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44th out of 97 books
—
173 voters
The Orphan: A Cinderella Story from Greece
by
Anthony Manna (Goodreads Author),
Christodoula Mitakidou, Giselle Potter
Once upon a time in Greece, fate left a young girl an orphan. Her stepmother was so hateful that she counted every drop of water the orphan drank! But with the help of Nature's blessings, the orphan was showered with gifts: brilliance from the Sun, beauty from the Moon, gracefulness from the Dawn—and even a tiny pair of blue shoes from the Sea. When the prince comes to vis...more
Hardcover, 40 pages
Published
October 11th 2011
by Schwartz & Wade
(first published September 27th 2011)
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The Orphan: a Cinderella Story from Greece, witten by Anthony L. Manna and soula Mitakidou and illustrated by Giselle Potter, had a cute twist on the original story. In this book Cinderella's mother dies and her father marries a cruel women with two step sisters. Cinderella one night goes to her mothers grave and cry's to her, when to her surprise her mothers grave tells her to leave and go home. The next day mother nature gives cinderella many gifts. the family found out that the prince was goi...more
There are hundreds of Cinderella variations. The Orphan: A Cinderella Story from Greece is a new retelling based on two Greek versions. This Cinderella, known only as ‘the orphan,’ is subjected to cruelty from her stepmother and stepsisters. She pleads for help on her mother’s grave and is reassured and guided by her mother’s words. Mother Nature and her children Sun, Moon, Dawn, Morning Star, Meadows, and Sea each bestow a gift upon the orphan such as beauty, gracefulness and delicate blue shoe...more
As Cinderella tales go, the orphan in this story lost her mother and is left to a lonely life with a step-mother who counts each drop of water she drinks and sisters who are unusually cruel. Seeking a way out, the orphan visits her mother's grave and is told to not despair but return home to await her fortune. Upon returning home, it is not a fairy godmother, but rather Mother Nature and her children that assist the orphan. This time the prince is met at church (rather than a ball), but a shoe i...more
I have seen this book getting raves, and as a big folklore fan, I was eager to see why. I'm still not sure. This re-telling of the Cinderella story is set in Greece and I did like the variations it had: the dead mother blessed her daughter with gifts, the prince was attending church in the village, the girl rode animals made from clouds. I like that the story seemed more homespun. I wasn't crazy about the illustrations; even though their folk art style and color palette suited the story well. An...more
Schwartz & Wade Books
2011
Anthony Manna & Soula Mitakidou
Giselle Potter
32 pages
Picture Book/Traditional Literature
From the first word of the book to the last word of the book, I began to think of similarities and differences between the Cinderella story I've grown up with and this version from Greece. I struggle with a decision of like the book or dislike the book. I begin to think of how the two are similar: young girl looses her mother, has a mean step mother and step sisters, gets beau...more
2011
Anthony Manna & Soula Mitakidou
Giselle Potter
32 pages
Picture Book/Traditional Literature
From the first word of the book to the last word of the book, I began to think of similarities and differences between the Cinderella story I've grown up with and this version from Greece. I struggle with a decision of like the book or dislike the book. I begin to think of how the two are similar: young girl looses her mother, has a mean step mother and step sisters, gets beau...more
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Rats! I wish we could give half stars (!), because this book would then be a 3.5 star. But I enjoyed the book. The illustrations are wonderful. The fact that this Cinderella is indeed inspired by Greek folklore gives some real zest to this fairy tale. Add to that Athena's owl, words of prophecy from her mother's grave, gifts from the the gods of the natural elements . . . and you've got a beautiful children's book. As a matter of fact, the reading of this book inspired me to request Folktales Fr...more
This was a nice version of Cinderella. I liked how the child is referred to as an Orphan, as is customary of Greek culture, when a child’s mother dies. The Orphan receives gifts from nature, which is different to the Western version, and yet she is still unrecognized by the Prince and her family. Also she doesn’t attend a ball, rather the Prince attends the village church, and this is a nice view of the Greek culture, where religion is very central to daily life. This is a nice addition to a uni...more
So many countries have a folk tale that is essentially the Cinderalla story - just check the Sur La Lune wonderful website for this as well as Little Red Riding hood - alikes etc. But this story is somewhat misleading, it is on the cover, a Cinderella story from Greece, but then it is inside an original story that is the Cinderella story the author just set in Greece. I found this a bit offputting as we lend out a lot of read alikes for college students based on the curious and interesting fact...more
A beautiful interpretation of Cinderella in which our heroine is referred to as "The Orphan" because as people say in Greece, "A child becomes an orphan when she loses her mother." The voice of her own mother (rather than a fairy godmother) guides her. This orphan does not wait around for the prince, she searches for him– plus she has long dark hair. One could not ask for more except, perhaps, for the gorgeous illustrations by Giselle Potter.
