Deerskin

Rating:
Summary: Magical fantasy from painful reality
Review: Deerskin is Robin McKinley's most disturbing and powerful book, and possibly her most beautiful. The heroine, Princess Lissar, is beautiful, royal, and a survivor. "Deerskin" rips apart our mosttreasured little-girl fantasies - that being beautiful, rich, royal and the belle of the ball must be wonderful; that families are perfect, and that princes are always handsome. The story is riveting, sometimes even painful to read. McKinley's incomparable skill with language draws us into the kingdom ruled by Lissar's handsome and heroic father, and her mother, "the most beautiful woman in seven kingdoms" - the quintessential fantasy land. When Lissar's mother dies, her father's grief knows no bounds, and eventually takes a sinister turn. The illusion of perfection is forever shattered, along with Lissar's trust - and her life as she knows it. The tale of this traumatized young girl's survival and her growth into a remarkable woman (with just a little magic thrown in) is the rest of the story. Add a faithful dog and the love of a most unlikely prince to complete the fairy tale. "Deerskin's" enchantment springs from the lovely but dangerous realms of the original tales of the Brothers Grimm. It's not for children. McKinley's other books are stunningly beautiful. "Deerskin" is beautiful - and stunning.

Rating:
Summary: A griping fantasy firmly planted in reality.
Review: I was searching for a book when the cover of Deerskin caught my eye, whoever designed it has a true gift for art. After reading the book I believe the artist to have a great talent for capturing a characters soul. Although many of the previous reviewer do not recommend this book for young readers I feel I must. I read this book at about 13 and it opened my eyes to the painful world many of my friend have had to live through. I love the way McKinley allows our heroine, Lissar, time to heal herself and come to terms to what has happened to her. It is refreshing to read a book that shows an acurate portrayal of a young woman in pain. McKinley's simple yet strong writing style only adds to the drama that is naturally engrained in the storyline. Ash is the perfect character for the necessary comic relief, subtle yet so true one can picture ones own dog acting the same way. It was a refreshing change to have an animal companion as the balance in Lissar's upside down world. Ossin is the perfect romantic lead for this story. He's not macho or overbearing he is only concerned for Lissars happiness and the wellbeing of his dogs, an interest they both share. In the end the reader is pleased to see the obligatory romance occur. It's like watching an old friend finally get the happiness they deserve. That is what this book is to me and I hope is to many people, an old friend. After reading Deerskin i ran out and bought every McKinley book I could find and have been emmensely pleased with every one. I would reccomend this book to any one who has suffered in any way or to anyone who loves a good read. Like many other of the reviewers of this book I have read this book many times and I will continue to do so in the future.

Rating:
Summary: Not too good, but not bad either.
Review: While I wouldn't go so far as to say this book was excellent, I would have no qualms about giving it to children just because of the incest themes. Stories like these can be very helpful to kids who've been molested by a parental figure. Children who are fortunate enough not to have had this experience should still know that it exists, and a folktale is an excellent way to bring it to their attention.

Rating:
Summary: Lissar and Ash
Review: Princess Lissar leads a very lonely life until her mother dies and she is sent a puppy as a gift. Lissar grows up with her dog, Ash, as her closest friend but as she gets older she looks more and more like her mother. After she is abused by her father Lissar and Ash run away from home. She lives in the woods for months not remembering her past but knowing something awful happened to her. One day she goes to a city and falls for the prince who sent her Ash but she cannot get over her past.

This is a much more adult fairytale than McKinley's other works but it is also a more realistic one. It deals with deep psychological pain and love isn't a cure for everything. It's also not a book for everyone. If themes of incest and rape bother you then you should avoid this book. I'm not saying that this book is a completely sad one though. The sad beginning makes the happy moments and the journey to get there very satisfying. This is the best book I've read in a while and any fairytale fan is sure to enjoy it.

Rating:
Summary: Take the Good with the Bad
Review: It's the tale of your usual most-beautiful-princess - with a twist. Her father decides to marry her after her mother's death, the tale has a rather graphic assault scene to end Part One, and a weak ending to indicate happy ever after. I found Part One (84 pages) very tiresome and tedious, with the language very 'fairy-tale-like', which is great in a short fairy tale but not so fun in a book. However, I slogged through and found that Part Two was much lovelier and worth the wait. Part Three was good, but not the rousing conclusion that Part Three merited. As much as I like McKinley, and as much as I enjoyed Part Two of the novel, I have to rate it lower since the beginning and end weren't as pleasing

Rating:
Summary: Beautiful, but NOT the fairy tale!
Review: I read this as part of a bundle of retold fairy tales, and was insanely confused. This book bears very, very little resemblence to its parent story, "Donkeyskin," and thus, was very distracting to me. I kept looking for parallels to the original story, and didn't find them. The only part that followed, in fact, was the first section, where Lissar's mother dies, and her father declares his intention to marry his daughter. When Lissar refuses, he rapes her and leaves her for dead. The next morning, she flees the castle with the clothes on her back and her faithfun sighthound, Ash.

