Cinderella

by Amy Ehrlich (Adapter), Susan Jeffers (Illustrator), Charles Perrault

Cinderella's transformation from poor girl to princess never fails to captivate young ones, and this stellar retelling, exquisitely illustrated by Susan Jeffers, is a must for every library. When the original version of this book was published in 1985, Publishers Weekly called it "a treasure for all ages," and The New York Times declared, "Fairy-tale aficionados will be mesmerized." For this hardcover reissue, Susan Jeffers retouched her pen-and- ink and dye illustrations, making them even richer. Her brilliant artwork is showcased in a new interior design featuring a fifth-color gold border. Embossed gold foil type on the jacket of this large-format picture book trumpets the arrival of the girl who went from rags to riches.

Genres: Picture Books, Cinderella, Fairy Tales, Childrens, Fantasy, Classics, Folk Tales

32 pages, Hardcover

Published November 22, 2004

About the author

Amy Ehrlich is the author of more than thirty books for young readers and is also a winner of The Dorothy Canfield Fisher Award for her novel Joyride, which was also chosen Booklist Choice Best Book of the Decade. She lives on a farm in Northern Vermont with her husband and a great many domestic and agricultural animals.

Reviews

[Melody Schwarting · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lovely version of the Cinderella tale, even if all the characters' faces are identical.

[Izi · Rating 4 out of 5]

The pictures were beautiful! I spent quite a while pouring over them, figuring out how the illustrator did them and how I might be able to draw like that... I think incredible patience would be required! :)

[Samantha · Rating 5 out of 5]

The pictures in this book are great!

[Set · Rating 5 out of 5]

The artwork is gorgeous and in the french style. I like this retelling of Cinderella, it was simple and sweet.

[Beatriz · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a good story. A lit different from the classic Disney Cinderella story, and that had me a bit suspicious lol. However, it still holds the truth of the Cinderella story and the illustration is beautiful

[Anabel · Rating 5 out of 5]

After researching many different versions of Cinderella, I have to admit that my favorite book was precisely this one. Retold by Amy Ehrlich in 1985, the story’s plot is almost identical to that of Perrault’s, with the exception that Cinderella is first introduced as “sweet, gentle, and good as gold”, whereas in Perrault’s version, she is simply described as “beautiful and sweet”. The illustrations in Ehrlich’s version of Cinderella demonstrates more depth and seems to include images drawn using various drafting techniques. Therefore, the illustrations have become extremely detailed and include much shadow and perspective, adding a more realistic, yet dramatic sensation to the story. This story, along with the Marcia Brown version of Cinderella, would be perfect to do a compare and contrast activity with in the middle school grade-levels. These two titles are very similar textually, but the illustrations strongly defer. As we learned in class, this would be an ideal activity in which we can have our students analyze the illustrator’s purpose in adding “somber” illustrations, as well as discussing the effects that these create to different types of readers.

[Mahsa]

when i was a child this book was my faveret stori book

[Purplemarya · Rating 5 out of 5]

واااای!من دیووانه ی اون لباس رو جاد سیندرلا بودم.با اون نقاشی سانسور شده.یادمه رمان خواهرم که رفت یه جلد نو شو خرید دیگه روسری سرش نبود!ه

[♥♣Mary♦♠ If She So Pleases · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a beautiful book and the story is sweet.

[Saffron Moon · Rating 5 out of 5]

This rating is for the Charles Perrault edition adapted by Amy Ehrlich and illustrated by Susan Jeffers.

[L.A. · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are a few gaps in the storyline, but the illustrations are pretty nice, and it’s better than a lot of versions we’ve read.

[Andrew G · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Cinderella” was originally written by Charles Perrault and retold by Amy Ehrlich in this book. This book tells the story of Cinderella in a format suitable for older readers. I located this book via Goodreads (goodreads.com) and read a digital copy of this book via the Internet Archive (archive.org). I found the digital copy to be very engaging as the illustrations were very clear and it was easy to read.

The text tells the story of Cinderella, a young woman whose life is made miserable by her stepmother and two stepsisters. She is forced to work around the house, performing chores nonstop. One evening, there is a ball hosted by the king’s son. The stepsisters attend, but tell Cinderella she would be laughed at if she went. Cinderella becomes very sad and begins to cry. Seeing this, her fairy godmother comes to her and provides her with all she needs to attend the ball: a coach with horses and coachmen, a beautiful dress, and glass slippers. Cinderella attends the ball and draws massive amounts of attention, especially from the king’s son. Even her stepsisters are starstruck by her beauty, although they do not recognize her as their sister. Cinderella rushes home before midnight, leaving behind one of her glass slippers. The prince is determined to find the owner of the glass slipper, and begins searching. When it is revealed that the slipper belongs to Cinderella, her stepsisters ask for her forgiveness. She forgives them “with all her heart”, even giving them a place to stay in the king’s palace where she now lives since getting married to the prince. The two stepsisters even get married to two lords of the court.

