SOLVED. Rumpelstiltskin Kids' book with glossy piles of gold thread. [s]

[Summer]

I'm looking for a copy of a Rumpelstiltskin book that I had as a kid in the 90s. What I remember best about it were the illustrations - every page was a picture with a bit of writing on it, and I loved the lush piles of gold thread.
In color and style, it looked a lot like this book, with clean lines and bright colors, and I remember the miller's daughter being blonde and looking a lot like a Barbie (with two braids and a silly cap, if I remember correctly): https://www.amazon.com/Rumpelstiltski...

The book was not very thick - maybe a pinky's width with thick cardboard covers - but it was very big, bigger than a magazine, and had trouble fitting on bookshelves. It was a straightforward telling of the fairy tale, and had no twists.

[Alexis]

If it's the one I'm thinking of, it was retold by Edith Tarcov and had illustrations by Edward Gorey.

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.c...

Illustrations were in this style:
https://images.bonanzastatic.com/afu/...

[Summer]

Thank you, but that's not the one. The one I'm looking for was full color, and not Gorey's style.

[Angela]

Could it be the one by Paul O. Zelinsky? Large thin book, lush illustrations, piles and spools of gold thread in the corners. Rumpelstiltskin Google the book to look at other illustrations. It's also a Caldecott winner, which is understandable when you see the illustrations.

[Summer]

It definitely wasn't Zelinsky's, but thank you. It was closer to Disney animation style than oil paintings, and the thread was in loose piles like hair, not coiled on spools.

[Kris]

Summer, I'd suggest searching on Worldcat.org which is great for old children's books. For example:

http://www.worldcat.org/advancedsearch > Keywords: Rumpelstiltskin illustrations | 1960-2000? | Juvenile | Fiction | Book | English

[Adele]

Is it Rumpelstiltzkin. You can see the cover here: https://www.amazon.com/Rumpelstiltzki...

[Summer]

Wow, Adele, that's actually pretty close! That's what I meant by the gold thread piles looking like blonde hair, and the miller's daughter looking kinda like a Barbie. It's not the exact one I had, but it's definitely similar, thanks!
Kris - that's a good idea, and I'll try it. My library's Worldcat has been down for maintenance, but as soon as I can get in, I will.

[Lobstergirl, au gratin]

Summer, are you still looking for this or did you find it?

[Summer]

I'll give up on this one, Lobstergirl, I know it's a long shot. Thanks for checking up, and thanks to everyone who helped!

[Kris]

Summer, we can move your request to the "Query abandoned by poster" folder. You can move it back to the "Unsolved" folder at any time.

Just wondering, did you check Worldcat.org which is good for finding old children's books? Is this a short picture book (around 32-48 pages)? For example, the search below returns 107 book titles:

Search using WorldCat.org:
https://www.worldcat.org/advancedsear...
Keyword: Rumpelstiltskin illustrations | 1960-2000 | Juvenile | Fiction | Book | English
(Note: Sometimes the website glitches and defaults to a non-English language. Try right-clicking a blank area on the webpage and selecting Translate to English (or similar) from the browser's menu.)

[Summer]

I'll be damned, Kris, I took one last look through Worldcat and googled all the author names just to be sure, and I found it! I'm certain it's the 1977 Dean and Sons copy by Anna and Danuta Dzierzek.
Goodreads doesn't have the cover, but this is it: https://www.bookfinder.com/book/97806...
I knew I remembered that silly cap and pigtails.
I haven't been able to chase down a picture of the piles of gold thread, but the inner illustrations look a lot like this, if you're curious: https://www.ebay.com/itm/334014922875...

Thank you, Kris. It's amazing how the memories come flooding back.

[Kris]

That's great news, Summer. Glad you found your book - Rumpelstiltskin by Danuta Dzierzek. I've had a lot of luck finding old books on Worldcat.