The book Briar Rose closely follows the fairy tale Sleeping Beauty. Becca Berlin's grandmother, Gemma, was held in a secret concentration camp called Chelmno. She was placed in the gas chamber and was rendered unconscious rather than dead. She was thrown into a ditch with corpses. Josef Potocki and his band of rebels tampered with the railways leading to and from the camp. The group finds Gemma in the ditch and the group's doctor, Avenger, revives her with CPR. Gemma and Avenger fall in love and soon get married. In the fairy tale, Sleeping Beauty is revived with a kiss. Then the princess, of course, marries the prince and lives happily ever after. The band calls Gemma ksieznicka, which means princess in Poland. Gemma's story does not end happily. The band of rebels are ambushed by the Nazis and all of them are murdered except Josef and Gemma. The fairy tale is used as a metaphor in the story. Gemma used the story as a less scary way to tell the children about her past. Becca and her family didn't know this, they knew Gemma's story of her meeting her prince and her near-death experience. Hitler is evil in the Disney version of the story and the evil fairy in the other version. Gemma's unconsciousness is deep sleep. The Avenger's life-saving CPR was the prince's spell-breaking kiss. Gemma chose a very creative way to tell her story by hiding her history with Sleeping Beauty. Gemma represents Woolger and Woolger's Demeter. After her husband was murdered, Gemma and her unborn child fled to America and she always spends time with her grandchildren. She is caring and loves children. Gemma provided for her daughter alone. He provided them with a safe and tidy home. She... middle of paper... when she was in Poland. Sleeping Beauty has the help of three good fairies. The next stage is to cross the threshold. Becca crosses the threshold when she travels to Poland. Sleeping Beauty crosses the threshold when she returns to live in the castle with her parents. The next stage is testing. Becca's test is her research into different databases and resources. The prince is the one in the story who is tested. He must kill the dragon to save the princess. The sixth phase once again concerns the helpers. The seventh phase is the final fight or climax. The climax in Becca's life is when Josef Potocki tells her Gemma's story. The climax of Sleeping Beauty is when the prince finds and saves the princess. The next step is flight. This passage in the book occurs when Becca returns home to America. The next step is the return. Becca returns to her parents' house and tells them Gemma's story.