Shelley Duvall's Faerie Tale Theatre: The Princess and the Pea

Ahhh, Liza Minnelli. Throughout this episode, I couldn't help but hear Judy Garland in her voice. (No singing, unfortunately.) This is one of the episodes that follows the original story closely, although the writing added some character development for the queen, prince, and princess. And the jester, for some reason. (Actually, the dynamic between the prince, princess, and jester was pretty fun.)

The best part about this was the chemistry the actors bounced around; upon reflection, there wasn't much else about the episode that stood out for me. It did seem a bit thin; the character development was attempted but felt enough like Once Upon a Mattress that it wasn't original enough to make an impression.

Still, it's a solid episode, if somehow a little rushed.

You can watch it for free on hulu!

Letters from Rapunzel by Sara Lewis Holmes

I was pleasantly surprised by Letters from Rapunzel. It started out a bit simplistic (aimed at grades 5-8): Cadence finds a ripped up letter from her father to PO Box #5667, declaring that the unknown pen-pal is the only reason he's able to write. Candace takes it upon herself to write to Box #5667, seeking aid for the evil spell (chronic depression) that has captivated her father.

I do hold a certain fondness for epistolary novels, and over the course of the story, Cadence's letters and situation gain complexity, becoming what is a very tightly woven story about a young girl learning to rescue herself. She also writes several of her own versions of fairy tales, which are both funny and touching.

Letters from Rapunzel won the Ursula Nordstrom First Fiction Contest, and with the way the different facets of the story come together, I am not surprised. This was a very impressive book.

Check out Sara's website for more information on Letters from Rapunzel.