By Paula Demers, Springvale Library Assistant
When you were young, did you enjoy the adventures found within the pages of beloved fairy tales? Whether it was Snow White, Belle, Cinderella, or another character, girls were usually portrayed as helpless females waiting for Prince Charming to rescue them. Rachel Hochhauser has reimagined the traditional Cinderella story into a novel that will alter your expectations.
Through Rachel’s exceptional writing, each character becomes a real and authentic person with aspirations, hopes, and dreams. The novel is written from the perspective of our heroine, Etheldraede “Ethel” Tremaine Brawley. Twice widowed and left with three daughters without security in a man’s world, Ethel must rely upon nontraditional resources. She is a strong, independent woman who protects her daughters from poverty and a patriarchal society where men hold the power, property, and freedoms. Ethel’s confidante is Lucy, a peregrine falcon who proves invaluable to her survival.
Hochhauser includes many familiar elements of the traditional storyline—dressmaking, cleaning ashes and soot, and attending the ball in pursuit of “Prince Charming”—yet deep, dark, adult secrets lurk within the castle walls. Readers will view this beloved fairy tale with a new appreciation for the stereotypical stepmother.
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