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Beauty and the Basement
A young man confined to his basement, a broken-down car, and surveillance video footage aren't normal elements in a fairy tale. But in this 21st-century retelling of Beauty and the Beast, Carlo Mostro must challenge himself to go beyond his comfort zone . . . the basement. Will he let Belle help him?
123 pages, Paperback
First published July 1, 2014
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103 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
August 14, 2019
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From Twice-Told Tales author, Olivia Snowe comes a new, modernized retelling of the classic we’ve come to love.
With the first page promising “a new twist” and “a new gasp,” this take on the Villeneuve story tells the story of Carlo, a young boy who has spent all summer in his mansion’s basement — alone, just as he prefers it. After a chance encounter with a man over a broken-down car and a rose, he meets the beautiful and elegant Belle. Though the two are polar opposites, it seems Belle just might have the power to pull Carlo from his slump of misery and self-loathing. He’s just not sure if he’s willing to give it a shot.
Sounds interesting, right? Yeah, I thought so, too.
The main problem I had with this book was the characters. Now, I can respect wanting to stay faithful to your source material. After all, this is a retelling. However, I could never really tell what material the author was using. On one hand, it seemed she was basing the characters around Disney. There are Belle and her father, both alone after her mother’s passing. There’s the rose cutting. There’s more, but I won’t spoil anything. My point is that it looked like a Disney source material.
Then, things changed. There was no Mrs. Potts, nor Lumiere or Cogsworth. The Beast wasn’t named Adam and had a mother and a human chef. I suppose the author could have been aiming to put her own twist on the tale, but it felt muddied up by the end. At one point, I even felt like I was reading Alex Flynn’s “Beastly.” (Side note: You shouldn’t remind your readers of a far superior retelling, in my opinion.)
There were some redeemable things about the book. It wasn’t all terrible. Geez. I liked that the setting was brought into the modern century. At one point, Carlo mentions he feels like he’s being attacked by a mob of pitchforks and flame wielders, but there isn’t any there. That was a cute quip, in my opinion. I also liked that the author kept the fantastical element out of the story completely, opting to replace magical mirrors and books with email, skype, and cell phones. Oh, and the illustrations were really cute! Good on Michelle Lamoreaux for those.
So, do I think the author achieved what she set out to do with this book? Absolutely. She wanted to retell a classic fairytale, as she has many times before. Countless others love this book. It just wasn’t for me. In the future, I’ll stick with my original tales.
Final Verdict: ⭐⭐
From Twice-Told Tales author, Olivia Snowe comes a new, modernized retelling of the classic we’ve come to love.
With the first page promising “a new twist” and “a new gasp,” this take on the Villeneuve story tells the story of Carlo, a young boy who has spent all summer in his mansion’s basement — alone, just as he prefers it. After a chance encounter with a man over a broken-down car and a rose, he meets the beautiful and elegant Belle. Though the two are polar opposites, it seems Belle just might have the power to pull Carlo from his slump of misery and self-loathing. He’s just not sure if he’s willing to give it a shot.
Sounds interesting, right? Yeah, I thought so, too.
The main problem I had with this book was the characters. Now, I can respect wanting to stay faithful to your source material. After all, this is a retelling. However, I could never really tell what material the author was using. On one hand, it seemed she was basing the characters around Disney. There are Belle and her father, both alone after her mother’s passing. There’s the rose cutting. There’s more, but I won’t spoil anything. My point is that it looked like a Disney source material.
Then, things changed. There was no Mrs. Potts, nor Lumiere or Cogsworth. The Beast wasn’t named Adam and had a mother and a human chef. I suppose the author could have been aiming to put her own twist on the tale, but it felt muddied up by the end. At one point, I even felt like I was reading Alex Flynn’s “Beastly.” (Side note: You shouldn’t remind your readers of a far superior retelling, in my opinion.)
There were some redeemable things about the book. It wasn’t all terrible. Geez. I liked that the setting was brought into the modern century. At one point, Carlo mentions he feels like he’s being attacked by a mob of pitchforks and flame wielders, but there isn’t any there. That was a cute quip, in my opinion. I also liked that the author kept the fantastical element out of the story completely, opting to replace magical mirrors and books with email, skype, and cell phones. Oh, and the illustrations were really cute! Good on Michelle Lamoreaux for those.
So, do I think the author achieved what she set out to do with this book? Absolutely. She wanted to retell a classic fairytale, as she has many times before. Countless others love this book. It just wasn’t for me. In the future, I’ll stick with my original tales.
Final Verdict: ⭐⭐
May 22, 2018
I usually don't read these types of stories, but I really like the story of Beauty and the Beast, so I had to grab this one off my sister's shelf and check it out. It's really short, and I finished it in about 20 minutes.
It just didn't work for me.
I think the main problem is just that the author tried to stick too closely to the original story. With her idea (the beast being a 15-year-old kid who's locked himself in a basement after his father died) trying to be forced into the mold of the original Beauty and the Beast story, it made for a very choppy, very unrealistic, unsatisfying story. If she had been a little bit looser with the original plot line, I think it could have gone over much better.
Carlos: I got so sick of the beast boy, with growling and roaring. I'm still trying to figure out how a young teenager was able to lift and throw a grown man. And, I don't think there was enough going on for him to go through a sudden transformation into a perfect princely character.
