Narrated with spirit and warmth by Jenny Sterlin, Gregory Maguire’s vision of Cinderella is a sweeping story of love and deception, where a ball, a handsome prince and the betrayal of a daughter can lead to everyone living happily ever after. Allegory of children bending over a crate In the allegory, there is a crate that has arrived from China. When the merchant’s wife dies, Margarethe seizes the moment, and a wicked stepmother is born. The symbolism used where people are represented as rats is coherent with the book, ‘Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister’ whereby the narrator paints human beings are unappreciative, not loyal and unhelpful. Margarethe is hired as the housekeeper and Iris as a companion to the merchant’s stunningly beautiful but troubled daughter. Arriving destitute, the family becomes employed in the home of a wealthy tulip merchant. Forced to flee England with her recently widowed mother, Margarethe, and her older sister, she finds herself swept into a life that becomes a legend. Iris is a plain but intelligent young girl. Using a dazzling reincarnation of the Cinderella story set in 17th century Holland, Maguire deftly weaves together stories of inner and outer beauty. Gregory Maguire, critically acclaimed author of Wicked, returns with his eagerly anticipated second novel.
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