After finishing Robert Coover's Pinocchio in Venice I felt disappointed. Though the plot frequently nods to the original tale, Coover offers a complicated, meandering and repetitive plot that never serves to further the story of Pinocchio or clarify the lessons he should learn. Coover's references to the original story are often lost or twisted within the complex story as Pinocchio meets old friends and enemies, revisiting the city of his birth. As I read I continually hoped that this book would offer clarity as to why and how Pinocchio became a boy, wondering the secret to unlock the magic of his transformation. However, Coover offers none of this, scattering his text with unlikeable and characters lacking any redeeming qualities. All the characters Pinocchio encounters are selfish, greedy and guileful. Additionally, Coover muddies the timeline of Pinocchio's life, refers to events from centuries ago, making it unclear how long Pinocchio existed as a puppet and a then as a boy. Coover created a dark world where Gepetto was an abusive alcoholic, depressed by his life and uncaring for Pinocchio. The Blue Fairy emerges as female figure who desperately wanted to fit into the human world by any means necessary and mothering Pinocchio became on of her strategies. Coover's work is twisted and depressing and became a chore to read.
The Once Upon a Time Reading Challenge introduced me to some new texts and left me curious to read more. Though reading some traditionally told fairy tales may make me feel nostalgic about my youth, works that re-envision the fairy tale interest me more. I am curious how to reconcile progressive feminist views about women with the females represented in fairy tales. Every little girl loves the idea of a princess, but how do we empower them with these stories? I know I loved the princesses in fairy tales because they are pretty and wear beautiful dresses, therefore I wanted to be like them in some way. That is not a message I want to perpetuate, yet fairy tales are a part of our culture. I want to share the fun of fairy tales as many texts build on these tropes and weave images into new stories, but I want to show young children that the girl can rescue the guy, or that one can take charge of her own life instead of blithely complying with the masses. Yet, I know some concepts I'd like to reinvent are beyond the comprehension of a young child (like explaining why some gals think "someday my princess will come" instead of prince). The role of fairy tales in modern storytelling will certainly evolve and I'd like to find a way to maintain the fun of traditional fairy tales while presenting more realistic world views. Though the Once Upon a Time Reading Challenge has come to an end for the rompers, I've got a few more books on my wish list to check out.
- KER
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