In The Fairy's Mistake, two very different sisters have two very different encounters with the fairy Ethelinda. Rosella is kind and helpful. Her reward: Jewels and gems tumble out of her mouth whenever she speaks. Myrtle is rude and spiteful. Her punishment: Bugs and vipers slither out of her mouth. The fairy Ethelinda feels she's meted out justice just right--until she discovers Rosella has been locked up by a greedy prince and Myrtle is having the time of her life! (Amazon)Review by Emily, bibliophile and high school student
The Fairy's Mistake is a book that provoked much thought in me. It is a retelling of the fairy tale "Toads and Diamonds." Quite a good one at that.
So you know how the kind sister got as a reward rich jewels that fell from her lips? Well . . . in this retelling, the author explores the idea that, perhaps, jewels are not terribly soft on the throat and mouth. Also, the evil sister gets whatever she wants because of the curse that toads and vile creatures fall from her mouth. I think this shows great ingenuity, even though her character is not quite what one could wish. Also, the prince turns out not to be exactly what he seems. And the poor fairy who began this whole mess ends up scarred for life.
But the main protagonist, the unfortunate Rosella, turns out to be clever enough to turn the whole situation around for herself, which I think is pretty cool. And her sister, Myrtle (which is an awesome name for a villain, really,) ends up with her share of happiness as well, although the fairy probably wishes otherwise.
And the other stories in the series are all awesome too. They make sense of slightly senseless fairy tales, but with an obvious love of the stories. There's nothing earth-shaking about these tales, but they're fun and quick to read, and really, I love them.
Market: Middle Grade/ Young Adult
Language: None
Sensuality: None/Mild
Violence: Only against insects
Mature Themes: Fairness?
Book formats:
AND . . . we are VERY EXCITED to announce that the fabulous Gail Carson Levine has agreed to be INTERVIEWED on Bookshop Talk!! Yahoo!!!! We can hardly wait!
4 comments:
I am such a big, BIG fan of any novel written by GCL. Her books are always such a joy to read, and I love that I can put any one of them into my 11 year old daughter's hands, and expect her to love it just as much as I do.
I am SO EXCITED for this upcoming interview with her! Another Newbery Honor winner - we are so lucky! :)
I lopve love love this book, and all the others in this series. I love how the first book and the last book in the series have the same fairies in them! I can not wait until the review with Gail Carson Levine! Thanks for the great review, Emily!
I love anything Gail Carson Levine writes. She's one of my favorite authors. Haven't read this one yet. Will have to put it on my long list of must reads.
Read this quite awhile ago, loved the toads and treasures one :)
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