While I did love the made-up mythology, and the subplot-which-rapidly-became-the-plot about the dogs and the Moonwoman, the repetitive nature of the early parts of the book ("Your mother was the most beautiful woman in the world" repeated five or six times a page for about fifty pages) and Lissar's disconnectedness from the world around her following her assault drove me crazy. Some numbness I would certainly expect from a survivor or a brutal rape, but her inner monologue became tedious in the extreme after a short while. "It is getting cold. It is also getting dark. White stuff is falling out of the sky. What is the white stuff called? Oh, it is called snow. It is falling on this...stuff growing out of my head. I think the word for the stuff that grows out of my head is hair."

Such a person, you'd think, would have lasted approximately ten minutes in the deep woods. But no. She suddenly morphs into an experienced woodswoman, all while maintaining this disconnected demeanor.

On the flip side, though, I do have to give McKinley kudos for...adjusting...some aspects of the original fairy tale that never made sense to me. For example, in the original story, the unnamed Princess, now called Donkeyskin, escapes to the neighboring kingdom and proceeds to make the prince of that land fall madly in love with her. I always though, "What? How many friggin' princesses can there BE in a 50 mile radius? Why doesn't he recognize her?" McKinley handles this by disguising Lissar--AND her dog--so that no one can tell where they came from.

Despite the lyrical, haunting prose, I got the feeling that McKinley tried to be daring by pickig one of the more gruesome fairy tales out there to retell, but then wimped out before going the full monty and telling the full story of the sun, the moon, the stars, and, of course, the donkeyskin.

Rating:
Summary: One of her Best
Review: I've read Deerskin at least four times! I find it extremely interesting and enjoyable. There is a rape scene, which can be disturbing, but isn't as graphic or "horrible" as several other books I was required to read in English class. Although I would not recommend this to younger teens, it is a wonderful book for everyone else. My favorite parts are of Lissar in the forest (the first time) and of her caring for the puppies with the prince. I McKinley had contiued the end out a little bit more (I do love love stories)...but I found it fulfilling enough. Read this book...if you like McKinley, then you'll love this book!

Rating:
Summary: Fairy tales don't come true ... and that's ok.
Review: I love this book. I've read it 4 times.

It begins like a classic fairy tale as the Princess Lissla Lissar learns about the courtship and marriage of her parents. Their history together is the stuff of myth and legend, and their fairy-tale romance has made them the most popular, fashionable couple in the Kingdom's history. Even the language lends itself to classic tale-telling--it is lyrical and visual with plenty of superlatives (ie. Lissar's mother is the most beautiful woman in seven kingdoms.) But the author asks herself some important questions: What if it were true?? What if a woman really was that beautiful? What if her intended really did risk life and limb on an impossible quest to win her hand? This stuff happens in fairy tales all the time, but what if it happened in real life? The answer is one that many fantasy readers aren't ready for. McKinley postulates that such a relationship would foster a sick co-dependence and any children in the equation would be mere afterthoughts.

There are several clues right from the beginning that all is not well, but they are subtle. Many previous reviewers don't understand how things could suddenly change from fairy-tale perfect to dark horror, but they have missed the important point that things were never REALLY perfect! The story is written from the point of view of a child who grows up to realize her parents aren't the heroes she believed them to be (don't we all?). As she learns, the clues become less subtle and more internal to the character's perspective.

Isn't it always great tragedy that sets up the opportunity for tremendous human kindness? This story is a beautiful example of just that. Yes, it deals with incest and rape, but is does so briefly and tastefully. There are no cheap Nora Roberts-esque graphics here.

In a nutshell, this is a great survival story of the Robinson Crusoe variety. And don't worry, the bad guy gets what is coming to him.

Although Deerskin is a Reality Tale, it never loses its lyrical quality, and it contains enough traditional magic and myth that the fantasy reader is completely satisfied. Now, please excuse me. I have to go read it again...

Rating:
Summary: Not worth it
Review: If you're looking at this because you're a fan of the other McKinley books, I'd skip it. It has a disturbing rape scene at the beginning & is definetly not for children. I am willing to read things like that if the story is worth it, but I didn't think it went anywhere or was interesting. I'm a huge fan of Robin McKinley but I threw this book away.

Rating:
Summary: One of my favorite books
Review: This is one of my favorite stories. It's so well-written that you're kept entertained even at relativly "static" periods, such as Lissar's journey through the woods. It's really a book about healing, hope, and overcoming. Very inspiring and aplicable to just about everyone.