The legend of The Pied Piper of Hamelin, in which the unlucky and very unwise residents of that city pay a terrible price when they break their word, has been retold countless times, in both poetry and prose. From Goethe to Robert Browning, from the Brothers Grimm to modern storytellers too numerous to mention, many hands have helped to shape this story. This edition, with rhyming text by Australian author Robert Holden, and illustrations by Czech expatriate artist Drahos Zak, is one of my favorite adaptations, equal in my esteem to the marvelous Sara and Stephen Corrin version, with illustrated by Errol le Cain.

Holden's poetic interpretation reads smoothly enough, but it is Drahos Zak's astonishing illustrations which really make this title worthwhile. His tall Piper is matched by the tall book itself, and seems to dominate any scene in which he appears. Hamelin itself is a masterpiece of tottering medieval architecture, with some details left unfinished, as if still in the planning phase. I was reminded a bit of Escher's dizzying constructions. Zak's people (save the Piper) are rather squat, and their faces have a Gorey-esque quality to them that is eerie, but compelling. The most powerful scene, to my mind, is the one in which one of the burghers' true, rat-like nature is revealed - a nightmarish spread in which a rat rises up out of the man's shadow, towering above him. A true visual treat, and highly recommended to anyone looking for a good retelling of this tale! ( )