Iron John: Picture Book
Children’s Book by Eric A. Kimmel, Illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman
Iron John by Eric A Kimmel with illustrations by Trina Schart Hyman is a wonderful introduction for both young and old to a fairy tale that is unfamiliar to most.
Background
Iron John is a fairy tale that was originally collected by Jacob and Wilhem Grimm. It is not a well-known fairytale except to men who have been drawn to it through Robert Bly’s self-help book Iron John: A Book About Men. Despite its lack of popularity, Iron John is a story worth introducing to children not only for the reasons proposed by Robert Bly (who suggests that men need male mentors to help them develop into mature, masculine men) but also because it is a good fairy tale.
Eric A. Kimmel introduces it to us in his 1994 picture book, which is beautifully illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman. Kimmel took a number of liberties with the original text but provides us with a tighter story with a heart-warming moral.
The Story
Iron John is the story of a young boy who goes to play near his father’s menagerie. He loses his gold ball in the cage of the most feared creature in the menagerie, Iron John. The boy asks Iron John to return his ball. The wild man agrees but only if Walter frees him. Iron John proceeds to tell him that the key is hidden beneath the boy’s mother’s pillow. Walter agrees to help him. Once the wild man is free, Walter seems to realize what he has done and the trouble he will be in when he is found out and so asks to accompany the wild man.
Walter grows in Iron John’s care and is given the responsibility of ensuring that nothing falls into a magical pool. Three times Walter fails and allows some part of his body to enter the pool. Everything that enters the pool turns to gold but after the third time the pool’s magic is vanquished and Walter is left with golden hair and a golden finger. Iron John sends him away for breaking his trust three times. But tells Walter that if he ever needs anything to blow on a horn three times.
Walter leaves and enters the service of a king. At first he is offered a position with the princesses but as he is covered and mud and smells badly, he is sent to the garden where he is befriended by the garden girl. As the story progresses, Walter turns to Iron John three times to provide him with what he needs to be in the society of the King and princesses. The final time, he seeks out bandits and is wounded while battling them.
Days later, he is carried back in his golden armor to the palace in a long procession led by a king with an iron crown. Iron John had been a cursed man but the curse is now broken and his kingship revealed. He now seeks help for his dear friend, Walter, who is wounded to death and who can be only be cured by true-love’s tears. The princesses think that they will save him until the amour is pulled back and they see that it is Walter-in-the-Mud. When they realize who it is their eyes dry but Elsa the garden maiden rushes forward and cries over Walter.
Elsa becomes his bride and Iron John’s kingdom becomes Walter’s.
The Writing
The bones are nice. However, Kimmel’s writing has that wonderfully romantic and lyrical quality of good fairytales that draws you in and allows you to believe in magic. His writing elevates this tale to a higher place.
Illustrations
The illustrations by Trina Schart Hyman are beautiful. They are dreamy and rich. The most absorbing illustrations are those of Iron John and Walter in the forest. The forest is dark and dense, always overwhelming the humans in the paintings. There is a psychological component to these paintings that draws a person in. The painting of Iron John, Walter, and Elsa is easily the most compelling painting in the book.
Iron John stands behind Walter wearing a crown bearing antlers and looking like a druidic king. Walter’s golden hair and dark skin is beautiful. Iron John’s hands firmly grasp Walter’s shoulders. Walter’s hands rest on Elsa’s shoulders. She reaches back with one hand to hold his hand. All three look directly at the viewer with a strange and compelling intensity.
Conclusion
Iron John is still a true fairy tale. There is a simplicity in the story that reveals unexplainable mysteries. Kimmel doesn’t ruin the story by explaining away the mystery or giving us too much insight into the motives of the characters. The psychological darkness of Hyman’s paintings add another layer.
The wisest editorial decision of Kimmel was to twist the traditional fairy tale ending where Walter would have married the princess and instead gives Walter the richly deserving Elsa. The result is a story where the values of honesty, love, and loyalty are valued. A lesson that all children should learn.
Iron John: adapted from the Brothers Grimm, by Eric A. Kimmel, illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman. (Holiday House, 1991. ISBN 0-8234-1073-0)
