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Overview
In September 1863, Jacob Grimm travels through rural western Germany with his devoted niece, Auguste, who longs to learn at last the truth about her family. They are accompanied by Kummel, their new and enigmatic manservant. As relations between the three reach a crisis point, vivid flashbacks tell of Jacob's traumas and heartbreaks. Old now, Jacob resists Auguste's attempts to make him take stock of his life, but memories that are repressed have a tendency to reappear in other places, and in other guises.
Throughout Jacob's travels, he is reminded of the folktales he and his brother Wilhelm collected in their Tales for the Young and Old. Most notable is the feverish fairytale of "Sleeping Beauty," which holds a shattered mirror to a life, a country, and a history. The version recounted here is an enchanting tale that goes beyond the marriage of the Prince and Princess, to reveal the surprising truth behind the evil.
In his compelling historical novel, Haydn Middleton re-creates the life story of literature's most famous brothers. It is a history that could almost be a fairytale itself, with its fabulous changes of fortune, tests of duty and honor, arrogant princes, lost loves, and twisted family relationships-all unfolding in a world of dark forests and even darker politics.
Synopsis
A feverish fairytale holds a shattered mirror to the lives of the Brothers Grimm in this fantasical novel.
The fairytale of Sleeping Beauty as we know it is only half the story. Throughout this novel, passages of Jacob Grimm's last fairytale tempt us to delve deeper into the world of dark forests and even darker politics which surrounded the writing of the Grimms' Tales for the Young and Old.
This compelling historical novel recreates the life story of literature's most famous brothers. It is a history that could almost be a fairytale itself with its fabulous changes of fortune, tests of duty and honor, lost loves and twisted family relationships. As Grimm's niece Auguste attempts to learn an old family secret, classic fairytales are retold, memories are relived, and the magical and mysterious German woods forever haunt in the background.
About the Author:
Since graduating from New College, Oxford, in 1976 Haydn Middleton has taught and lectured in history. He is also the author of six acclaimed novels. He lives in Oxford, England, with his two children.
SFX
An extraordinary novel ....It manages to convey a whole life of aspirations, yearnings and disappointments, set against a tumultuous political background of German unification and rooted in the mythological past.
Editorials
From the Publisher
"An extraordinary novel...It manages to convey a whole life of aspirations, yearnings, and disappointments set against a tumultuous political background of German reunification and rooted in the mythological past."—SFX Magazine (U.K.) {starred review}
"Haydn Middleton's rich language and excellent characterization bring to life the multifaceted nineteenth-century Germany...An unusual, beautifully written story."—Historical Novels Review
"A compelling tale, this book has the power to both shock and enthrall in much the same way as the fairy tales themselves."—The Examiner (U.K.)