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Feb 23, 2011

Emma rated it:

Feminists often denounce traditional fairy tales because they perpetuate the ideals of a patriarchal society by encouraging girls to behave like proper princesses and wait for charming princes to take charge and save the day. In response to these traditional fairy tales, many authors have tried to reclaim the realm of fairy tales for girls. These retellings feature active protagonists who are not scared of taking charge and do not need princes to save them. One example of this new fairy tale gen More...

3 comments like (43 people liked it)

Jan 21, 2012

Cara rated it:

Now I know why people made such a fuss when the movie came out. I watched the movie first, so I had no idea how utterly wrong everything was. It totally is not like the book. Just slap on the names and the curse and that's where the similarities end. I must say the book is MUCH better than the movie.

The style of the writing was kind of weird for me, but not in a bad way. It's not that it was too fast paced or anything, but I noticed there wasn't a lot of padding or fanfare before e More...

3 comments like (18 people liked it)

Dec 16, 2009

Chelsea rated it:

This still stands as one of my favorite books. The fantasy elements are clever and not too over the top. Ella is witty and pretty clever herself, not to mention strong and determined and resourceful. Mandy is just your everyday, ordinary, regular old cook/fairy. Char is, appropriately, charming. The stepsisters are deliciously evil. Lucinda is completely batty.

I like that none of the women in the book are doormats. Good or evil, protagonist or minor background character, they More...

1 comment like (13 people liked it)

Nov 14, 2008

Needleroozer rated it:

My sister recommended this book to me and even bought me a copy at half price day at Goodwill. Now I am recommending this book to you.

The main character, Ella, is a young woman, almost 15, who is cursed with obedience as an infant. A fairy thinks she's blessing the baby by forcing her to be obedient, but that's not really how it turns out. Imagine being physically compelled to do anything that anyone tells you to do. You don't have to be an anarchist to quickly realize that would be More...

0 comments like (10 people liked it)

Mar 08, 2008

Shannon rated it:

It's a sweet, humorous book, written for a younger audience but easily enjoyed by an older one too. Based on the Cinderella story, there are a few notable differences, namely that Ella was "blessed" with the "gift" of obedience by the fairy Lucinda, who thinks all her gifts (such as turning you into a squirrel) are wonderful. Ella is the daughter of Lady Eleanor and a somewhat unscrupulous merchant, Sir Peter, whom she rarely sees. She grows up with her mother, who teaches he More...

2 comments like (7 people liked it)

Jan 10, 2010

Ash rated it:

This was a very sweet and funny book. The movie version really doesn't do it justice and is almost a different story all together. I'd always heard about this book when I was in elementary and middle school, but back then I thought reading a book was punishment. Now though, I see that books are our friends and not just good paper weights. I'm glad that I had a chance to read this book before I got too old to actually enjoy it. Though I think that I would've still liked it anyway. Ella is funny More...

4 comments like (3 people liked it)

Oct 10, 2008

BunWat rated it:

This review applies to the audio version. Well I like the story, I like most of Gail Carson Levine's stuff and it did get me through the kitchen cleaning project. But I didn't love this audio version. It wasn't unbearable, just not great. Eden Riegel narrates and sounds about 13, although I believe she's in her twenties. Which was mostly okay for Ella, but not when the trolls and ogres and evil stepmothers and kings all sounded like thirteen year old girls too. I don't know, maybe younger li More...

4 comments like (6 people liked it)

Sep 25, 2007

payasa213 rated it:

Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine is a Fantasy book and is a fairytale story much like Cinderella. Ella, the main character when she was born Ella was given a gift by a fairy. To most people a fairy's gift would be fantastic though many people may not understand what these gifts mean. Ella's gift was to be obedient always. At first this sounded ok but through the story, Ella's gift seemed more like a curse. What is even worse is that, after her mother dies, her father marries the horrible More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Jan 31, 2012

S. Bell rated it:

Squeeeeeeeeeeeee!!! I have a new favourite now, oh my. :D Why did it take me so long to read this?! Maybe because the book itself is a falling-apart ex-library hardcover, that just looks so unappealing. Tch. :P Each time Solyndra has mentioned it I've thought I should really read it at last, so good thing THIS time I finally DID.

SO MUCH LOVE. The whole story is just marvellous and wonderful. I was so invested in the Ella/Char romance and it takes a lot for me to actually, seriously, More...