The author/illustrator does a great job of characterizing Cinderella and her stepsisters. This characterization is achieved through dialogue and each character’s actions throughout the story. Cinderella is built to be a warm and gentle individual while her stepsisters are mean and prideful (at first). The stepsisters change throughout the story, particularly when it is revealed that Cinderella is the owner of the glass slippers. They immediately ask for Cinderella’s forgiveness and become remorseful for their earlier actions.

The illustrations in this book are very powerful. There are entire two-page spans that do not include any words, instead using a large illustration to move the story forward. The illustrations help characterize each character, such as highlighting what they are wearing and their emotions. The use of lighting is a critical component of the illustrations, as it highlights Cinderella as the focal point of the story. Even with many characters present at the ball, the reader’s attention is shifted immediately to Cinderella. The illustrations kept me engaged throughout my read.

This book is appropriate for ages 9-12. While the vocabulary is not overly complex, readers will need to be at or above their grade’s reading level to fully comprehend the story. I’d use this book in my classroom as an independent read, with time for small group and whole group discussion. I’d encourage my students to think about the major themes of the book, including kindness and resilience.

-Andrew

[Sarah Paige Hunter · Rating 5 out of 5]

We all know the classic tale of Cinderella's transformation into a fairytale princess, but this book is an especially wonderful retelling of the old story. Amy Ehrlich writes a beautiful narration and the illustrations make it even better.

This book is a very traditional version of the Cinderella story- quite simply, a young girl goes "from rags to riches." A man's wife dies and he then marries another woman, who makes Cinderella's life quite miserable. She has two evil stepsisters and she is treated very harshly and unfairly, but gets a rare chance to attend "The Prince's Ball." There, she falls in love with the prince but must leave rather quickly. She ends up leaving a glass slipper behind (the fairy godmother helped get her ready for the big night) and the prince uses it to search for and find her. They marry and live "happily ever after." I love this book because it is such a classic piece of folklore and Ehrlich tells the tale so beautifully, and because it is a traditional, (somewhat) original version. It sends such a valuable message to its readers in that it teaches you to always be kind to others no matter what. I love the lesson it emphasizes and it will always be one of my favorite tales.

This story has a lot of words on each page and the vocabulary is more advanced, so it would be better used in 3-5 classrooms. It could be used in a variety of instructional ways, one being a simple read aloud. Unknown or challenging words could be shared and added to the word wall, and could be further used in a vocabulary lesson or activity. Additionally, this story could be used to teach the valuable lesson of kindness and I would extend it by adding a writing activity. I would have students write about acts of kindness or have them write creative folklore tales inspired by Cinderella's story. They could illustrate the stories and I could "publish" them, and we could even have students read them aloud to the class. This would help develop a number of literacy skills while also keeping in mind the theme of the story!

[Hannah Holthaus · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this version of Cinderella, most of the details and main points of the story are very similar to the version that I have always known. Cinderella's father remarried and her step-mother had two daughters. The step-mother and daughters took over Cinderella's life, even her father. The prince was having a ball and all of the single, worthy women were invited. Cinderella's sisters called her Cinderwrench and laughed at the fact that Cinderella thought she should go to the ball. On the first night of the ball, Cinderella's sisters went to the bar and left Cinderella at home. Then, her fairy godmother appeared and told Cinderella that she needed to be home by midnight or the spells would fade. Cinderella was off to the ball and was actually seated right next to her sisters but they did not recognize her. She wore the most beautiful gown and impressed everyone she walked by. When the clock struck quarter-to-twelve, Cinderella bolted out the door without saying goodbye to the prince. The next night, the fairy godmother appeared again and Cinderella was off for round two. But this time, she was not paying attention to the clock, and suddenly it was midnight! Cinderella bolted out of the ballroom, leaving her glass slipper behind for Prince to find. The next day, the Prince was on the hunt for his mysterious princess. He went to all the homes in the town and when he arrived at Cinderella's home, her step-sisters tried to pretend that it was only them two at the house. Cinderella appeared, tried on the glass slipper and it was a perfect fit. Cinderella and the prince got married and lived happily ever after! Cinderella's sisters begged for her forgiveness and ended up marrying some men that lived with the prince as well.

