A Curse Dark as Gold

A Curse Dark as Gold, by Elizabeth C. Bunce

ISBN:  9780439895767
New York: Arthur A. Levine Books, 2008.

Plot - Charlotte and Rosie Miller have lost their father, and in Charlotte's grief she fears they have lost everything and have no recourse to keep the family's fabric mill afloat.  But when Rosie finds her sister hiding from the mourners up in the mill and asks if they should close, Charlotte's determination suddenly rises to the surface and she answers that unless it's Sunday the mill stays open.  The girls run the workings and the utterly indebted, failing business of the mill as long as they can, negotiating with the bank for a manageable monthly mortgage when they learn that their father had remortgaged the property that had been in the family for five generations.  When even these terms become impossible, Charlotte is still not ready to sell to the competition but is beginning to lose focus on anything but keeping the mill.  Before long, a long-lost uncle whom neither girl remembers ever having met shows up bearing gifts and a questionable reason for being there.  When all looks lost, a character named Jack Spinner shows up, immediately after Rosie employs a magical wish for a saving grace, and their fate turns for the better.  But Jack demands a price that Charlotte must either pay or lose everything, and her ingenuity is put to the test against an old family curse.

Critical Evaluation - Elizabeth C. Bunce retells the age-old (much older than Grimm's version) Rumpelstiltskin story with a fresh eye out for a "miller's wife" who is not a nameless figure who goes back on her promises.  Charlotte is fully characterized, completely determined, and even a bit obsessive in her commitment to the family business, though Bunce does identify Charlotte's concern for the whole town's well being as part of her drive.  Rosie is equally fully present, with a personality all her own.  And the story's new twists make this a refreshing and appropriately dark take on the traditional fairy tale.  Bunce's first person narration in Charlotte's voice is accurate to the point of being frustratingly immature, but this ends up only adding to the book's fun.

Reader's annotation - Charlotte and Rosie have paid price after price to keep their family's mill.  When a savior arrives, how far will the sisters go to please him and keep their prize?
Genre - YA historical fantasy
Curriculum Ties - Useful in a study of fairy tales and their continued use in new stories
Information about the author:  Elizabeth Bunce is a needle worker and period seamstress/designer in addition to being a novelist.  She always wanted to be a writer, though, and in summer camp during high school found her first writing group which she says set her on her path.  Charlotte Miller did not come to Bunce fully formed; rather, according to the author's website, the character revealed herself piece by piece as Bunce crafted her story.

Booktalk ideas - 

1. Read the passage where Charlotte reveals to her husband,Randall, that she let their baby William go, and that it was the work of the curse.  Begin on pg. 363 with "William's been taken" and end on pg. 364 with "Is this about that curse?"
2. Begin by telling a quick version of the story of Rumpelstiltskin, and read from Bunce's "Author's Note" at the end on pg. 394 about her problems with the fairy tale, especially as the Brothers Grimm tell it.

Reading level - 14+, although the intricacy of language and the sometimes slow pace may appeal to the upper end of the YA range more.

Challenge issues - none
Why I included this book - Elizabeth C. Bunce was honored with the William C. Morris YA Debut Award for this book, and I whole-heartedly agree with the committee's decision.  The main reason I've included it is as a different take on historical fiction--historical fantasy.  It will appeal to fantasy lovers, yet it communicates much about the real history of 18th century English middle class life.  And the fantasy's being based on a fairy tale is a wonderful example of folk stories being continued on and on down through our generations.