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| Jane Yolen (February 11, 1939 – June 11, 2026) - photo portrait by daughter, Heidi Stemple |
We lost one of the most prolific and inspiring American authors who wrote across multiple genres and generations last month, but the title she was affectionately given by the press due to her constant work with and championing of fairy tales was "America's Hans Christian Andersen"*.
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| Heidie Stemple commenting on her late mother's response to the affectation for Louisville Public Media |
The author of over 450 books, Yolen didn't just write and work with fairy tales, of course, but they were a subject never far from her mind and heart. The range of tales she told and retold, for kids through to adults, reflected how integral they were to her own life and way of thinking, and that's what I will be focusing on in this tribute.
*She was also referred to as the "Aesop of the 20th century".
Reclaiming Women's History & Retelling Fairy Tales For Brave Girls
Yolen's first book sale, Pirates in Petticoats, happened on her 22nd birthday, February 11, 1961. The feminist non-fiction story already showed her proclivity for telling tales with strong and unusual female protagonists, something she continued to do throughout her life in her fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and in mining fairy and folktales for forgotten stories to retell in freshly inspiring fairy tale anthologies. Sometimes, as in Sister Bear, her retelling of a favorite Norwegian tale of mine (The Cat on the Dovrefjell), she would change the male hero into a girl or woman, asking that we reframe traditional ideas of bravery and heroism.
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| Tribute piece for Jane Yolen June 12, 2026 by Astrid Sheckles |
Raising Up Forgotten Voices and Stirring Up Controversy
Born to Jewish parents and considering herself a secular Jew, Yolen identified as a poet and journalist/non-fiction writer, though she was most often referred to as a children's book author, as these became her most well-known works. Both Briar Rose and The Devil's Arithmetic, dealing with aspects of the Holocaust, were included on reading lists for middle and high school for a time, and later banned due to censorship for the subject matter and due to the sexual orientation of a key character. In a similar vein, her book on Christopher Columbus, Encounter, in contrast to other books at the time, portrayed the "discovery of America" as not only disruptive but frightening to the indigenous populations, which also drew controversy. Her writing on these subjects and others of a similar nature continued unapologetically throughout her life, encouraging and empowering many others to not only learn about these hidden histories but to investigate history themselves, take up their own pen, and continue to do the same.
A Champion of the Power of Fairy and Folktales
Winner of multiple prestigious awards (including a Caldecott, two Nebula Awards, the World Fantasy Association's Lifetime Achievement Award, and many more), Yolen's writing spanned multiple genres, with her use of folktales, fantasy, and poetic imagination drawing readers of all ages to both explore history in new ways and to see the world through eyes primed to discover and create their own wonder. A running theme through her life and work, she believed strongly in the power of fairy tales to succinctly communicate truths she believed people need to hear in a "non-messy" and memorable way, and to spread the type of hope they need to really live.
Writing With Her Children
Jane Yolen married David Stemple in 1962 and had three children, all of whom write ("the family business", as Heidi joked), and have creative careers. Jason Stemple is an author, photographer, and drone pilot, Adam Stemple is a musician and author (of seven books and many short stories to date), and Heidi Stemple is an author and speaker, writing mainly for children (with over thirty books published, at this writing). Yolen has creatively collaborated and co-authored multiple books with all three of her children. "Family business" indeed!
Yolen's Briar Rose
Yolen's Briar Rose (published in 1992) deserves a special mention on a fairy tale blog, as you will see. It was originally published as part of the Fairy Tale Series of novels, compiled by Terri Windling. It won the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Adult Literature in 1993. For those who are unfamiliar with, or need a refresher on, the book, I am including a quote from an education guide (on unbancoolies.org) to give a quick overview and to explain why its particular intertextuality was so unique at the time, as well as why it was, and remains, critically acclaimed (emphasis in bold and underline is mine):
Jane Yolen’s Briar Rose is not just a story about a sleeping princess but a narrative that connects fairy tale motifs with real-world history. The book intertwines the traditional story with the experiences of a Holocaust survivor, who is the grandmother of the narrator. This blending of fantasy and history creates a powerful juxtaposition that brings new meaning to the themes of survival, memory, and the power of storytelling. By incorporating the Holocaust into her version, Yolen transforms Briar Rose into a story about resilience and the enduring strength of the human spirit amidst unimaginable darkness. This approach encourages readers to see fairy tales not only as escapist fantasies but also as vessels for preserving history and teaching important lessons.
Yolen’s use of storytelling within the narrative serves as a metaphor for healing and remembrance. The act of telling and retelling the story of Briar Rose becomes a way for the characters—and readers—to confront trauma and find hope. This technique highlights the transformative power of stories, a recurring theme in Yolen’s work.
With countless adaptations of Briar Rose or Sleeping Beauty, Jane Yolen’s version is distinguished by its emotional depth and historical context. Many fairy tale retellings focus on romance or fantasy elements, but Yolen’s narrative challenges readers to think critically about history, memory, and the importance of passing down stories through generations.
