Briar Rose (1992)

Yolen creatively uses flashback (during alternating chapters) to reveal the fairy tale that "Gemma" repeatedly told her grandchildren when they were young. However, I would classify this book more as historical fiction than fantasy, as it accurately depicts some of the worst atrocities (Holocaust) known to humankind. Personally, I was both confused and disturbed by the inclusion of a violent and overly graphic sexual encounter (with his past lover) that the prince shares with Becca as he tells the story of how he came to know her grandmother. It just seemed unnecessary and completely out of context. Unfortunately, the inclusion of this relegates Briar Rose as a book (and a very intriguing one) for an older teen audience. ( )

This book was a page-turner for me. Although it was a bit unrealistic and the dialogue may have been awkward at times (as noted by other reviewers), I thought that it spun the tale of a horrifying Holocaust experience in a unusual and engaging way. I was able to suspend disbelief and enjoy the flow of the words; I also became attached to the story's characters. It did what a good book should - it made me, the reader, want to find out more. ( )

I think I would have liked this book more if it had been anything like what I'd been expecting. When I read it, I was reading modern-day fairytale adaptations, and that's NOT what this is, despite the name. Well, it IS, actually, but not the happy-go-lucky version. It's ACTUALLY about a girl whose grandmother was a Holocaust victim, and the story she used to tell about what had happened to her. The grandmother kinda made it sound like Sleeping Beauty, but it's sad. Very sad. ( )

This review can also be found at: Written Permission

While I was reading this book, I couldn't shake the feeling that I had read it before. But I can't actually remember reading it. Which means I either haven't ever read Briar Rose, or it was so long ago that I don't remember.

I am not sure why, other than length and the fairy tale aspect, this book would be recommended for anyone under the teenage mark. It deals with some pretty heavy subject matter, as books about the Holocaust tend to.

This story was fairly heavy. I am enthralled with anything Holocaust related, so when I learned that this book entwined the story of Sleeping Beauty and the horror of the Holocaust, I had to read it. Briar Rose didn't disappoint.

There were times when I wanted to beat the characters over the head for their apparent stupidity. You are Jewish. You are researching your grandmother, who apparently has no past... and you can't put two and two together without having to have someone else spell it out for you? It was maddening to me.

That, combined with some editing inconsistencies (Aron and Aaron, both referring to the same person. As well as Potoki and Potocki) lessened my enjoyment of the book somewhat.

However, the plot drew me in. The sadness and longing to know about Gemma and the family history was very palpable. And when Gemma's story was being told, my heart broke, as it usually does when I read about the terrible things that happened while Hitler was in power.

Bottom Line: I really enjoyed this book, and I think I have actually read it before. There is no magic or fairy tale retelling with it, though, so if that is your expectation, then best look elsewhere. ( )

The first hundred or so pages of this novella is really just a frame story for the last seventy. Nevertheless it was fairly compelling throughout, and definitely a meaningful addition to the body of Holocaust literature.

It's interesting that this book was published as fantasy, which it isn't really. Also that it's won awards (and in my library, was labelled, although not shelved) as a YA novel. In her very good introduction to the "Fairy Tale Series" under which this this was published, Terri Windling quotes Tolkien in saying that the fairy tale became the domain of children "primarily because the adults do not want it, and do not mind if it is misused." I think Holocaust literature, and in general the literature of many dark chapters in history, has suffered this fate - if not actually misused, it's something you read when you're young because it's educational, but not something grown people are expected to think about.

Finally, the premise of the book reminded me of the quote, "To write a poem after Auschwitz is barbaric." On one hand, the book shows the process of creating art in response to the Holocaust as being empowering. On the other, how much did the fairy tale thread really add to the story? Yolen says at the end that no woman survived Chelmno and that "happy-ever-after is a fairy tale notion, not history." So is Briar Rose really a fantasy after all? Hmm. ( )