Questions

I tried to think of what "real" book clubs do ... read the same book and discuss it, sure, but also I think they try to discuss questions or topics. So, I'm making up a list - feel free to respond and/or make up your own questions. Click here for the rest of the post.

1. How many Cinderella stories have you read or watched or heard?

2. Why do fairytales make good people beautiful and bad people ugly?

3. What other awful fairy gifts could Lucinda have given? Why would they be awful?

4. Were your favorite fairy creatures in the story?

5. Why would Ella's mother ever take the unicorn hair out of her soup if she knew Mandy was a fairy?

6. What parts of Ella do you most empathize with?

7. What would you pack for a trip to giant country?

Well, that's all I can think of for now.

Enchanted by Ella

Ok, so if you haven't read the book yet, stop now - I'm not gonna leave out the ending or the good parts from this post. Click here for the rest of the post.

OK, well, I hope I figured the whole linking thing out right - I haven't written a long enough post for a while to even need it.

I love this book. I know, that's not really an inventive way to respond, but I just love it - and all of her princess tales too. But I'm saving those for a later post. It's just that I read this book and I feel like I can understand Ella. Not that I have an evil stepmother or a curse, but her character is written so that she is easy to sympathize with.

I think my all-time favorite part of the book is when Ella discovers that Prince Char loves her. Her reaction is beautiful - the relief of finally realizing that he loves her too, the excitement and giddiness and planning their lives together... And then she wakes up, and realizes that instead of being the best thing that could happen, this was the worst. Well, barring beheading, poison, slavery, etc. But it's such a dramatic swing, and really really sets up the secondary conflict of the plotline.

What? Julie talking about plotlines? Sure - I took an English class now and then. The primary plotline is Ella vs. her curse, and the secondary one is the love story (falling in love, forbidden love, and the triumph of how love makes her strong). And amazingly enough, they are resolved almost simultaneously, which makes for a strong climax at the point where she breaks her curse and then asks Char to marry her (go strong female characters!).

Least favorite part of the book? When I realize it's over? But the ending is also enchanting, so I can't even feel bad about that.

Fairytales are a classis type of story, and I love the modern authors that keep writing fairy tales - Mercedes Lackey has also written some which I love, about the Five Hundred Kingdoms and the Tradition - which is a force, like gravity, that acts on people to keep their lives in line with the traditional fairy tales. And the heroines have to be pretty smart to figure out how to work with the Tradition to get the desired results. But that's a whole other series. They are slightly more adult than Gail Carson Levine, but it probably depends on how liberal you are in your reading. And the idea is sooo cool!

I just think good fairytale is good for the soul - I cheer on the characters, and I dream happy dreams when I read them. Hooray for Ella!

PS Oh - I thought of one thing about the book I don't really like - the movie. It's cute on its own, but I don't really like it in relation to the book. Mostly because it's more blatant and booming and less delicate in telling the story, but also because it truly didn't have the "fairytale" effect on me - I laughed at some parts, but I winced at more, and I didn't feel any magical happily-ever-after-ness. It was like a sideways view into the story, where the story was just the excuse for the jokes and dancing scenes, etc. If it was based on a book I didn't love, then maybe, but I'll stick to the original, thanks.

What to read next...

I'm kind of in the mood for fairy tales this month - what do you guys think about reading anything by Gail Carson Levine? Just read as many of them as you want - I have some, and the library has lots more! Here's a website that lists all her books: Gail Carson Levine Books I'm starting with Ella Enchanted, which is my all-time favorite and much better than the movie...but I'll save that for when I write about it this weekend!

what next???

Hurray!! I finally signed up. It took long enough, huh?! Anyway, I haven't read any of the books yet and I think I am FINALLY ready to get started. So, what's next???? Let's read and blog!!