklegrove Forest with her unicorn friends. Dragons, fairies, mermaids, and good goblins also live in the forest. Each unicorn has a special superpower, and Rainbow's is to grant one wish a week. But the wish she grants to the Goblin Princess backfires when the Goblin Princess uses the wish in unwise ways. The story is humorous, lighthearted, and imaginative. The cartoon-style illustrations (also by the author) are appealing and very colorful--the unicorns have differently colored and patterned hides, and their spiral horns are different colors as well. The book ends with five suggestions of activities related to the book. Especially for unicorn lovers in about 2nd-3rd grade.

Unicorns Are the Worst!

A humorous story in which a little goblin tries to convince readers that the unicorns next door are terrible neighbors, until they save him from a fire-breathing dragon. Appealing cartoon-style illustrations with lots of pink and glitter.

Dragons Are the Worst!

Another humorous story in which the goblin tries to convince readers that he is every bit as scary as any dragon. And when he gets covered in dragon poop, maybe he is. These cartoon-style illustrations feature scaly green, yellow, purple and pink dragons.

Elves Are the Worst!

In this humorous story, the little goblin wants to convince readers that he is every bit as hard-working as any elf. This funny story gives a nod to the Keebler elves, the Rice Krispie elves, and Santa's elves. Appealing cartoon-style illustrations depict the little goblin's many missteps in trying to out-work Santa's helpers.

Oh those Willan stories look like fun. But I don't feel the need to read them, as they also seem pretty predictable, and blurbs give away too much. Hm.

The Imp That Ate My Homework
And that is just the beginning of young Jim's troubles as a newly released imp arrives at his home to harass him and his family. Chinese-American Jim is forced to team up with his Grandpop, the meanest man in China Town, in order to defeat the creature. This is a quick read, geared towards 3rd-5th grade students. Yep is a well-known author of many books featuring Chinese themes and mythology.

Laurence Yep's works are definitely always worth considering... I will look for this, thank you!

(turns out I'll have to read this on openlibrary - none of my libraries have it in paper or even ebook)

Meanwhile I just enjoyed a reread of Dorrie and the Witch's Imp. Funny, cute, but also scary, as I explain in my review.

Cheryl wrote: "Meanwhile I just enjoyed a reread of Dorrie and the Witch's Imp. Funny, cure, but also scary, as I explain in my review."

Thank you for reminding me about the Dorrie books. I don't think that I had read this one before, at least I don't remember it. I enjoyed reading it, and it brought back memories of other Dorrie books.
In this story, an imposter witch takes the place of the family cook, and disguises an imp as Dorrie, so that it can take her place while she is locked in a bathroom. In the meantime, it ruins all of Big Witch's magic supplies. The author is also the illustrator, and her whimsical, appealing illustrations are black and white with touches of yellow.

Dorrie and the Goblin
This was a very humorous story. Dorrie tries to keep a goblin from wreaking havoc before a big magic show and party, but without much success. Dorrie is also trying to learn a card trick, and when she successfully performs it, it is not at all what the reader might expect. The mostly black and white illustrations are occasionally enhanced with red and green.

Where's Halmoni?

Cute graphic novel featuring two Korean American children searching for their Halmoni (grandmother) and Korean folklore characters (a moon rabbit, Korean goblins known as Dokebbi, a tiger and a nine tailed fox). Fun combination of text and images, showing a nice family story as well as Korean folklore and culture.

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(view spoiler)[In Julie Kim's 2017 ownVoices graphic novel inspired by Korean folklore, in Where's Halmoni, young Noona and her little brother Joon step through a traditional Korean closet into a land of folklore and fantasy whilst trying to find their Halmoni (their grandmother), whom they are visiting but who seems to have magically disappeared along with her pot of red bean soup (which the children can still smell but which like Halmoni is nowhere to be seen).