This is Cinderella's story told from the Greek perspective. It is very similar to the Cinderella story I knew. One difference is that the father is still alive. Another difference is the setting of the church service instead of the ball. Mother Nature and the mother take the place of the fairy godmother in this story. It is an excellent version of the Cinderella tale.
This is the first picture book that i have read in ebook format; it was a satisfactory experience, but for this title I wasn't certain if certain sections of the text were on a page with illustrations. I will read other picture books on in the ebook format just because it is quick.
The elements of this Cinderella verison are very different from the English language verisons. I did enjoy the differences, especially, the repeated phrase, Go, my child, go to Good; also the use of going to church ins...more
The elements of this Cinderella verison are very different from the English language verisons. I did enjoy the differences, especially, the repeated phrase, Go, my child, go to Good; also the use of going to church ins...more
All of the tales of Cinderella are unique. What makes this tale stand out? Being an orphan is to be motherless and she learns from the graveside of her mother what to do. The loving spirit of her mother is always with her.
Feb 17, 2012
Joella www.cinjoella.com
added it
This tale reminds me of the Irish Cinderella where Trembling goes to church and meets her prince there. However, the way she gets her gowns and the fact she only goes to church twice is a bit different. Lovely tale though!
I truly loved this book! The illustrations were beautiful! And, for all of the brunettes in the world. It is refreshing to see that Cinderella can be something other than a blonde!
This is one of the Cinderella multicultural books I bought with "birthday money" donated by an Esperanza board member. The story is great and the illustrations are wonderful!
Cinderella stories never get old, I guess. This one is pretty standard fare as far as the way the story is told, but the illustrations and typesetting are quite beautiful.
This is just a different spin off of the Cinderealla that I grew up with. It would be a fun book to have for the students to have to read on free time.
This is a spin on the Cinderella story as it comes from Greece. Beautifully done, particularly the illustrations that accompany the text...
Beautiful retelling! I love how connected the loving mother is, the gifts from mother earth, and the horse made from a cloud.
I like the colors and just the fact of the different approach more than I actually like this version.
A nice addition to your collection of Cinderella stories from around the world!
If you’re looking for an alternate version of this classic fairytale, maybe one that’s a little heavier on the girl power, look no further than this extended picture book drawing on Greek versions of the Cinderella mythology. The drawings are minimal but charming and well-executed. This telling of Cinderella relies on the Universe, some words of wisdom from a dead mother, and Cinderella’s own resourceful self for deliverance without waiting for the prince to save her and improve her circumstance...more
Good story, lovely illustrations.
This is The Greek version of Cinderella. There are many different cultural versions of Cinderella and this one can be added. It would work well is students could study the similarities and differences in the stories.
Jun 13, 2013
Parvanrat Choulaen
marked it as to-read
Jun 13, 2013
Nicole Bains
marked it as to-read
May 26, 2013
Carole Nobles
marked it as to-read
May 15, 2013
Jaznya Severe
marked it as to-read
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| What you do think? | 1 | 2 | Apr 01, 2012 04:09pm |
