Fairest by Gail Carson Levine Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Fairest
Book Review: A Disappointment
Summary: 1 Stars
I eagerly awaited this book when I learned that Levine would be writing another story in the world of Ella Enchanted, but unfortunately, it turned out to be quite a disappointment. There's nothing much wrong with the story line, I think, but the way in which the novel was written does nothing to make you like the characters. There was no connection formed between the reader and the characters as there was in Ella Enchanted. You get the feeling that the author struggled to find her characters' identities and 'voices,' without ever finding them completely- or at least, without fully conveying them in the text. I felt detatched and impersonal even at the end of the book, coming away disappointed and unmoved.Book Review: A disappointment from a great author
Summary: 2 Stars
I know that Gail Carson Levine fans will want to get all over my case for not liking this book, but I just couldn't get into it. I tried, I really did, but I couldn't even bother finishing it. After more than 100 pages of hoping it would get better, it never did.
I felt the plot was forced, and I thought the movement from Aza being a commoner to all of a sudden the lady-in-waiting of the queen was a bit of a stretch. Aza's infatuation with the prince was so obvious that there was no need to really develop their relationship because the outcome was heading in the exact same direction of the relationship in Ella Enchanted.
I don't know how anyone else could get through this book that is written by an author who can do such great work. I was totally disappointed and glad that I only checked it out of the library rather than actually buying it.
Book Review: A great new spin on an old fairy tale!
Summary: 4 Stars
I really loved "Ella Enchanted", so I was tickled when I began reading "Fairest". I admit that it wasn't as intriguing as "Ella", but it still was definitely worth reading. It is such an original spin on the story of Snow White. I loved that it gave answers for all the strange things that happen in the original Snow White, especially how Snow White was able to come back to life after eating a poison apple. I loved the clever twist in the end, but I won't tell you what it was.Book Review: A wonderful version on Snow White
Summary: 4 Stars
I'm 30 years-old and loved this book. A wonderful version of Snow White complete with Levine's own personal style and touches. Levine writes so fluidly and gives so much humor to her heroines. I love how everything in her "make-believe world" still makes sense even though it isn't like our world. It's not hard to follow without Levine having to "talk down" to her readers. I loved that this book took place in the same world as Ella Enchanted!
Why only 4 stars? Although I really liked Aza and her character development, I was a bit disappointed in the development of the Prince. We never really got to know him. The relationship between Aza and the Prince never seemed to evolve, it just happened--Nothing like Ella and Prince Charmont. I just didn't fall in love with him, myself, like I did with Prince Charmont.
Other than that, I completely loved it. I've already lent it out to friends and family telling them, "you have to read this!"
Book Review: Another Homerun for Levine
Summary: 5 Stars
This book was so captivating. From the first lines to the last, I was so overtaken by the creative storyline and personal (yet sometimes insecure, and therefore more human) characters. I was excited to see into the world of Ella Enchanted once again. Even though both girls (Aza and Ella) are from different kingdoms, Aza's sister is Ella's only friend from finishing school: Areida.
Although I didn't realize how many aspects of "Fairest" were mentioned in "Ella Enchanted" until I re-read the latter, I was so pleased to see how they were linked. Areida and Ella became friends at finishing school in the Kyrrian town of Jenn. Areida tells Ella of her parents, the inn where she and Aza live, and the "Sings" that are held monthly in her home province of Ayorthia. At the end of "Fairest", the author clues you in on the detail of Areida and Ella's friendship, in case you were wondering if the two Areidas were in fact the same person.
I am an accomplished singer at my school (I'm 16), and I was so happy to read a book that focused on it and talked about a land where singing was part of their culture. I even tried to illuse a couple of times, with no success obviously, since it's something only gnomes can do. <3