McKinley, Robin
McKinley, Robin (Jennifer Carolyn McKinley) (1952– ),American fantasy writer for young adults. McKinley's work falls into two overlapping categories: the fictionalization of fairy tales and the creation of fantasy kingdoms. Prominent among the former are her novels based on ‘Beauty and the Beast’, Beauty (1978) and Rose Daughter (1997), both realizing Beauty—in different depths of detail—as the strong, independent central figure of a fantastical romance, with the 1997 version harbouring a surprise conclusion. Deerskin (1993), patterned on Perrault's ‘Donkey‐Skin’, explores faerie's darker side in portraying the heroine's escape from her father's incestuous rage. McKinley's fast‐paced fantasy The Blue Sword (1982) and its sequel The Hero and the Crown (1984), which won the Newbery Honor and Newbery...
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