Review - Zel by Donna Jo Napoli

Title: Zel
Author: Donna Jo Napoli
Published: Puffin, 1998
Source: Library

Based on the fairy tale Rapunzel, the story is told in alternating chapters from the point of view of Zel, her mother, and the nobleman who pursues her, and delves into the psychological motivations of each of the characters. 

The first book I ever read by Napoli was Bound. It was a quick read, but I really enjoyed it. So I looked around on Goodreads and found out that Napoli has written quite a few books that are twists on the fairy tales we all know and love. So the first one I picked up was Zel. 

Zel, which is short for Rapunzel, is a teenager just coming of age to marry. She meets a young nobleman at the market and they kind of click. Zel's mother gets wind of the situation and locks Zel into a tower so she can have her daughter all to herself. This book was so short that I'm afraid saying much more will spoil it. I will say that the ending definitely surprised me, but in a good way. After finishing the book, I felt content and happy... just like fairy tales are supposed to make you feel! 

An afterthought... I was wondering why the girl on the cover was holding a head of lettuce. Weird, huh? If anything, shouldn't she be holding a flower or an animal? I found out that Rapunzel is a kind of lettuce and that lettuce is what she was named after!