[Brooke Bradford · Rating 3 out of 5]

Annotation: A young girls mother dies and the father soon marries another woman that has two daughters herself. Soon after the step mother made Cinderella start to do the chores around the house and help the sisters with anything they needed. One day the family got invited to go to the ball at the palace, but the evil stepmother would not let Cinderella go. Because Cinderella could not go she was very upset, but her godmother had an idea, and she used her powers to give Cinderella a beautiful dress, a carriage that was made out of a pumpkin, mice that got turned into beautiful white horses, and of course gave her glass slippers. Cinderella had the time of her life at the ball and feel in love with the prince and he with her. Cinderella soon remembered that she had to be home by midnight for the magic would wear off. Cinderella left so fast that one of her glass slippers came off. The next day the prince went all over looking for the girl that he met and tried the glass slipper on all the girls in the town. That was until he finally found her Cinderella, a perfect fit for the glass slipper.

Classroom connection/personal response: This is a non-European book that is known here in the United States, so in the classroom you could pair this book up with a European Cinderella story and have the students compare and contrast the two. Another way you could use this book in the classroom is by pairing this book up with a fractured tale and see how it compares to the original story of Cinderella.

[Lucila Perez · Rating 5 out of 5]

I believe that the story is pretty in many ways . The pictures really tell the story and give it variety. It takes longer to take in the pictures than to read the print on the opposing page. Jeffers' delicate inkstrokes lend a light and airy quality to the story. I would have liked the author to develop all of the characters more. There is little of typical caring for the animals in this story. I missed that because it emphasized Cinderellas isolation from other people, and showed her coping with the lonliness by befriending the animals. She seems more lonely in this tale than in others. Talking to the animals and singing to them displayed the simple joy she had within her that endured despite the bullying she received. This Cinderella is a little less joyous, a little more reserved. There is a tiny red bird that appears on several of the pages, symbolizing such a connection, but it is not mentioned by the author.he illustrations in Ehrlich’s version of Cinderella demonstrates more depth and seems to include images drawn using various drafting techniques. Therefore, the illustrations have become extremely detailed and include much shadow and perspective, adding a more realistic, yet dramatic sensation to the story.I found the vocabulary a little challenging and therefore I would use this book with older students. It is also a story that contains a lot of words.

[Nikole Rettman · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a folklore. It has won the Caldecott Honor Book. Cinderella's change from poor young lady to princess never neglects to enamor youthful ones, and this stellar retelling, impeccably delineated by Susan Jeffers, is an absolute necessity for each library. At the point when the first form of this book was distributed in 1985, Distributers Week by week called it "a fortune for all ages," and The New York Times pronounced, "Children's story devotees will be hypnotized." For this hardcover reissue, Susan Jeffers corrected her pen-and- ink and color outlines, making them much wealthier. Her splendid craftsmanship is showcased in another inside configuration including a fifth-shading gold fringe. Embellished gold foil sort on the coat of this huge arrangement picture book trumpets the entry of the young lady who went from clothes to newfound wealth. This is the original book. It is amazing to see how Cinderella has changed from here.

[Jessica Tracy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully done illustrations! The cover is alright, but the illustrations in the book are much better. Susan Jeffers does a great job capturing the magic in her artwork. The story is very similar to Barbara McClintock's version. Although I'm not sure who preceeded who.

[(NS)Jennifer Reiner · Rating 4 out of 5]

This version of Cinderella tells the usual tale of the story. A man's wife dies and he marries another woman who makes Cinderella's life miserable. She has two evil step sisters who do everything to make her life awful. One day an invitation for a ball arrives, and Cinderella's fairy godmother gets her ready for the big night. When the clock strikes midnight Cinderella loses her glass slipper. The Prince finds Cinderella and they marry. The art work in the story is just beautiful as well as the gold bordered pages.

This version of Cinderella is a great beginning story to read to my class of students. I think that in order for my students to understand all of the various versions of Cinderella, they need to be aware of how the story really starts. This story depicts the original tale of Cinderella.

[(NS) Becca · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a beautiful tale of Cinderella written primarily for older children. The vocabulary is a little challenging, but is rich with detail. The pictures even seemed to match an older population because they were done in pen and ink and didn't seem to jump off of the pages. I do think that the pictures were able to portray a beautiful fairy-tale like atmosphere for some of the scenes, but still not quite as exciting as some of the other books children might read.

This story was slightly different from the traditional Cinderella because Cinderella goes to the ball TWICE and although there is magic interspersed throughout the story, it is not quite as dramatic as it is in the movies or Disney versions. I really did enjoy this story though because it was well written and kept me capitivated.

[NS Kelley]

This is a very traditional version of Cinderella. It is a story about a girl who goes from rags to riches. She is treated unfairly by others but gets a once in lifetime chance to attend the Princes ball. At the ball shes falls in love with the prince but must leave in a hurry. When leaving she leaves behind her shoe. The prince searches for her with the glass slipper.

This book has beautiful illustrations with a lot of detail. The vocabulary is challenging and therefore I would use this book with older students. It is also a story that contains a lot of words. This would make it hard to read with younger students due to their shortened attention spans.

