Ella Enchanted

Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine is a magical novel that grabs readers within the first couple of pages. In this story, Levine recreates the original tale of Cinderella. Although this novel is a spin off of an old story, more meaning and depth is put into Ella Enchanted. Traveling through many exotic lands along the way, the main character, Ella, will grab the hearts of all readers who enjoy fairy tales.
Ella of Frell is a clever and young woman who lives with a terrible curse. When Ella was first born, the fairy Lucinda couldn't stand the noise of Ella's crying; therefore, she "blessed" Ella with the gift of obedience and orderded Ella to stop crying. Immediately her tears ceased; Ella had no choice but to obey, she had no will to disobey. Any order that Ella recieves she must obey. As she grows up, Ella lives with her mother (Eleanor), her cook/fairy godmother (Mandy), and various other servants in a wealthy manor in the town named Frell. Ella's father is a greedy merchant who rarely comes home. A tragic event occurs when Ella is only 14 years old. Her mother catches a terrible sickness and dies, leaving Ella to endure the commands of her selfish father.
At her mother's funeral, Ella meets the prince of Kyrria (the kingdom in which she lives), Charmont, who tells her to call him Char. He greatly comforts her in her time of grief, and they immediately become close. Just days after this episode, Ella's father forces her to go to finishing school with two horrid girls, Olive and Hattie. While at finishing school, Ella makes one good friend, Areida, but is tortured by Hattie, who kind of figures out Ella's curse. Finally, Ella can take finishing school no longer, and she runs away.
The giants are having a wedding, and Ella plans to attend so that she can meet the fairy, Lucinda, who gave her the curse. While on her journey, Ella first meets the elves, and after she comes across ogres. The ogres plan to eat her, but Char comes with his knights and together they all capture the ogres. Finally, Ella makes it to her destination and meets Lucinda, who is unwilling to lift her "gift". Running into her father while at the wedding, Ella travels home with him to discover that he has gone bankrupt. He then proceeds to marry the wretched mother of Hattie and Olive so he can have money again. Ella's step family makes a slave of her while her father is away. As she undergoes this humiliation, Ella corresponds with Prince Char through letters as he is away in another country. They are both falling in love with each other and finally Char confesses his love. Ella lies and says she's run off with someone else because she is afraid that her curse would endanger him if they were to get married.
After two long years, Char returns home to Kyrria and his parents throw him three balls where he is supposed to find a wife. He no longer wants to find a wife, as Ella completely broke his heart. Still a servant, Ella must sneak out to attend these masked balls. She plans to remain invisible to Char, but can't resist dancing with him and making him laugh. On the night of the third ball, Ella's horrible step sister Hattie rips of Ella's mask while Ella is dancing with Char. They all discover the truth and Ella runs home and tries to escape with her godmother, Mandy.
Shortly after Ella returns home, Char and Ella's step family burst in the house. By this time, Ella has put her servant's clothes back on. She denies her identity when questioned by Char, who loves her so much that he tells her she "needn't be Ella if she doesn't want to be." Char commands Ella for her hand in marriage. This is the moment of truth. Ella can either say yes and be obedient but lead Char and Kyrria to dangerous times, or she can say no, save them all, but be unhappy. The battle going on in Ella's mind finally stops and she tells Char that she won't marry him. She is free of the curse. Her love for Char and for the safety of all of Kyrria was enough to break the curse. After realizing this, she accepts Char's offer and they get married and live happily ever after.
I greatly enjoyed this novel. It was romantic and adventurous. The fresh twist on an old tale easily captured my attention; I couldn't stop reading once I started. A question that many people might have is why did Ella's father marry such a disgusting and terrible woman. The answer to this is simply: this spin off of a classic story wouldn't be complete without an evil step mother!