Belle: Her actions don't make much more sense than his. She went to a stranger's house without telling her father? Then went into the stranger's house? That sounds like a formula for something bad. Then, her father didn't even seem to mind that much. In the end, I didn't think there was enough time spent for her to realize that Carlos wasn't such a bad guy.
The conclusion: I'll admit, I was shaking my head through the entire conclusion with Mr. Francis the law student (I assume he must be ages older than Belle?) who's going to fix the entire problem. That was way over the top, especially when they went in and basically assaulted Carlos at the door. Yeah, that didn't work.
Like I said, I think it could have been done much better if the author had tried to be a little more giving in the retelling and maybe had the book cross a longer period of time. (After all, in the original, Belle stays with the Beast for months before she starts to realize that he has a good side...)
Swearing: None
Sexual content: None
Violence: None
Religious/spiritual/magical content: None
It just didn't work for me.
I think the main problem is just that the author tried to stick too closely to the original story. With her idea (the beast being a 15-year-old kid who's locked himself in a basement after his father died) trying to be forced into the mold of the original Beauty and the Beast story, it made for a very choppy, very unrealistic, unsatisfying story. If she had been a little bit looser with the original plot line, I think it could have gone over much better.
Carlos: I got so sick of the beast boy, with growling and roaring. I'm still trying to figure out how a young teenager was able to lift and throw a grown man. And, I don't think there was enough going on for him to go through a sudden transformation into a perfect princely character.
Belle: Her actions don't make much more sense than his. She went to a stranger's house without telling her father? Then went into the stranger's house? That sounds like a formula for something bad. Then, her father didn't even seem to mind that much. In the end, I didn't think there was enough time spent for her to realize that Carlos wasn't such a bad guy.
The conclusion: I'll admit, I was shaking my head through the entire conclusion with Mr. Francis the law student (I assume he must be ages older than Belle?) who's going to fix the entire problem. That was way over the top, especially when they went in and basically assaulted Carlos at the door. Yeah, that didn't work.
Like I said, I think it could have been done much better if the author had tried to be a little more giving in the retelling and maybe had the book cross a longer period of time. (After all, in the original, Belle stays with the Beast for months before she starts to realize that he has a good side...)
Swearing: None
Sexual content: None
Violence: None
Religious/spiritual/magical content: None
December 16, 2021
Ok, here's the deal. I've read several Twice-Told tales and have enjoyed them, but not been impressed. I've also read several dozens of adaptations of Beauty and the Beast, some better than others. And what I have to say is that this is one of best MG or teen adaptations of all, and even stacks up well against all of them. I particularly love that the Beast has a good back story.
I don't love that Belle is 15... 16 would have been more believable and 'safer' for 12-15 yo girls if you know what I mean. And I don't love the cover art that says the boy is so dark-skinned... I'm sure it was accidental but it's still wrong with its implication of racism. (In the story it turns out he's probably Hispanic/Latino but not very dark.)
But really those are quibbles. I'm convinced to keep reading the series. :)
Oh, and I love the different story prompts in the back of each book. Writer's groups take note!
I don't love that Belle is 15... 16 would have been more believable and 'safer' for 12-15 yo girls if you know what I mean. And I don't love the cover art that says the boy is so dark-skinned... I'm sure it was accidental but it's still wrong with its implication of racism. (In the story it turns out he's probably Hispanic/Latino but not very dark.)
But really those are quibbles. I'm convinced to keep reading the series. :)
Oh, and I love the different story prompts in the back of each book. Writer's groups take note!
July 31, 2019
Not for me. Not sure if my teen will enjoy it either as it seems a little far-fetched that two 15-year olds will find insta-love in the 5 days that Belle is working at the mansion. But hey, maybe I'm not the pre-teen demographic? Oh wait! I'm not the pre-teen demographic. I guess the book was short enough for someone who hasn't seen or been exposed to Beauty and the Beast in one of its many forms to understand the gist of the story. And for someone who is a non-reader, this is probably just long enough. In the end, though, I feel like there wasn't much in terms of character or plot development. I'd go with Beastly over this for sure if you're a teen or into teen storylines. Much better job with a modern twist on the old tale.
June 26, 2021
My 10 year old lives these twice told tales and begged me to read this out loud to her and her brothers (after she had just read it the day before). All the kids liked it and I did too. Quick fun read for all ages!
August 11, 2018
Its a nice book! is dad died! There are good peoples in thsi book! Nice author!
February 23, 2020
3.5⭐
I love him. 🥰
I love him. 🥰
January 20, 2022
Maybe I would have liked reading it better than listening , it wouldn't have seemed so cliche and cheesy... It was okay, but i only finished it because it was too short not too...
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March 1, 20247/10
October 20, 2015
Hi Lo Stone Arch Reading Level Q. Unique rewiring of the fairytale to modern day lifestyles. I would recommend it. 124pp. quick read.
July 30, 2024
Easy to read, great fractured fairy tale
January 16, 2016
interesting. kinda choppy writing, detracts from the story.
May 2, 2017
Re-telling of "Beauty and the Beast" told in modern times. I've been curious about this series, and as this is my favorite faery tale, I started with this one. I want to read a few more in the series before I make ultimate judgment; in our library they are Juvenile, and I wanted to make sure this was a good fit for them.
Trying to hold back until I read a couple more....
Trying to hold back until I read a couple more....
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December 1, 2017I loved the plot twist. I was like "What just happend!?!?!?!?!?"
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews