Just Ella (Palace Chronicles) - Hardcover

Margaret Peterson Haddix

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0689821867 ISBN 13: 9780689821868

Publisher: S&S CHILDRENS, 1999

Synopsis

"Princess, nobody can stop those rumors. People would rather believe in fairy godmothers...than think that you took charge of your own destiny."Like every commoner in the land, Ella dreams of going to the ball and marrying Prince Charming. But after she is chosen to marry the prince, life with the royal family is not the "happily ever after" that Ella imagined. Pitiless and cold, the royals try to mold her into their vision of a princess. Ella's life becomes a meaningless schedule of protocol, which she fears she will never grasp. And Prince Charming's beautiful face hides a vacant soul.Even as her life turns to misery, the stories persist that Ella's fairy godmother sent her to the ball: How else could the poor girl wear a beautiful gown, arrive in a coach, and dance in those glass slippers? But there is no fairy godmother to help Ella escape the deadening life of the castle. Can she do it on her own?Margaret Peterson Haddix's reconstruction of the Cinderella legend without the magic -- how a commoner could have married the prince -- is a story as richly fascinating as the classic tale.

About this title

About the Author

Margaret Peterson Haddix is the author of Running Out of Time, Don't You Dare Read This, Mrs. Dunphrey, Leaving Fishers; and Among the Hidden. Her work has won a variety of honors, including the International Reading Association Children's Book Award, ALA "Best Books for Young Adults" and "Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers" citations, and state readers' choice lists in fifteen states. A native of Washington Court House, Ohio, she graduated from Miami University and has worked as a newspaper reporter and as a community college instructor. She now lives near Columbus, Ohio, with her husband, Doug, and their two children.

Of the genesis of Just Ella, Margaret writes: "When my daughter was three, she fell in love with fairy tales and would sit for hours listening to them. I hadn't read many fairy tales since I was a child myself, and I was surprised by how different they sounded this time around. Soon, every time I read 'Cinderella,' the story I heard inside my head was Ella Brown's."

Reviews

Grade 7-9-This imaginative retelling and continuation of "Cinderella" opens two weeks after the ball. Ella Brown, now known as Princess Cynthiana Eleanora, reveals that neither fairy godmother nor magic helped her escape from her stepmother and the Step-Evils; rather, she relied on her own determination, intelligence, and sharp wits to attend the ball. Now, however, ensconced in the palace to learn royal etiquette and protocol, Ella's dream has become a nightmare. She realizes that Charm, although very handsome, is shallow and boring. When Ella attempts to break their engagement, the so-called Charmings throw her into the dungeon. Her spirit triumphs again, as she digs her way out via the latrine, and escapes to help in refugee camps being set up by Jed, a young man she met at the castle. Just Ella touches on many contemporary themes, including the components of love and happiness, the need for shared values in a relationship, the unimportance of physical appearance, and how young girls are manipulated by society's images of beauty. Reminiscent of Gail Levine's Ella Enchanted (HarperCollins, 1997), and of other retold fairy tales including Donna Jo Napoli's Zel (Dutton, 1996) and Robin McKinley's Beauty (HarperCollins, 1978), Just Ella has a certain charm and appeal. Written for a somewhat older audience than Ella Enchanted in terms of vocabulary and subjects touched upon, this title can be recommended for fans of that book who are now a couple of years older and the perfect age to enjoy this new take on a strong heroine.
Connie Tyrrell Burns, Mahoney Middle School, South Portland, ME
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Haddix (Running Out of Time) puts a feminist spin on the Cinderella story, beginning her tongue-in-cheek novel where the traditional story ends. Ella Brown plans to live happily ever after when Prince Charming whisks her from her evil step-family. But when she arrives at the castle, she discovers that the prince is a dull dud, needlepoint is now her most strenuous activity and her ladies in waiting are abuzz with a concocted tale involving Ella, a fairy godmother and a pumpkin (in fact her own resourcefulness got Ella to the ball). When she refuses to marry "Charm," as she calls him, she is thrown in the dungeon to be held there until the wedding day. Making matters worse, Jed, her one kindred spirit, unaware of her imprisonment, leaves to start a refugee camp for victims of the castle's war with a neighboring kingdom. But luckily Ella is not a girl who needs magic or a man to save her. Haddix weaves in elements of fairy tale, with colorful characters such as Lord Reston, Ella's portly, pompous religious teacher; Quog, the ogre-ish jailer; and, of course, the cruel-to-the-core Step Evils. But Ella's modern sensibility seems jarring against a chivalric backdrop (e.g., "Don't that beat all?" Ella says, imitating a servant). Still, her straightforward, often gleefully glib narrative breathes fresh life into the tale. Ages 12-up. (Sept.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

In the wake of Gail Carson Levine's Ella Enchanted (1997) and such recent movies as Ever After, Haddix (Among the Hidden, 1998, etc.) has her own ideas about whether Cinderella really lived happily ever after. After Ella's triumph with the prince and the glass slipper, she moves into the castle to undergo tedious training in etiquette under the unctuous Madame Bisset. She's astonished to learn that the castle servants believe she was sent to the fateful ball by a fairy godmother. Actually she wore her mother's wedding gown and tricked the village glassblower into making her uncomfortable slippers. Ella also learns that the only thing charming about her prince is his name; when she decides not to marry him she's thrown in the dungeon. With the help of Mary, a poor servant girl she has befriended, Ella tunnels her way out. She makes her way to a camp for war refugees run by Jed Reston, her only other friend from the castle. If she lives happily ever after in Haddix's version, it's because she takes charge of her own life. This cleverly done book would make a good read-aloud for younger children, an addition to units on myth and fairy tales at the middle-school level, and will also entertain high school studentsand lead them to Haddix's other, more contemporary works. (Fiction. 10-16) -- Copyright ©1999, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

The story of Cinderella continues, with 15-year-old Ella discovering that life after the ball isn't necessarily lived happily ever after. Her prince is decidedly not charming, and castle life is cushy, but superficial and repressive. Then Ella meets tutor Jed Reston, a lively companion and social activist. Their relationship inspires her to rethink her wishes and priorities and to embark on a challenging quest to find true happiness in life and love. In lively prose, with well-developed characters, creative plot twists, wit, and drama, Haddix transforms the Cinderella tale into an insightful coming-of-age story. Ingenuity and determination, not magic wands, explain Ella's gown, coach, and famous glass slippers, and lend credence to her adventures and evolving character. Easy to relate to, Ella is a strong female protagonist who learns the rewards of bettering life for others, and that happiness, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder. A provocative and entertaining novel, this is a cut above many of the recent versions of fairy tales for older readers. Shelle Rosenfeld

Edition details

• Publisher: S&S CHILDRENS
• Publication date: 1999
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0689821867
• ISBN 13: 9780689821868
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: René Milot
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 185