The Golden Sandal: A Middle Eastern Cinderella Story - Hardcover

Hickox, Rebecca

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0823413314 ISBN 13: 9780823413317

Publisher: Holiday House, 1998

Synopsis

Poor Maha! Her jealous stepmother makes her do all the housework while her selfish stepsister lazes about. Since Maha's father is away fishing most of the time, there is no one to help or comfort her. All that begins to change when Maha finds a magical red fish. In return for sparing his life, the fish promises to help Maha whenever she calls him. On the night Maha is forbidden to attend a grand henna to celebrate the coming wedding of a wealthy merchant's daughter, the fish is true to his word. His magic sets in motion a chain of events that reward Maha with great happiness, and a dainty golden sandal is the key to it all. Rebecca Hickox's eloquent retelling and Will Hillenbrand's lush pictures offer a beguiling version of a story well-loved by many cultures the world over.

About this title

Review:

What do you get when you take Cinderella's glass slipper and transport it to the Middle East? The Golden Sandal! Rebecca Hickox's delightful retelling of an Iraqi folktale "The Little Red Fish and the Clog of Gold" has all the makings of any good Cinderella story--the mean stepmother, the young oppressed girl, a big shindig, a kind, magical creature who helps the girl dress up for the event, an enamored young man, a lost-and-found shoe, and the promise of a happy ending. However, with the Arabian twist, the girl's name is Maha, the benevolent creature is a fish, the shindig is a "grand henna," and the shoe that ultimately saves Maha from a cruel fate is none other than a golden sandal.

Rebecca Hickox, author of Zorro and Quwi, Per and the Dala Horse and Matreshka, teams up with the well-loved illustrator Will Hillenbrand of The Tale of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves, Counting Crocodiles, and the award-winning Wicked Jack to create this fresh twist on a familiar tale--guaranteed to keep youngsters riveted until the satisfying ending when justice prevails! (Ages 4 to 8)

About the Author:

Rebecca Hickox is the author of Zorro and Quwi; Tales of a Trickster Guinea Pig, illustrated by Kim Howard, which Kirkus Reviews calls "delightful," in a pointer review, Per and the Dala Horse, illustrated by Yvonne Gilbert, an American Bookseller Pick of the Lists selection, and Matreshka, illustrated by Alexi Natchev, which Booklist praises as "cleverly told." A high school librarian, Rebecca Hickox lives in Salem, Oregon, with her daughter, Rebecca.

Will Hillenbrand has written and illustrated many picture books for children. The Horn Book called Spring Is Here, the first Bear and Mole Story, "a sure-fire read-aloud for preschoolers;" and in a starred review, School Library Journal raved that Kite Day, the second book in the series, is "a winner for storytimes." He lives in Ohio.

About this edition

• Publisher: Holiday House
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 0823413314
• ISBN 13: 9780823413317
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 32
• Illustrator: Hillenbrand Will