A Rump Romp

RUMP: THE TRUE STORY OF RUMPLESTILTSKIN by Liesl Shurtliff. Knopf, 2013.

Ever wonder about the story behind Rumplestiltskin? Why did the miller offer his daughter as one able to spin straw into gold? Why did Rumplestiltskin come to her rescue? Shurtliff provides a complicated back story that just might change readers' minds about the events of the fairy tale they think they know well. Meet Rump. His mother never had the chance to speak his full name when he was born. So, Rump he was and has been. The incomplete name basically makes him an incomplete person, too. And so Rump is always searching for his true name. In the meantime, Rump discovers that he has the ability to spin straw into gold. This is NOT a blessing, but a curse. He is beset upon my pixies who show up whenever there is gold nearby. And then there are those greedy individuals who would steal gold from him, too. Enter Red who is there to help him with a visit to her grandmother through the woods. Alert readers will see the roots of Rumplestiltskin as well as nods to other tales as Rump finds his identity and rescues a princess along the way.