Title: Ella Enchanted
Author: Gail Carson Levine
Summary: At birth, the fairy Lucinda “gifted” Ella with obedience. Whenever ordered to do something, Ella can’t help but to comply. At an early age her mother dies and at the funeral she meets Prince Char, her first best friend. A few years pass before her father starts being courted by the awful Dame Olga, who has two monsters for daughters – Hattie and Olive. To make matters worse, Hattie soon discovers that Ella will do anything she says. The story follows Ella as she learns to deal with these new step-devils, some ugly – and rather old – suitors, trolls, and of course her curse. Only Lucinda can remove the curse, but the problem is Lucinda never takes back a gift. Can Ella save her life before it all falls apart?
Who will like this book?: If you want a classic fairy tale, this is the book for you. A charming Prince, a witty female lead, evil humans and creatures, and some unexpected magical friends add up to the essentials of this fairy tale. It has more dialogue than action, but it’s fast-paced and hilarious. And apart from the characters and basic plot outline, it’s not anything like the movie.
If you like this, you should try: Anything else by Gail Carson Levine–she has a series of fairy books, as well as The Wish. Other good fairy-tale books are Tithe by Holly Black, Artemis Fowlby Eoin Colfer, almost anything by Dianna Wynne Jone or Shannon Hale, and the Wolf Tower series (Wolf Tower is the name of the first one) by Tanith Lee.
Recommended by: ZZ, resident of Fairfield and avid reader.