Girl in the Golden Bower - Book 2

The Girl in the Golden Bower, by Jane Yolen, illustrated by Jane Dyer, copyright 1994.

The Girl in the Golden Bower was the first Jane Yolen book Rose and I had ever read and we loved it.  Yolen has written many, many books ranging from silly/fun to histories to young-adult fiction, but Rose and I love her fairytale/fantasy books best, and this one is our favorite.

The story is in most ways traditional fairytale: a woodsman, a lost princess, an evil sorceress, humans turned to animals by a wicked spell, a magic object (in this case a comb), enchanted sleep, and the right combination of people and circumstance, particularly a brave little girl, that holds the key to breaking the evil spell.

But what makes this particular fairytale so very wonderful is the winning combination of Yolen's beautiful language and Dyer's divinely beautiful watercolors illustrations.

Soon after the king's disappearance and the coming of a great beast to the land, the woodsman meets a frail woman wandering alone:

There was something permanently lost about her, as if everything she had in the world was gone, even her name.  She owned nothing but the dress she wore, made with tiny stitches both neat and fair, and a plain comb the color of her long russet hair.

They fall in love, marry, and have a golden-haired child they name Aurea (gold) for the color of her hair.  But, as often happens in fairytales, through the enchantress's treachery, Aurea is orphaned and left with no one in the world save the cook/enchantress, and we are told, "though Aurea was a trusting child, she did not trust the cook."


Instead, while the enchantress searches with mad obsession for a magic object she can sense without knowing exactly what it it, Aurea turns to the forest animals for companionship and using her mother's comb, now magically transformed to the color of gold to match her own hair, she, "curried the tangles from their fur" and "braided strands of her own golden hair into theirs...."

The enchantress eventually resorts to using her magic to try and force the girl (the only person left who could hold the object she seeks) to give it to her.  The kindness and compassion the child had shown to the woodland creatures comes back to her in turn, as they sustain her as she is victim to the enchantress's magic.

Eventually the child comes face to face with the great beast (whose coming to the land coincided with the king's disappearance), whose roar, "was like thunder between the hills."  But, in the way of all good fairy stories, her kindness and trust break the spell.  And in the way of Jane Yolen's particular brand of fairy stories, the happily ever after does not come without some understanding of what was lost in the many unhappy years that came before.

There are some long, unillustrated passages in this story (well, illustrated by beautiful borders, but not illustrations of the story), and some complicated language, but at the time we first read this, I was surprised at how steady Rose was, even though she was a preschooler at the time, never squirming or impatient to get to the next picture (and, as I said, those lovely pictures are certainly worth getting to!).  I think the beauty of the words Yolen has chosen to tell her tale, as well as the elegance of the tale itself, were more than enough to hold her attention.  I think this is definitely a book to be read aloud--the poetry of the language deserves that.

A lot of Rose's favorites seem to involve girls who, through bravery, intelligence, strength of character or some combination, save the day.  This book is not your typical "girl power" kind, but Aurea's kindness and strength in very adverse circumstances are central to the happy ending.

If you happen to have a child who has lost a parent or is feeling sensitive about losing parents, you may want to hold off on this one, though, since Aurea does lose each parent, and a scene where her mother says goodbye on her deathbed does make her loss fairly clear. 

But, if you have a patient older preschooler, and especially one who enjoys language and dramatic themes (Rose was one of those kids who was definitely drawn to drama and emotion in her stories!), I would give this book a shot.  And, for many younger elementary aged children, I think this beautiful story would make wonderful storytime reading.

Rose's take:

I will say that The Girl in the Golden Bower is a little sad (It deals with poison mushrooms, death, and a truly nasty sorceress), but it is such a great book, and has a very happy ending.  The illustrations are wonderful, the plot is interesting and smart, and it is about a princess who saves the day.  What more could you want?  I'd definitely pick this one up next time you're at the library.