Wildwood Dancing
by Juliet Marillier
You know what’s annoying about most traditional fairy tales? Well… lots… but mostly the lack of details and character development, especially in female characters. Even when the female character is the protagonist, she rarely has any depth, power, or agency of her own. Booooooo.
One of my favorite literary fairy tales is “The Twelve Dancing Princesses,” and my favorite version (so far) is Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier.
This retelling deviates from the original quite a bit. There were many alterations I enjoyed and understood the reasoning behind. I appreciated the choice to reduce the number of sisters to five – it made a lot of sense. It would be difficult to delve completely into the character of each sister if there were so numerous. With twelve, there is less of an opportunity for each to have a unique character, and they devolve into more simple cardboard cutout representations of some unique interest, trait or feature. With fewer sisters, the reader can more easily connect to and distinguish between the sisters as they each have their own unique characteristics. The characters of the sisters were not the only things given more detail and development.
Relationships in general had more depth and believability. I specifically always enjoy when a romance is fleshed out and seems more natural and realistic. In this version of the story, the heroine knows her romantic prospect very well (even if she knows him mostly as her loyal pet frog.) The relationships between the family were also more detailed and depicted well. I also enjoyed that the story was more about the sisters discovering their own agency rather than about being caught by a male power. The book had a strong feminist message, and I enjoyed that, as it is a rarity in most classic fairy tales.
This version is also exciting because of the backdrop – the story is set in a specific historical place and time (albeit with a bit of magic thrown in). It takes place in Transylvania, and because the setting is so authentic, it adds to the realism of the characters and their entire story. The fanciful tale of fairies, vampires, magic lands and frog ‘princes’ has a stronger message because of its underlying structure and the very solid foundation on which it was based. Marillier was able to utilize the elements of historical fact to shape and impact the fantasy elements, making them more believable. I love the idea that a fairy tale, like a Shakespeare play, can often transcend any specific time and place for its setting.
My favorite update to this classic was Marillier’s choice to have the second sister be the protagonist. In such fairy tales, it is invariably the oldest or the youngest sister who receives the primary narrative attention. I thought this was a great break from tradition! It was unexpected and gratifying to see an oft overlooked character get to be the heroine in the spotlight for once. Second daughters everywhere, rejoice!
ALSO, the Faerie Tale Theatre version of this is SUCH FUN.
OMG whut this is on YOUTUBE now!!?!?!?
Or you can buy it online:
WOW this is the one I have, but I did NOT spend $150 on it!!!
I guess this is the thing now…