While i still feel wicked is his best writing. I did enjoy this book as well. The middle was a bit difficult to get through, but the twists and turns at the end made it worth reading.

Amazon.com
Gregory Maguire's chilling, wonderful retelling of Cinderella is a study in contrasts. Love and hate, beauty and ugliness, cruelty and charity--each idea is stripped of its ethical trappings, smashed up against its opposite number, and laid bare for our examination. Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister begins in 17th-century Holland, where the two Fisher sisters and their mother have fled to escape a hostile England. Maguire's characters are at once more human and more fanciful than their fairy-tale originals. Plain but smart Iris and her sister, Ruth, a hulking simpleton, are dazed and terrified as their mother, Margarethe, urges them into the strange Dutch streets. Within days, purposeful Margarethe has secured the family a place in the home of an aspiring painter, where for a short time, they find happiness. But this is Cinderella, after all, and tragedy is inevitable. What follows is a changeling adventure, and of course a ball, a handsome prince, a lost slipper, and what might even be a fairy godmother. In a single magic night, the exquisite and the ugly swirl around in a heated mix.

This book is on its way to becoming my first book ring. i hope to get it up and running in a week. if you are interested please PM me.

here is the line up so far...

1. aberpeter (WA) -US/Canada
2. CynthiaA (canada) - int'l
3. vexter (slovenia) - Int'l
4. cm21 (canada) - NA/canada
5. elfgirlsmom (AZ) - US
6. marysgirl (NY) -US
7. sleeptodream005 (MS) -US<--- on its way
8. back to me :)


please journal when you receive the book, and journal again when you've finished and sent it on. try to send out the book within a month's time (if it will take you a little more - just PM me to let me know). if you feel that you don't have the time to read the book when it is your turn, pm me and i will try to move you. Shipping surface is fine

this was sent out yesterday to aberpeter to start out the ring - enjoy :)

Arrived in the mail today. I love fairy tales and am looking forward to starting this book. I have another bookring I must read first and then I will read this one.

I enjoyed reading the book - although I do agree with sweetybeans about the middle being somewhat difficult to get through. I liked the realistic look at this fairy tale and how "happily ever after" isn't always what it seems to be.

I stopped by the post office on Saturday (Jan 20) and sent this book on its way to Canada.

Arrived today, safe and sound. I have one other bookray to finish and then I will get to this one. Yay!

This is the first I've read by this author and I really liked it. I liked how he explores seeing with more than just sight, and how beauty -- and ugly -- aren't always what they seem to be. I liked how he was faithful to the fairy tale and yet left you with a completely different impression about how the story goes. Fascinating stuff.

Shipped to vexter on March 13, 2007.

Arrived today! Thank you! I'm reading another book at the moment, but should be done in a week or two!

I wasn't really in the mood for reading these days, but once I started, the book gripped my attention and I couldn't put it down. I wouldn't say the middle part was slow - I felt more like the pieces of the puzzle were slowly coming together, and I could see the classic story of Cinderella emerging, and it filled me with sadness for the two "ugly" sisters from the tale of Cinderella. (Because we all know the classic story and there was no happy ending for them in that story.) I must say the epilogue surprised me. I guess I too had blinders on, and failed to see the truth in some of the characters. :) I'm also impressed by the author's ability to re-imagine the classic tale and make it so believable.

Thanks for sharing this!

Edit: sent to cm21 on April 30th.

Arrived in Canada, safe and sound!
Now I have an excuse to make time to get this book read!!!

Wow! I have to say, I wasn't really expecting it to be that gripping, I have tried to read Wicked and haven't been able to get into it at all, I loved the musical so I'm still hoping to read it. But I agree with vexter, I didn't particularly feel like reading when it arrived, I've been very busy lately, but I picked it up and started to read and just couldn't put it down! I really liked how it built up to the classic Cinderella story, and I hadn't really ever thought much about the stepsisters, just kind of seen them in the background, but after reading this I could really connect with Iris especially. I really enjoyed reading it and it has given me renewed hope to get through Wicked, and maybe read some of his other books.

Finally mailed to elfgirlsmom - so very sorry about how long that took!!! My mom picked it up off the counter as it was on its way to be mailed and started to read it so that took awhile, so again sorry and hope it arrives quickly!

Hurrah! This arrived to me today while I am on vacation at my parents in Colorado! I will start it right away! Thanks for sharing.

This was my first time reading anything by Maguire. I've always been intrigued by the idea of telling a classic tale from another point of view. I have to say I found this book just ok though. The middle was very slow going for me, but in the end there were surprises and some sad outcomes. Definitely not happily ever after!

On it's way to marysgirl July 18th.

Arrived today - perfect timing. I just finished my current book, so this is up next.

Finished it last night and loved it. I hadn''t read Maguire''s earlier book Wicked, but knew it was a fantasy. Confessions is not a fantasy, but a straight up historical novel about a widow struggling to care for her daughters (one "slow" and massive, the other clever and plain) in seventeenth century Holland. No fairy godmothers, no pumpkin coaches but real people dealing with ambition, jealousy, betrayal, and the collapse of tulip futures. I write and read (a lot) of historical fiction - this book is up there in the top tier.

I''ll PM sleeptodream005 today and send it on its way. Thanks for sharing sweetybeans!

In the mail to sleeptodream005 today.

made it back home. Thanks to everyone for joining this ring. I hope you liked the book as much as I did.