As lavish as Craft's (King Midas and the Golden Touch) previous works, this retold fairy tale abounds with ornamental detail. Inspired by the opulent styles of 17th- and 18th-century France, the paintings are confections of luxurious clothing, densely vegetated woods and regally appointed ballrooms. A number of the pictures are breathtaking: Craft's painting of Cinderella's ornate gold carriage flying through the sky is as romantic as any fairy-tale aficionado could wish for. Elaborate initials introduce the narrative on each spread, and the text almost always faces full-page illustrations. The story, adapted from Arthur Rackham's and Andrew Lang's versions, contains pleasing touches as well as a moral. For example, Cinderella and the prince first meet when Cinderella nurses a lame bluebird in the forest; this same bluebird later becomes the fairy godmother. When the glass slipper fits Cinderella, the prince says, "How I knew that day in the woods that you were indeed special, but I should have fully recognized that heart whether clothed in rags or regalia." While this is not the most childlike version of Cinderella, it may be among the most sumptuous. All ages. (Sept.) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.
Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly
The familiar tale is retold in elegant language, and with great detail. Here, a bird she has earlier nursed becomes Cinderella's fairy godmother. The traditional pumpkin "blossomed into a splendid gilt coach lined with rose-pink satin," and the other transformations are as elaborate. The glass slipper is lost after two balls, the repentant stepsisters are pardoned, "And when they inherited the kingdom, Cinderella and the prince became known far and wide as the kindest rulers the people had ever known." From the jacket/cover Baroque-stylized portrait of Cinderella in a ball gown in an elaborate frame, we are presented with a series of framed text pages with illuminated capital letter, and facing oil and watercolor scenes of exquisite detail. Three double-page spreads with no text carry the drama powerfully forward. Voltaire's seventeenth and eighteenth century France inspired the lush imaginary settings, which suggest the costumes and palace gardens of the court paintings of the time. They reflect the romance and the tradition of the famous story. 2000, SeaStar Books/North-South Books, $15.95 and $15.88. Ages 3 to 8. Reviewer: Ken Marantz and Sylvia Marantz
PreS-Gr 4-Craft retains some of Perrault's formality and many of his story elements in this sumptuous rendition of the oft-told tale. An introductory note points to sources that include The Arthur Rackham Fairy Book, Andrew Lang's The Blue Fairy Book, and the Grimms' "Aschenputtel," in which a bird grants the wish. Craft incorporates the creature at key points throughout her tale. Early on, a bluebird's injury creates a reason for Cinderella to linger in the forest, whereupon she encounters the prince in her unadorned state. Later, it is transformed into a Maxfield Parrish-inspired fairy godmother. Finally, the prince compares his guest's sweet voice to the warbler that sings at his window. While pulling some visual details from the Art Nouveau tradition-most notably the symbolic gilt peacocks in the cover's border-the oil-over-watercolor scenes are mostly reminiscent of French 17th and 18th-century paintings. A consummate artist, Craft conveys the sheen of pearls, the delicacy of lace, the volume of period fashion. She controls the pace with one-page compositions (faced with bordered, illuminated text) interspersed with wordless double spreads at climactic moments. Groups or individuals will enjoy contrasting this offering to Brian Pinkney's artwork for Robert San Souci's Cendrillon (S & S, 1998) or Alan Schroeder's Smoky Mountain Rose (Puffin, 2000). Make room for this one.-Wendy Lukehart, Dauphin County Library, Harrisburg, PA Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.
PLB: 1-58717-005-1 This beautiful and very traditional retelling of the Cinderella fairy tale is lavishly illustrated in a very painterly style, with oils over watercolors and placed in imaginary settings of 17th- and 18th-century France. The illustrations, each set in a white frame within the page, evoke classical paintings, and are full of lush golds, greens, and yellows. The fairy godmother, who metamorphoses from a bluebird that Cinderella had nursed back from an injury at the beginning of the story, is presented in much more modern style, with shades of Arthur Rackham or the art-nouveau style. The details, especially on the clothes and the foliage, are exquisitely rendered. The text, adapted mostly from The Arthur Rackham Fairy Book and The Blue Fairy Book by Andrew Lang, adheres closely to the familiar story with the exception of the bluebird, a variation inspired by the Grimms's"Aschenputtel." The details of Cinderella's life aren't gone into in much depth in this version—there is no cataloguing of the evil stepsisters' cruelties, and the wicked stepmother keeps out of the picture here. The illustrations of the inanimate objects are much more interesting than the faces, which, particularly in Cinderella's and the Prince's case, are empty and lifeless. In fact, only the faces of the stepsisters show any emotion at all. The book is beautifully designed—the title page shows the main character in a frame that looks like an intricate locket, replete with jewels and gold filigree, and the final image shows the prince's castle and kingdom in the same locket-shaped frame. Each page of text is surrounded by beautifully patterned borders andbeginswith a flourish onthe initial letter. A nice addition to any library or classroom, and a lovely gift book, this is clearly the most elegant of the year's avalanche. (Fairy tale. 5-9)
