If the Shoe Fits: Voices From Cinderella
This intriguing work reenvisions the time-honored tale of midnight magic as a strand of narrative poems. Beginning with Cinderella in her old age, first-time author Whipple gives voice to the cast of characters, from the remorseful father, now a ghost, to the unrepentantly greedy, grasping stepmother (Ah, rich, rich, rich. I love the rhythm of rich!), and stepsisters (While we're dancing, sleep in ashes and brush the soot from off your lashes). Readers hear from the fairy godmother and the royal family as well, including the besotted prince (Wait! Who's that? Smile like moonbeams on a splashing spring). Whipple renders moments of melancholy (Father comes to my dreams, though he is gone. ...  It seems right to dry tears with sackcloth and ashes says Cinderella) as fully as comic touches (e.g., the rat-turned-coachman cries, Where was my tail, long and slim, a-switching? Totally gone! Just a memory of motion) even the glass slipper gets a turn (I grieve for the glow of my mate). This fresh, engaging presentation of the Cinderella story unfolds like a lyric opera. Larded with wit, the volume returns to Cinderella, who offers up a sage gem: The music of true Magic sang only that once for me. After, I had to compose the music of my life. Beingessner alternates small inset portraits and vignettes with full-spread paintings of the godmother's gifts and the climactic moment at the ball; her swirling line and color conjure up the story's magical setting. Ages 8-12.Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.