I’ve always loved fairytale retellings - the stories are so much a part of our cultural heritage, and have shaped the canon in so many ways, that it’s fascinating to explore their universes in greater depth. What sort of person was Sleeping Beauty when she was awake? Didn’t the Ugly Stepsisters have their own stories to tell? And, perhaps most intriguingly of all, what did happen after ‘happily ever after’? Surely all those tales didn’t just taper off into uninterestingness once we got past the ‘wedding in the last reel’.

Luckily, there has been no shortage of excellent retellings, whether exquisitely serious (Robin McKinley and Gregory Maguire, to name but two authors whose work has never disappointed me) or sidesplittingly funny (Roald Dahl’s “Revolting Rhymes”, Pratchett’s “Witches Abroad”). And, apart from the sheer delight in seeing a favourite playground returned to, these stories and poems are intriguing for the unexpected - indeed, often startling - perspectives they bring to bear on the old, familiar material.

Today’s poem is one such example - hilarious, yes, but relying for its humour on a genuine “wow - that’s certainly plausible! Why didn’t I think of that?” reaction on the reader’s part. Just another of the sparkling little gems that Silverstein seems to have produced so effortlessly and in such great quantity - once again, I wish I’d discovered him as a child.

— Martin

Links

I found today’s poem in the wonderful collection at

http://littlecalamity.tripod.com/Poetry/Parodies.html

  Several other poets have enjoyed exploring the canonical folk-universe of
  fairy tales, fables, nursery rhymes, etc. - see, for example, the rather
  Tintinesque duo of Carroll and Carryl:
    [broken link] http://www.cs.rice.edu/~ssiyer/minstrels/index_poet_C.html