Now as author and illustrator, Kim has divided Noona and Joon's journey in Where's Halmoni into three separate sections, with each highlighting both lovable and also untrustworthy figures from traditional Korean stories and who either help or try to hinder the children as they search for their grandmother, a moon rabbit, Korean goblins known as Dokkebi, a tiger and a nine tailed fox (all expressively, visually stunningly drawn by Julie Kim to reflect their folkloric nature, so that the rabbit looks lovable and cuddly, the goblins, the Dokkebi appear as fun-loving, mischievous but generally sweet-tempered, the tiger as nastily grouchy as well as prone to cheating and the nine tailed fox as slyly mysterious), and with Where’s Halmoni? both textually and visually featuring all the thrills, morals as well as the humour one might desire from folktales conceptualised specifically for children (such as for example Noona and Joon being presented as quickly making friends with the moon rabbit and the goblins by offering them food, exchanging presents and trying to outsmart the cheating tiger by playing a rather hilarious game rock/paper/scissors) and at the same time organically teaching with Where's Halmoni? about Korean culture and equally showing two main protagonists who are both Korean and American.

And yes, both my adult reading self and also my inner child totally love love love how Julie Kim makes use of language in Where's Halmoni, that while Noona, Joon and also Halmoni speak English, ALL of the Korean folklore creatures respond in Korean, which shows that Where's Halmoni? combines Korean culture and lore with the fact that Noona, Joon and their family obviously do not reside in Korea but in a country where the mother tongue is English. But well, my above mentioned linguistic delight notwithstanding and albeit the visual context in Where's Halmoni makes pretty clear what is being said by the rabbit, the goblins, the tiger and the fox even for those of us unfamiliar with Korean and with Korean characters, I still do kind of wish that Where's Halmoni? could provide translations of the Korean as footnotes and not just a pictorial chart in the back (and which is also why even though I have very much enjoyed Where's Halmoni? and do warmly recommend Kim's combination of words and artwork, my star rating will have to be four and certainly not yet five stars). (hide spoiler)]

Goblin Magic. My first and last Kingdom of Wrenly book. Some simple themes, some tropes, and advice not to study history if you're a member of an oppressed group (!?!). Way too easy, not satisfying at all... readers of the skill to do the vocabulary & page count would surely feel as if it's fluff, almost a baby book. Don't dumb down the content of books for struggling readers!

Cheryl wrote: "Goblin Magic. My first and last Kingdom of Wrenly book. Some simple themes, some tropes, and advice not to study history if you're a member of an oppressed group (!?!). Way too easy..."

Wow, what a ridiculous suggestion regarding studying history! Yes, history can be problematic as it is often written from the point of view of those who win the wars and are successful, but all the more reason to study history and to change this.

Thanks for the warning, am going to avoid Goblin Magic and all of the other books of the Kingdom of Wrenly series.

I mean, it was one line, almost a throwaway, but, yeah, I don't know what's up with the whole rest of the series. It may be excellent, but I won't bother to find out.

Cheryl wrote: "I mean, it was one line, almost a throwaway, but, yeah, I don't know what's up with the whole rest of the series. It may be excellent, but I won't bother to find out."

Maybe one line, but even one line can be extremely problematic.

Bill and the Google-Eyed Goblins

A fun story in which a young fellow, whom his neighbors despair of, proves he really can amount to something. That happens when he spends a night with the goblins, proving his dancing prowess.
Patricia Coombs illustrates the story with full-color, softly fuzzy paintings.

Rumpelstiltskin

This book won a Caldecott Honor for its sumptuous paintings. The author's note in the back tells exactly how he based his text on the Grimm's tales, and on which editions. In this particular story, the imp is called a "little man." (view spoiler)[But instead of stamping the ground and tearing himself in half, in this version, the imp jumps on his large cooking spoon and flies out the window. (hide spoiler)].

