Deerskin (novel)

Deerskin
First edition cover
AuthorRobin McKinley
Cover artistDawn Wilson
LanguageEnglish
GenreFairytale fantasy
PublisherAce Books
Publication date
1 June 1993
Publication placeUnited States
Media typePrint
Pages309 pp
ISBN0-441-14226-5

Deerskin is a dark fantasy novel by Robin McKinley, first published in 1993.[1] It is based on an old French fairy tale by Charles Perrault called Peau d'âne (English translation: Donkeyskin).[2] It was nominated for the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Adult Literature.[3]

The book contains numerous adult themes including incest, rape, and miscarriage. It features McKinley's typical protagonist, the resourceful heroine overcoming psychological trauma, and her favored motif of the animal helper.[4]

  1. ^ McKinley, Robin. Deerskin. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help)
  2. ^ "Introduction to article". Project Muse.
  3. ^ "Mythopoeic Award Nominations". LibraryThing.
  4. ^ Haase, Donald (2008). "G-P". The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Folktales and Fairy Tales. Greenwood. pp. 612–3. ISBN 9780313334436.