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Wendy's Reviews > Cinder-Elly
Cinder-Elly (Picture Puffin Books)
by
by
Genre: Children’s, Folktale
Summary:
In this slightly altered retelling of the Cinderella tale, Cinder-Elly is the main character suffering at the hands of her two sisters. Set in a modern time, Cinder-Elly wishes to attend a basketball game rather than the ball. All of her accoutrement match the current setting, a house in the city, a glass sneaker, and the “prince” as a star basketball player.
Using rhyme to tell the tale, each page moves with a cadence that is familiar and conducive to reading. Narrators set in the margins interject thoughts and insights similar to those the reader might have him or herself. The running side dialogue personalizes the tale and invites readers to form opinions and make comments themselves.
Positives/Negatives:
The rhythm of the text and the rhyming of the second and fourth sentences lend themselves to readers intuiting the words, particularly given the fact that the words often have similar roots. The sentences are short enough to allow a still developing reader to decode most of the words and determine the rest with relative ease.
The variety in the backgrounds and drawing styles lends a sense of whimsy to the illustrations and keeps the story feeling more like a fairytale. With the details in the margins contributing to the flow of the story, the drawings found there are simple and childlike, further enhancing the feeling of the story.
Examples:
In a pivotal moment in the story, Cinder-Elly loses her glass shoe. Although the language is simple, it communicates the message quite effectively. “She got up and ran, It’s sad, but it’s true, a lace came undone and she lost a glass shoe.”
The humor of the narrators adds an extra element of perspective to the story not in the original tellings. “But she couldn’t stop now so she hurried on. All she saw was a trash can – her bike was gone.” “I was afraid this would happen” comments the narrator, voicing the same concern the reader might hold.
Curriculum Connection:
Retelling this classic fairytale in a modern setting provides a wonderful example or the way in which literature can be rewritten for a different purpose. Allowing the children to select a favorite fairytale and then helping them to rewrite it in an alternate setting provides a literary exercise that develops both writing skill and language arts awareness.
The modifications in this version also provide a wonderful opportunity to compare the similarities and differences between the classic tale and this modern tale. In looking at the details of each version, the children will begin to appreciate the small aspects that make the tale what it is. This can be conducted before the writing exercise to allow their awareness of what details make each version unique and how to modify them for their own story.
Summary:
In this slightly altered retelling of the Cinderella tale, Cinder-Elly is the main character suffering at the hands of her two sisters. Set in a modern time, Cinder-Elly wishes to attend a basketball game rather than the ball. All of her accoutrement match the current setting, a house in the city, a glass sneaker, and the “prince” as a star basketball player.
Using rhyme to tell the tale, each page moves with a cadence that is familiar and conducive to reading. Narrators set in the margins interject thoughts and insights similar to those the reader might have him or herself. The running side dialogue personalizes the tale and invites readers to form opinions and make comments themselves.
Positives/Negatives:
The rhythm of the text and the rhyming of the second and fourth sentences lend themselves to readers intuiting the words, particularly given the fact that the words often have similar roots. The sentences are short enough to allow a still developing reader to decode most of the words and determine the rest with relative ease.
The variety in the backgrounds and drawing styles lends a sense of whimsy to the illustrations and keeps the story feeling more like a fairytale. With the details in the margins contributing to the flow of the story, the drawings found there are simple and childlike, further enhancing the feeling of the story.
Examples:
In a pivotal moment in the story, Cinder-Elly loses her glass shoe. Although the language is simple, it communicates the message quite effectively. “She got up and ran, It’s sad, but it’s true, a lace came undone and she lost a glass shoe.”
The humor of the narrators adds an extra element of perspective to the story not in the original tellings. “But she couldn’t stop now so she hurried on. All she saw was a trash can – her bike was gone.” “I was afraid this would happen” comments the narrator, voicing the same concern the reader might hold.
Curriculum Connection:
Retelling this classic fairytale in a modern setting provides a wonderful example or the way in which literature can be rewritten for a different purpose. Allowing the children to select a favorite fairytale and then helping them to rewrite it in an alternate setting provides a literary exercise that develops both writing skill and language arts awareness.
The modifications in this version also provide a wonderful opportunity to compare the similarities and differences between the classic tale and this modern tale. In looking at the details of each version, the children will begin to appreciate the small aspects that make the tale what it is. This can be conducted before the writing exercise to allow their awareness of what details make each version unique and how to modify them for their own story.
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Reading Progress
Started Reading
November 5, 2011
–
Finished Reading
November 6, 2011
– Shelved
November 6, 2011
– Shelved as:
reviewed