Another aspect that enriches Yolen’s Briar Rose is its subtle incorporation of Jewish folklore and cultural references. This adds authenticity and depth to the story, especially given the Holocaust context. Readers gain insight into how cultural identity and storytelling intertwine, making the narrative resonate on multiple levels.
Despite multiple attempts and much enthusiasm from fans and entertainment industry professionals around the globe, this dream was never realized, though many other of her works found new life across the visual mediums of movies and TV.
Here is a little background on how this book came to be, which reads a little like a magical story all on its own. This screenshot is from Jane Yolen's personal website, in which she recounts how the book came to be. (It should be noted that this book was originally published for adults.):
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| Jane Yolen's personal recounting of the inspiration and impact of her historically-based retelling of Sleeping Beauty, Briar Rose |
Briar Rose was an influential work for me* and sits on my favorite works bookshelf. Her more recent verse novel, Finding Baba Yaga (written as a series of connected poems), in which this blog was delightfully and weirdly mentioned through an odd misunderstanding I can't help but treasure, now sits beside it, and there's a story to that book, too, which I will tell below.
*I also recommend the audiobook - something I rarely do.
How Once Upon A Blog Ended Up In Finding Baba Yaga
Finding Baba Yaga credits OUABlog ("...the very strange website Once Upon A Blog... Fairy Tale News.." is how she refers to it) in the preface of this book, published in 2018, with writing the "Ask Baba Yaga" regular "advice" feature, which Yolen says inspired her to write this unique verse novel. While I did present the column in my own way, the "Ask Baba Yaga question and "advice" was not my work, but the brainchild of mythic writer and seer Tiasia Kitaiskaia. At the time, Kitaiskaia was publishing these brief pieces of advice to a niche readership in The Hairpin, and had generously given me written permission to re-publish them in my own format on Once Upon A Blog as a regular feature. Once Yolen's new book hit shelves, and I discovered the mistaken credit, I immediately began a flurry of messages and emails to Yolen, her publisher, and Kitaiskaia to rectify the mistake as quickly as possible. Though I never heard what passed between Yolen and Kitaiskaia regarding the mistake, it had been revealed that Yolen was a regular reader of Once Upon A Blog, and the discovery, via reading OUABlog, has remained a part of the preface (with adjusted wording so Kitaiskaia's genius is clear), becoming an odd part of the lore here, which I remained tickled by and treasure.
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| Screenshot from GoogleBooks showing the mention of OUABlog across two pages. Note: this is the adjusted mention |
Always An Insightful, Generous Poet - Even When Commenting On Posts & Socials
Yolen was not only a prolific writer but also remained actively interactive with writers and artists of fantasy and fairy tale, often responding to comments on posts with spontaneous poetry that took conversations to another level. Terri Windling's incredible blog, Myth & Moor (now sadly retired), was a favorite online haunt of hers where she not only showed support for Windling and her other dear friends there, but regularly offered her artistic response to a post or comment by way of writing her responses in spontaneous, often fairy tale-alluding poetry.
Her Mark - and Her Magic - Remains
Quirky, unique, outspoken, a master wordsmith, and magical, she is already greatly missed. To have lived in a world where she was writing, busy creating wondrous works, and distilling conversations and comments into little fairy tales filled with profound observations and wisdom that we can continue to tell, forever, has been a privilege.
Thank you for everything, Jane.
Your star will shine brightly ever after.
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| Tribute portrait of Jane Yolen June 12, 2026 by Jarrett J. Krosoczka __________________________________________________ |
A Small Selection of Yolen's Fairy Tale-Related Book Covers
- Briar Rose
- Finding Baba Yaga
- Tam Lin
- Sister Emily's Lightship and Other Stories
- Touch Magic - Fantasy, Faerie & Folklore in the Literature of Childhood
- Mapping the Bones
- The Girl Who Cried Flowers and Other Tales
- Gray Heroes - Elder Tales From Around the World
- The Seeing Stick
- Jewish Fairy Tale Feasts - A Literary Cookbook (Tales retold by Jane Yolen, Recipes by Heidi E.Y. Stemple)
- Sleeping Ugly
- Tales of Wonder
- His Fairytale Life - A Book About Hans Christian Andersen
- Not One Damsel In Distress -Heroic Girls from World Folklore
- Once Upon A Time (she said)
- Fairy Tale Feasts - A Literary Cookbook for Young Readers and Eaters (Tales retold by Jane Yolen, Recipes by Heidi E.Y. Stemple)
- Sister Bear - A Norse Tale
- The Moon Ribbon and Other Tales
- The Fish Prince and Other Stories (with Shulamith Oppenheim)
- Twelve Impossible Things Before Breakfast
- Mightier Than The Sword
- Favorite Folktales from Around the World
- The Barefoot Book of Ballet Stories (with Heidi E. Y. Stemple & Rebecca Guay)
- How To Fracture A Fairy Tale
