Rose Daughter, like Beauty was not a quick first read for me. I actually attempted this book ages ago after I first discovered who Robin McKinley was. But when I read the first two pages in the store, I just wasn’t grabbed, so I committed the ultimate book sin (at least according to Ruth) I read the last five pages. Lo and behold, I found that this version of Beauty and the Beast did NOT end the way it was supposed to. All I could thin was, why would anyone want this book to end in such a way?
Fast forward nine years. Rose Daughter is a YA book. But where Beauty may have a better hold on the Y, Rose Daugher accentuates the growth and maturity found in this often overlooked and forgotten genre. This book is slow, but in a soothing way. Nothing smashes into your conscience; rather, the story, and the characters slip into your heart without you realizing it, until you come to care about them deeply. And at the end of the book, you see why Beauty makes the choice that she does.
For a few less obtuse statements, McKinley does, once again, take some liberties with the story. The sisters are again, loving and caring towards Beauty, rather than petty and jealous. A difference this time is that they too have names that fit their descriptions. Jeweltongue is clever and impatient with anyone not as clever as her. Lionheart is brave, and has no time for those less fearless than herself. Beauty, according to her, is named so simply because there is nothing important enough about her to merit anything else. She’s pretty – that’s all. You as the reader, along with the rest of the characters know otherwise. Beauty’s sisters learn patience and love from their younger sister, whose true loveliness, of course lies in her gentle and common sense nature.
Perhaps the final climatic scene takes a bit too long, but this is McKinley, and those who have read her will know that sometimes she writes in loops rather than straight lines. Those who haven’t read her should understand this fact, and realize that most of the time it’s a blessing as she paints and colors scenes of beauty and life for her readers.
When you’re looking for a new telling of Beauty and the Beast, read Beauty first. The heroine will make all those who ever experienced adolescence smile. Later, when you’re ready for a book to slowly creep over the horizon, read Rose Daughter.