The Magic Pot


This original story is told in the style of a folktale. While I realize that this is fiction and fantasy, it still seems unlikely to me that a demon would want to help anybody, no matter what their circumstances. However this demon helped a poor couple by stealing from the rich man down the road (who had refused to give the poor, elderly man any work). And, on top of that, the demon gave the selfish rich man his comeuppance. The illustrations are mostly black and white, with little touches of orange here and there.

Beverly wrote: "The Magic Pot


This original story is told in the style of a folktale. While I realize that this is fiction and fantasy, it still seems unlikely to me t..."

There are actually a number of folktales (especially from France) where demons or the devil himself are described as working with God (or with clerics) to punish sinners and also tales where the Devil is tricked by nuns or monks to build churches or monasteries.

Manybooks wrote: "Beverly wrote: "The Magic Pot


This original story is told in the style of a folktale. While I realize that this is fiction and fantasy, it still seems ..."

yes indeed. and even legal documents, and lawful inquiries and investigations commissioned by the king of england and or france i believe.

Lori wrote: "Manybooks wrote: "Beverly wrote: "The Magic Pot


This original story is told in the style of a folktale. While I realize that this is fiction and fantas..."

Wow, that makes things even creepier but also more interesting.

Thanks, Lori, that's interesting!

A very different story than Zelinski's, but one imo also worthy of a Caldecott:

The Girl Who Spun Gold by Newbery author Virginia Hamilton and illustrated by the Dillons.

I chose it esp. for the author and illustrators - what a team!

An adaptation of a West Indian variant of the Tom Tit Tot/ Rumpelstiltskin story. Mostly effective. I loved the differences, including the more nuanced characterization of "young Big King," for example. Some of the pictures were a bit too busy for my taste.

Highly recommended for all who read fractured fairy tales, or are interested in global variants, or just want something special on the theme.

Cheryl wrote: "A very different story than Zelinski's, but one imo also worthy of a Caldecott:

The Girl Who Spun Gold by Newbery author Virginia Hamilton and illustrated by the Dillo..."

The best part for me is that the king is roundly criticised and that the main protagonist does not automatically forgive him and actually leaves him for a while.

But I will say that for me, my favourite spinning thread into gold type of tale by the Brothers Grimm is the sweet and funny The Three Spinners, where by inviting the three physically challenged spinners who have helped the main protagonist and soon to be queen spin thread to her wedding and introducing them to the king, to her new husband as her aunts (and with the aunts telling the king that their large lips, club foot and ravaged looking fingers are from constantly being made to spin thread), the king declares that his new wife will never be spinning thread again.

Oh, I'd forgotten about that variant! Yes, it's a nifty twist. The Three Spinners looks like a good edition, but of course it's also online, for example:

Manybooks wrote: "But I will say that for me, my favourite spinning thread into gold type of tale by the Brothers Grimm is the sweet and funny The Three Spinners, ..."

I have also read some version or other of this story, probably by the Brothers Grimm, and I agree that it is very humorous and a good lesson for the greedy king as well.

Beverly wrote: "Manybooks wrote: "But I will say that for me, my favourite spinning thread into gold type of tale by the Brothers Grimm is the sweet and funny The Three Spinners, ..."

I have also read some versio..."

I have to admit that my favourite Rumpelstilzchen type of tales are those where there is also either implied or direct criticism of the greedy king and of the parent (or stepparent) whose boasting caused the issue in the first place.

I dunno if you're including trolls this month or another, but I think of them as kin to goblins, and so I checked out The Troll With No Heart in His Body and other Tales of Trolls, from Norway. Turns out that Norwegian trolls are giants... sometimes large enough to have trees growing out of their bodies.

Author credits original sources, explains adaptations, and includes back matter (don't miss the very last story!). She's told these tales over and over out loud to children, everything from my favorite, Three Billy Goats Gruff, to the title story. Some I've seen before, at least in variants, but some are completely unfamiliar to me. If you like woodcuts, you'll probably love the art.