Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine

That fool of a fairy Lucinda did not intend to lay a curse on me.

And so begins this retelling of the tale of Cinderella. Ella was blessed at birth by a fairy with the gift of obedience - imagine having to obey everyone! Ella does what she can to rebel and delay following orders but in the end she must. After her mother passes away, her father remarries the evil stepmother and terrible stepsisters we are all familiar. Ella does not sit by passively accepting her fate. She searches for the fairy to end her curse, torments her stepsisters right back and falls in love with her prince. Like all good fairy tales, it is only when Ella realizes her own strength found within that everything ends happily ever after. The glass slippers, pumpkin coach and fairy godmother are all found here just as in the original Cinderella. Ella and the prince first become friends and then fall in love. A nice change of pace over the 'their eyes meet, fall in love and live happily ever after' love story.

I thought the author did a great job demonstrating Ella as a strong, feisty girl.

Levine, G. C. (1997). Ella enchanted. New York, NY: Harper Collins Publishers.
ISBN:0060275103

The Tarot Cafe Volume 1 by Sang-Sun Park

It's not difficult to guess what happened to my clients in the past.

Four stories that begin with a Tarot card reading to try to solve a problem.

I am both amazed and disturbed at the images. All the characters look female and somehow that seems wrong. However, the artwork is wonderful! The stories are interesting and capture my attention but too short for my taste.

Park, S. (2005). The tarot cafe volume 1. London, UK: TokyoPop, Inc.
ISBN: 1595325557
184 pages

Sabriel by Garth Nix

It was little more than three miles from the Wall into the Old Kingdom, but that was enough.

Sabriel is sent a mysterious message from her father, a necromancer, while she is at school. She immediately sets off to rescue her father from Death and finds the Old Kingdom at war with the undead. Sabriel will use all of her knowledge and power to fight with the help of some unusual friends.

This novel started slow, very slow but did get better. Sabriel is a strong character but still has the vulnerability found in teenagers.

Nix, G. (1995). Sabriel. New York, NY: Harper Collins Publishers.
ISBN: 0060273224
292 pages

The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper

Will Stanton finds out that he is special one of the Old Ones. His job is to find the six signs for the Old Ones and with those in place the Dark will be extinguished. In this quest, his family is endangered and Will must protect them while still unsure of how is powers work.

I was immediately drawn into this story and read it in one sitting. I was not surprised to see the copyright date in the early 70's. I found the style, theme and characters reminiscent of JRR Tolkien's. The good versus evil theme and a singular quest to save the world make great reading (in my opinion). The detail the author spent on describing the environment and nature helps set the stage.

Cooper, S. (1999). The dark is rising. New York, NY: Aladdin Paperbacks.
ISBN: 0689829833

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling

Ten year old orphaned Harry Potter is forced to live with his aunt, uncle and horrible cousin. He is treated like a thorn in their side until his 10th birthday when a special message arrives by owl and his life will never be the same again.

I hadn't read this book until now. I loved it so much that I had to read the rest of the books. I am completely in awe of the author. As Harry ages, his language and situations he encounters become more complex just like any child. How did she do that so well? I understand why children and adults lined up for each new book.

Rowling, J.K. (1999). Harry potter and the sorcerer's stone. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc.
ISBN: 059035342X
Illustrated by Mary Grandpre

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by Frank Baum

Dorothy and Toto are swept up by a tornado and set down in the Land of Oz. So begins the tale of their journey back home to Kansas and the characters they encounter along the way.

It is hard to read this book without picturing Judy Garland as Dorothy and the Munchkins. I wonder if there are children who have not seen the movie? I wish that I had read the book before I saw the movie. It is a page turner with good descriptions. I would have liked to have been able to picture these characters like the author must have not Hollywood.

Baum, F. (1970). The wonderful wizard of oz. Racine, WI: Western Publishing Inc.
ISBN: 030701520X
Illustrated by Erika Markling

Hooray for the Golly Sisters by Betsy Byars

May-May and Rose, the Golly sisters, continue their traveling show and encounter humorous adventures along the way, including crossing a river, a high-wire act, using pigs in a magic show, going through a swamp and creating cheers. Their adventures are told in five chapters along with colorful illustrations portraying pioneer clothing, life and landscapes.

An I Can Read Book that follows the recommended rules for easy readers - pictures complement the story, large print, lots of space between words and sentences, action ends and begins within the chapters, simple known vocabulary words, short sentence length, etc. I would say it is written for level two.

Byars, B. (1990). Hooray for the golly sisters. New York, NY: Harper Trophy.
ISBN: 0064441563
Illustrated by Sue Truesdell