"Rapunzel Untangled" by Cindy C. Bennett (published 2013)



This is the kind of book I wish I had discovered when I was a pre-teen/teen. Although some parts were cheesy and too straight-foward for me (Rapunzel not knowing terms of phrase like "hot" because of how cooped up she is inside her room, or her love interest Fane bringing her an Egg McMuffin present since she's never tried one, or the fact that they've never heard the Rapunzel story despite living in modern times)... not to mention unrealistic... I really did enjoy the story. The character's identities were very intriguing. Rapunzel's first visits to the outside world with Fane, her boyfriend, are very symbolic of what a relationship can do for a person - which is, in this particular story - to make someone feel safe enough to explore the world, no matter how or where.

Cindy C. Bennett's contemporary re-telling of the Rapunzel fairy-tale is exciting, full of magic and suspense, and heart-felt. Rapunzel lives way up in the tower of Gothel Mansion, and has never left her room. Harboring a disease named SCIDs, her mother has told her that she must refrain from exiting her room because she may die from viruses, bacteria, and germs. However, she soon has access to the internet, and, well, Facebook too. Rapunzel's curious yearning for the outside world prompts her to friend request a boy whose picture she feels a connection to. From that point onward, her life is never the same. And when Rapunzel starts doubting the only life she's ever known, readers will truely feel for her. Join Rapunzel on her journey to self-discovery, a journey that is life-threatening, insane, and spooky, just as much as it is romantic, transformative, and virtuous.

This book is a Truman Readers Award winner.

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