9 comments like (3 people liked it)

Oct 01, 2011

Veronica rated it:

When some of my friends learned I was reading Ella Enchanted for the very first time, the first thing they told me was, "What! I read that book, like, when I was in fifth grade!" Well, let me just say, I wouldn't have enjoyed this book in fifth grade as I have enjoyed it now. It's exactly what one of my bookworm friends would have described as a "cookie read": short, sweet, and satisfactory. It was a truly well-woven, fanciful tale with just the right pint of humor, a deligh More...

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Jul 10, 2010

Jasmin rated it:

Unicorns. Fairies. Castles. Most of all, Prince Charming.

Ella Enchanted made me want to revert back to being a little girl, where it's easy to believe that happily ever afters do exist. And yes, it reminded me that, despite my bitter self now, I at one point, believed in happily ever afters.

Who doesn't know Ella? I sure caught the craze when this was a movie with Anne Hathaway as Ella. The movie was spectacular, and the book was just as good.

Ella was bestowed More...

6 comments like (7 people liked it)

Dec 15, 2009

Sara rated it:

I was looking for a fun easy read that could help me escape reality and this one did it for me. I really enjoyed the book. It is, however, very different from the movie and in many respects I feel that the movie screenplay was sharper witted, tighter and more entertaining. I liked the book enough to read Fairest, a companion book, which I enjoyed even more. If you liked Ella check out Fairest.

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Apr 07, 2009

Jjen rated it:

I got this book free with a magazine to promote the film version that was coming out around that time, so I thought it would be terrible. It looked terrible. But I read it anyway because I hate to judge, and I was wrong about it. Although it was not exactly a work of literary genius, I really connected with the main character Ella - she wasn't the sappy, needy pwincess we usually associate with fairy stories but an independent, strong young woman. She is put under a curse as a young child - she More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 19, 2011

Jillian -always aspiring- rated it:

I've lost count of how many times I've read this wonderful book. I remember the first time vividly, though. I wouldn't have picked up this book had I not been on a fifth grade field trip, had some pocket money, and wandered over to the book section of the gift shop. While everyone else was chattering and looking at all the other shinier things offered, I was discovering Ella.

Ella is the type of girl I wanted to be when I was eleven -- adventurous, loyal, brave, honest, clever, wit More...

3 comments like (8 people liked it)

Sep 23, 2011

Jacki rated it:

I felt like the author said to herself: "I'm going to really revamp the Cinderella classic! I'm gonna give the girl a backstory like you wouldn't believe! and it's going to be cute, and funny, and there will be all kinds of mythical creatures in it! It's going to be wholly other-worldly! And she's going to go on this awesome journey that's going to be epic and life changing!"

All that ended halfway through the book: The journey, the special creatures, the seemingly important More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Feb 05, 2009

Laura rated it:

This was my absolute favorite book when I was a kid. I still have my first copy of it; the poor thing is so tattered and yellowed. It's a story about a girl placed under a spell by a fairy at birth and the journey she goes on to rid herself of the curse. Fairies, trolls, evil step mothers, magic-you name it, this book has it. I refuse to see the disney movie version. The book (although a fairy tale) was rather dark (death, curses, evil people, ect), and i'm sure disney completely butchered that. More...

4 comments like (6 people liked it)

Sep 09, 2008

Dawn Michelle rated it:

Well. I have never seen a movie AND then read a book that was SO different from the movie EVER!!!! In reading this, I had the movie in mind and was really confused as I was reading! The only thing from this book that was in the movie---ok, there are three things: 1. Ella has to obey, 2. her father travels (but in the movie they are close unlike the book), and 3. he marries someone YUCKY. Otherwise, it is ALL different. OH, and she does travel around looking for Lucinda (who is beautiful in the m More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Sep 01, 2008

Danielle rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

Apr 18, 2009

Enna rated it:

I love this book so much! It is absolutely my favorite book! If you havn't read it you've got to! I have the audiobook on my iPod and practically have it memorized. I think anyone one can enjoy this book, but I would especially reccomend it to fantasy lovers. It is set in the same world as Fairest.

4 comments like (2 people liked it)

Sep 02, 2011

Pamela(AllHoney) rated it:

I'm not sure if I'm letting the movie influence my rating but the book and the movie have almost nothing in common except for a few names and the infamous curse. The book was okay for me. I could easily tell it was written for children. There wasn't much time spent on developing the characters or plot or the setting. I think I would have liked to see a little more time setting the stage and understanding the world in which the story takes place in. I would definitely recommend it to the younger More...

