Author: Gail Carson Levine
Cover Art: Mark Elliott
(1) I love "Ella Enchanted". I have read other twists on Cinderella's story (such as Wicked by Gregory Maguire), but none is as heart warming as Ella's story. Levine's rendition of this tale doesn't differ much from the original telling other than one major factor. Ella must be obedient. My imagination ran wild thinking about how horrible it would actually be to not be able to refuse a command. This new element was my favorite part of this book. Each time Ella was commanded to do something dreadful, I winced on the inside. Gail Carson Levine definitely has an amazing imagination.
(2) It is quite possible that I took a fancy to this book for several reasons other than the fact that it is an incredible tale. For one, I do have a fascination with Cinderella's story. While many author's have recreated her life in a variety of ways, I think Ella's story is the best I've heard. An additional influence might be that Gail Carson Levine visited my school last year. She was an amazing and animated speaker that my students truly enjoyed. After reading Ella, I am even more curious about her other stories.
(3) When Gail Carson Levine visited our school, she spoke about how she gets many of her story ideas from fairy tales and then transforms them into something more. I am curious to read "Fairest," which is her interpretation of Snow White.
Image courtesy of http://images.google.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment