I’m all for feminist retellings of traditional fairytales, but this one was a total disappointment. Solnit takes Arthur Rackham’s classic silhouette illustrations for the story of Cinderella and pairs it with a rewritten text, which reimagines Cinderella as someone who doesn’t marry the prince but still lives happily ever after. On the surface, this seems like a great mash-up, but I found Solnit’s narration stilted in its storytelling, the characters shallow in their development, and the overall flow of the story not intriguing at all. With its jumpy asides, which did little to actually deepen the story, I found myself losing track of where the story was going, even though I obviously know the story of Cinderella by heart. With little in the way of comedic relief or snappy characters to sell the story, I hate to say it, but this book was a total failure for me. Even the inclusion of Rackham’s gloriously elegant silhouettes don’t redeem this book, and honestly, it’s kind of an insult to his artistic talents. ( )

I appreciated this retelling in that it didn't really change the story as much as modernize it and give the characters more agency to find what they want to do with their lives. Solnit's short afterward/explanation at the end of the book was very informative. I also loved her choice to bring Rackham's watercolor silhouettes to a modern book. ( )

In which I am deeply amused -- just the right touches for me, in this modern retelling --they pronoun townsfolk and the rat coachwoman and the mice deciding whether they will stay horses, and all the spoiled and wealthy folk embracing an active lifestyle and satisfying work. Most of all, I like the theme of abundance -- that there is enough for everyone if it is shared properly, and agency -- that things can change if you ask for help or make decisions for yourself. There will be people who dislike this book, but I am not one of them. ( )

What a beautiful book!

Recently I talked with a friend about looking for fairy tales with messages that you don't mind teaching your children. While we could come up with a few, we also came across suggestions to change old tales. The suggestions, while surely meant well, were mostly short sighted, like just making all male characters female.

This story on the other hand does it in a amazing way. It is so well retold, seemingly effortless inclusive, with beautiful messages. I hope there is a German translation. ( )