Grounded: The Adventures of Rapunzelby Megan Morrison

In all of Tyme, from the Redlands to the Grey, no one is as lucky as Rapunzel. She lives in a magic tower that obeys her every wish; she reads wonderful books starring herself as the heroine; her hair is the longest, most glorious thing in the world. And she knows

Then a thief named Jack climbs into her room to steal one of her enchanted roses. He's the first person Rapunzel's ever met who isn't completely charmed by her (well, the first person she's met at all, really), and he is infuriating-- especially when he hints that Witch isn't telling her the whole truth. Driven by anger at Jack and her own nameless fears, Rapunzel descends to the ground for the first time, and finds a world filled with more peril than Witch promised ... and more beauty, wonder, and adventure than she could have dreamed. (via Goodreads)

I adore fairy tales, and love reworked stories. This is far more than another retelling of the classic fairy tale, however. I absolutely {loved} this book!! I initially bought it at a middle-school book fair for my 10-year-old daughter, for whom I have a difficult time finding books. It looked and sounded intriguing, so I brought it home and decided to pre-read it to make sure it was appropriate for her.

Starting out, it was kind of boring. It sounded A LOT like the Disney movie "Tangled." But then other characters started to appear, and I started to get snippets of other random fairy tales mixed in in a completely unique way. And pretty soon the story evolved away from the Disney version and I was hooked. I loved not liking Rapunzel at first. I loved not liking the hero at first. I REALLY loved coming to love them as they changed and grew throughout the story as characters. I even loved loving-hating-loving the villian.

Except for the first little bit, I had no idea what was coming next. Most of the predictions I made were false, and even if what I thought was going to happen DID happen, it came about in such a new and unusual way. It was beautiful. While I did not laugh out loud or actually cry (usually required for me to give a book 5 stars), it was a very compelling, beautifully told story. I recommend it for mature children ages 12+ and adults who are children at heart. :)

**NOTE TO PARENTS: The reason I say "mature children" is because there are some references and explanations about how and where babies come from, consumption of alcohol, and violence and gore - including various forms of murder. I would recommend that parents read it first (you'll love it!) before handing it to your child if you have concerns. Teenagers would be fine, in my opinion.