The Midsummer Bride

by Barbara Leonie Picard, Alan Marks (Illustrator)

Riding around his castle early one midsummer's day, Count Alaric stumbles upon a beautiful maiden. Smiling graciously, she says she does not know where she is from, or where she is going. He calls her Catherine and falls in love with her. And when she agrees to become his wife, Alaric hopes
they will live a long and happy life together.
Yet every time Alaric looks into his young bride's eyes, she seems to be thinking of something else. One day he finds her dancing all by herself, with no music playing. Then he notices that every year she disappears from the castle on midsummer's eve, only to return at dawn with no memories of the
night past. He suspects there is a deep mystery in Catherine's past. What he does not know is that to save her, the Count has to sacrifice his love for her. This lyrical, romantic fairy tale is written by acclaimed children's author Barbara Picard and graced by Alan Marks's evocative
watercolors.

32 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 1999

About the author

Barbara Leonie Picard's first book was published in 1949, and was followed by over twenty more, all of which received praise for the mature and thought-provoking fare they offered young readers. She is well-known for her re-tellings of Homer, Gilgamesh, and ancient myths for young readers.

Reviews

[Anne Hamilton · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful variation of a fairytale, with echoes of Tam Lin and of tales of a fairy bride.

Some spoilers follow:

Count Alaric falls in love with a mysterious woman who does not remember even her own name. Although she expresses contentment to marry him and stay with him, she always looks as if she is in a trance, half-remembering who she is and where she came from. He calls her 'Catherine'.

In his haste to return to her on the anniversary of their first midsummer encounter, Alaric passes by ring of a fairy dancers. Sure he sees her in their midst, stolen away, he urges his horse towards the dancers. But the horse is spooked - and when he finally returns home, Catherine is in bed, asleep. But the hem of her dress is dew-drenched.

Alaric finally seeks the guidance of a wise woman. She tells him Catherine is one of the fairy folk and that there is only one sure way for Alaric to bind her to him so that the fairies can never reclaim her. He must love her with all his heart. Alaric protests that he already does. No, says the wise woman, there must be some flaw in your love - or she would have already forgotten she ever lived in the fairy realm.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too sophisticated and too long for the typical 'picture-book' crowd. But a wonderful story for older children, and a fable for all ages. The ending is going to be seen as perfect by many readers. I, personally, have mixed feelings about it... having experienced more passionate love affairs than either these characters, or probably the author either.

Judge for yourself. Read the scanned, free-to-borrow copy on openlibrary.org.

[Krista the Krazy Kataloguer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice retelling of a fairy story.