When working with older students this would be a great book to begin with when looking at the different versions of Cinderella. It gives great detail about where Cinderella came from and her history.

[(NS) Laura Jackson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of the most well known versions of Cinderella. This is a story of a young girl that goes from rags to riches through the help of her fairy godmother. Cinderella helps her evil stepsisters get ready for the ball. Once the stepsisters and stepmother are off to the ball, she is greeted by a fairy godmother. The fairy godmother helps Cinderella so that she can attend the ball in a beautiful gown. Everyone thinks she is beautiful, including the prince. Once she realizes she is running late for her curfew from her fairy godmother, she rushes home leaving behind a glass slipper. Upon arrival at Cinderella’s home, the Prince finds the rightful owner of the glass slipper, Cinderella. The Prince and Cinderella decide to get married and live happily ever after.

[Katherine Franklin · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this not so classic book of Cinderella by Amy Ehrlich we meet Cinderella, her father, her stepmother, Evil Stepsisters, Prince Charming, and Fairy Godmother. This was to me maybe in the time period of the 17th century in Europe. Cinderella’s dad remarries after her mom dies and it was a disaster. After her dad then dies they treat her like she’s scum. They don’t treat her well but she gets the chance to go to a ball but they do not want her to go. This story is "Rags to Riches” she transforms as she goes to “The Prince’s Ball.” Her fairy godmother helped her get ready for the night. At the ball she falls in love with the prince but must leave fast and ends up leaving her glass slipper behind. Overall the illustration was beautiful and I would definitely keep this in my classroom.

[Cindi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This version of Cinderella is true to Perrault's, but is retold by Amy Ehrlich, with illustrations by Susan Jeffers. The illustrations could be described as dream-like. The colors used are soft and have a magical quality to them. Sometimes the entire page is covered with Cinderella and her fairy godmother as the mice are turned into beautiful white horses, other times it seems as if the pictures are dancing around the text. One could look for quite some time at the illustrations and play I-Spy with all the details.



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[Rykki · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this version of the story. It ends a little happier than most, which makes it a bit of a Disney kind of tale. My littlest loves it and wants it read again and again.

In addition, the artwork is besutiful. Two full spread pictures are included which are visually stunning. It gives the whole story a very elegant feel.

The only mark down on my review is the feel that it's overly happy in the end. The rest of the family is completely glossed over, as though they didn't exist. They were a part of the background context I wish was better included, as my three year old was a little confused as to why she kept returning to rags.

[Sierra Dirksen · Rating 4 out of 5]

The fairytale of Cinderella is well known by most. Cinderella is treated as a servant by her stepmother and stepsisters, but one day her fairy godmother helps her go to the ball. In this adaptation of the story, there is a more traditional spin. Cinderella's father is not dead but allows her to be treated poorly and Cinderella goes to the ball twice before she loses her shoe. However, like all Cinderella adaptation, she is reunited with her prince. This book can be helpful in teaching children to be humble. It has good illustrations and leaves out the dark twist of the original Cinderella where the stepsisters cut of part of their own feet.

[Christina Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the retelling of this folk tale that is intended for readers in grade two and up, we are familiarized with the struggles of Cinderella. The design of the book is very elegant, while each page has borders and the pages are finely colored. Each page has detailed and thought provoking illustrations. The choice of clothing that the illustrator chose for the characters features those from the time period the story is intended for (17th century). While the story's retelling is well-written, the illustrations are busy enough to make you evaluate every part of every page, making sure that there are no details that you have missed.

[bell]

My grandfather gave me a copy of this book when I was a child a few months before he died and I remember poring over the art in this book. And revisiting it as an adult... yep it's still absolutely beautiful.
Retold in the classic "Cendrillon" version of Charles Perrault, not much is different from Disney's version. A key difference, however, is that the stepsisters are not entirely irredeemable and get redemption in the end in the form of Cinderella's forgiveness, housing in the castle, and their eventual respective marriages to two lords.
Also, I don't know if I will ever get over the fact that there are literal birds in Cinderella's hair and her ballgown holding up the fabric.

[Madeline Herrera · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is very interesting it's the classic tale of Cinderella. One of my favorite things about the book is when the fairy godmother turned a pumpkin into a carriage. I also like the pictures because there is a colored pencil look and and I love how you can see the lines and how detailed the pictures are. However I don't like the facts that she is mistreated and how they did not explain how her parents died.

[Teresa Alpizar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Traditional fantasy/literature
Kindergarten-1st grade
This traditional fantasy book has very beautiful illustrations and colors on each page. Reading along with the pictures gave a magical touch to the story. I enjoy reading different versions of the Cinderella fairy tale and especially by this author Susan Jeffers. With the beautiful illustrations and story plot, students will be captivated by the magical theme.