Ilene Cooper (Booklist, Dec. 1, 2003 (Vol. 100, No. 7))
This fractured fairy tale twists Rapunzel to a fare-thee-well. Using a sprightly rhyme, Wilcox tells of a prince who spies the long-haired Rapunzel and immediately calls to her to throw down her hair. Alas, she's too far away to hear him clearly, and throws down her underwear instead. Every attempt to clarify the situation makes things worse: "'No Rapunzel, your curly locks.'" / Rapunzel threw down dirty socks." And so it goes until the prince asks Rapunzel to throw down her braid, and instead she manages to pitch down her maid--with whom the prince is quite taken. Then it's happily ever after, etc. Acrylic paint, colored pencil, and collage mix together in slapstick pictures that match the text in cheeky appeal. Of course, the story is funnier if children know the original tale, but even if they don't, this version takes on a bouncy life of its own. Category: Books for the Young--Fiction. 2003, Putnam, $14.99. PreS-Gr. 2.

Ken Marantz and Sylvia Marantz (Children's Literature)
There's still plenty of room for parody and fun in the old tale. Brief rhyming couplets introduce this Rapunzel on a "bad hair day." A passing prince, hearing her complaints, decides to rescue her. Unfortunately she is too far away to hear him clearly, so a series of ever sillier misunderstandings causes her to throw down underwear instead of her hair, dirty socks instead of her "curly locks," and more and more ridiculous items. The prince is not easily discouraged, but when she tosses out her maid instead of her braid, a different happy ever after ending is the result. Monks chooses acrylic paint, collage, and colored pencils to produce stylized, almost child-like characters and scenes as zany as the story, all played for laughs. The tall, thin shape enables her to show Rapunzel high in her tower with the prince kneeling below on the cover. On the last page she wonders why he just didn't come to the back door. A Shakespeare quote, "The course of true love never did run smooth," follows the wild end-papers on the back. 2003, G P Putnam's Sons, $14.99. Ages 4 to 8.

Sharon Oliver (Children's Literature)
This fabulous fractured fairy tale will have readers giggling from beginning to end. Our fabulous prince comes upon Rapunzel's castle as she is lamenting a bad hair day. Mistaking her cries as a plea for help, the prince instructs Rapunzel to throw down her hair. Unfortunately, Rapunzel has a slight hearing problem and throws down her underwear instead. The folly continues, with the prince calling for curly locks, silky tresses, rope, twine and a ladder and receiving instead dirty socks, silky dresses, cantaloupe, swine and pancake batter (which Rapunzel points out is better after it's cooked). Finally he calls for her to throw down her braid and Rapunzel pitches the maid out the window. This turns out to be a good thing, as the prince thinks the maid is pretty cute. The prince and the maid ride off into the sunset as Rapunzel expresses a desire for future guests to use the door. The text's rhyming couplets add to the fun and frolic, while Monks' illustrations combine acrylic paint, paper montage and colored pencils into outstanding illustrations that are both interesting and humorous. Any library with young patrons needs a copy. 2003, GP Putnam's Sons, $14.99. Ages 4 to 10.

Kirkus (Kirkus Reviews, November 15, 2003 (Vol. 71, No. 22))
Once upon a bad hair day, a prince rode up Rapunzel's way." This opening line sets the stage for a thoroughly silly, modernized, and thoroughly fractured fairy tale written in rhyme. When the prince calls, "throw down your hair," Rapunzel, armed with hair dryer and computer, hears, "throw down your underwear." Which she does-followed by dirty socks for curly locks, silky dresses for silky tresses, cantaloupe for rope, pancake batter for ladder. Get the picture? When he calls out for her braid, she pushes out her maid, who lands on the prince and they fall in love and ride off together. The off-beat collage illustrations are as kooky as the tale, fabrics obviously used for clothing, but a mix of materials for flowers and shrubs. The rhyming device for the objects lends a participatory element for kids who already know the real version. And the twist on "happily ever after" spins a reality-based meaning on the phrase "falling for you" that kids should find funny. 2003, Putnam, $14.99. Category: Picture book/fairy tale. Ages 5 to 8. © 2003 Kirkus Reviews/VNU eMedia, Inc. All rights reserved.