2 comments like (1 person liked it)

May 23, 2008

Kendra rated it:

If you've seen the movie without reading the book, YOU ARE MISSING OUT! If you haven't seen the movie, make sure you read the book before you do, and I hope you do (well, at least read the book). The book explores the life of a girl growing up in the times of fairies and ogres, giants and elves, and let's not forget the evil stepmother and stepsister! Ella is a smart girl with a curse. At her birth a fairy gave Ella the "gift" of obedience. Immediately, this proves to be a bad gift. If More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

May 05, 2007

Heather rated it:

One of my very favorite young adult books! When Ella of Frell was born she received the gift of obedience from a fairy. But it is not really a gift at all! Ella must be obedient to whatever anyone tells her to do! If someone tell her to hop on one foot for a day she has to do it! Ella decides to set out and find this fairy and change her destiny. This book is charming and humorous and enriches the original "Cinderella" tale. Ogres, witches, fairy godmothers, giants, and wicked s More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Sep 14, 2009

Skyler rated it:

The book was fantastic the way they incorporated magic into it was hilarious.I found out that love has no bounds and that you have to always believe in yourself and not listen to what others say about you

3 comments like (1 person liked it)

Apr 09, 2008

Barbara rated it:

CIP summary: In this novel based on the story of Cinderella, Ella struggles against the childhood curse that forces her to obey any order given to her.

Pithy Review: This funny, lively, and welcome reexamination of the Cinderella theme has many new twists and a spunky heroine who creatively fights to overcome her ‘gift’ of obedience.

Kirkus Reviews: Starred review. "..refreshing take on one of the world's most popular fairy tales..."
School Library Journa More...

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

Oct 04, 2008

Jackie "the Librarian" rated it:

I love the little twist to this story of Cinderella - that she was given the gift of perfect obedience by her fairy godmother. Just imagine if you had to do anything anyone told you to! And you got stuck with that evil stepmother and stepsisters.
Ella has GOT to get rid of her fairy godmother's gift, not just because of the steps, but also because she's fallen in love with the prince. She doesn't trust herself not to endanger him in her current condition.
So off Ella goes to track down More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Dec 27, 2010

Joyzi rated it:

I didn't really know what's wrong with this book since I really love the movie version of this one undoubtedly. Of course the movie has Anne Hathaway and it has a musical/fairy tale theme but the book is really boring IMO and the exposition just bored me to death.

The book sucks I didn't even finish it. More...

15 comments like (3 people liked it)

Feb 28, 2009

Diana rated it:

Ella Enchanted
By Gail Carson Levine
232 pgs.
Scholastic Inc., 555 Broadway, New York, NY10012
Scholastic Inc. $3.99
ISBN 0-590-64608-7

Ella Frellan in Ella Enchanted is a girl who grew up with a spell as a gift. This spell was "the gift of obedience", as her god-mother Lucinda names it. As a young girl, Ella was a baby who kept on crying. After a while when Lucinda got annoyed and couldn't take it anymore, she cast this uncontrollable spell on Ella. More...

1 comment like

Feb 06, 2009

Lauren rated it:

One of the best children's fantasy fiction books of the last decade, Ella Enchanted is a gripping, whimsical though sometimes eerie, and lovable story.
Ella is different than most girls. When she was born, she was cursed to do everything she's commanded to do. Extreme obedience, if you will. So, she sets out looking for the faerie who bestowed the "gift" on her, unsupported, really, by her negligent father and cruel stepmother/siblings, who have sent her to a private schoo More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jan 31, 2009

Sella rated it:

This book was so good that I literally couldn't put it down- I read it all in one evening. The story and plot is so captivating, and Levine has an amazing writing style. Every page I turned, I needed to know more. And the beginning was so intriguing, it drew me right in! The ending made me smile. Levine knows how to grab you and hold you steadfast, and she has a way of words. This was very creative!

I especially love how Arieida, a character from Levine's Fairest, was in here. And it' More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 08, 2009

Melanie rated it:

This is Gail Carson Levine's first and best book as well as one of the best fairy tale retellings by a current author. Levine tells the story of Ella, the fifteen-year-old daughter of a lord and lady in Frell, an imaginary, sort-of-Renaissance-y place. Ella loses her mother, finds her fairy godmother, acquires an evil stepfamily, and is shipped off to finishing school all within the first few fast-paced chapters. All of these events are made incredibly difficult by Ella's curse: she is forced More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

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