The Cinder-Maid:
I came into this sincerely hoping that it would be the base story for Cinderella! It starts out promisingly with the king declaring a ball to be held for all women of noble birth. But was Cinderella noble? Luckily, the story clarifies that her father was noble. In this version, however, her father is alive and condones the awful treatment by the stepmother and stepsisters! How awful! Also, instead of a fairy godmother, a little bird led her to discover her beautiful items for the ball while she was near her mother's grave. Wow, this is eerie and sad! Her shoe gets stuck, not in haste, but by the prince's design. In the search for the girl whom the shoe fit, the prince found that it fit the step sisters' feet -- because they cut off their toes!!! Luckily, the father FINALLY owned up to Cinderella being his daughter. The prince said that since she was of noble birth, they could be married even despite her current lifestyle. This is a much stranger happily ever after than I am used to!
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| A servant of the prince pouring honey so that Cinderella's shoe will get stuck Image Information |
The Language of Animals:
I had no idea that this story would have so many references that would later become Snow White! Jack went to school for several years and learned how to interpret the language of different animals. This angered his father and his father ordered that Jack be killed by a robber. Are all fathers in this book just terrible? Did the author have an issue with his own father? Like in Snow White, the robber warns Jack and brings back an animal heart to the father instead of Jack's heart -- whew! Then, in a twist reminiscent of Joseph from the Bible, Jack gains great power and later forgives his parents who do not recognize him.
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