Upon ellas birth, a fairy named lucinda gifts her with obedience, so that no matter what people tell her to do, she does it without question, and regardless of how strange the command may be. Her childhood is actually okay, except for little incidents like not being able to stop eating her birthday cake until her mom clues in and tells her to. I wrote it because i love fairy tales and id just read beauty by robin. In fact, aside from the last few chapters, there were times i forgot this was a new take on cinderella. Ella enchanted book report essaysella enchanted is a fiction newberry honor book written by gail carson levine. As you can imagine, this causes ella all kinds of trouble.
Gail carson levines book was awarded the newbery honor in. Levines other books include ever, a new york times bestseller. Areidas parents run the featherbed inn, in ayortha. In fact, aside from the last few chapters, there were times i forgot this was a. She exhibits another themedeterminationto recover her lost free will, which grants her agency and independence. Ella enchanted is a rich and imaginative retelling of the cinderella story as a young adult novel. Chen, lover of ella enchanted ella enchanted should be made into a movie, i would enjoy it ever so much more.
He is portrayed by cary elwes, who also played larry kline in stranger things, lawrence gordon in the saw franchise and william boone in rudyard kiplings the jungle book, he also voiced paxton powers in batman beyond and aquaman in justice league. He is first seen riding in a carriage with his uncle edgar and edgars pet snake, heston. Growing up, she is very close to her mother, lady eleanor, and cook, mandy. It is about a girl that has been given the gift of obedience at her birth. I say gift because it meant she would be always forced to obey anything anyone would tell her to do. She must obey every order whether it is hopping on one foot for one day or killing herself. Ella enchanted is about a girl named ella who is extremely close with her mother. Gail carson levines first book for children, ella enchanted, was a newbery honor book. Starring anne hathaway and hugh dancy, the film plays with the usual fairy tale genre. Another word for char is cinder, when you combine the names it becomes cinder ella. I honestly think this is my favorite video ive ever put out. At night, ella reads her fairy tale book and sees letters from hattie and olive to their mother, dame olga. Gail carson levine certainly has a wonderful imagination and writing talent, but this book was not her best. The story is a retelling of cinderella featuring various mythical creatures including fairies, elves, ogres, gnomes, and giants.
Nov 28, 2016 ella enchanted is a cinderella story with a twist. The story is a retelling of cinderella featuring various mythical. Spunky ella does not tamely accept her fate and embarks on a quest to break this curse once and for all. Ella enchanted is a witty, refreshing take on the popular fairytale, cinderella which preserves the spirit of the original but adds plenty of humorous twists and a spunky, intelligent female protagonist. Now whenever anyone gives ella an order, she must follow it. Prince charmont is the son of king jerrold and queen daria, the older brother of cecilia, and husband of ella.
When ella is born a fairy gives her the gift of obedience. Ella enchanted is a 2004 american fantasy romantic comedy film directed by tommy ohaver and written by karen mccullah lutz and kirsten smith loosely based on gail carson levines 1997 novel of the same name. Ellas quest to break the curse and discover who she really is, is both funny and poignant. Ella enchanted, by gail levine, tells the story of an ordinary girl struggling under the weight of an extraordinary curse. The plot, the characters, even the tone are very different, but the books theme and lessons are all there, and in its own way, the film is endearing, enduring, and lots of fun. Ella enchanted, a book written by gail carson levine, is a great book that the movie does not do justice to. At first, ellas mother and their cook protect ella.
So weve decided to keep guardian journalism free for all. The are a few notable differences from the movie adaptation and the book. We believe every one of us deserves equal access to factbased news and analysis. This study guide consists of approximately 33 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of ella enchanted. At a certain level, the book offers a message to young girls to learn to think and act for themselves, to learn to be true to themselves. Gail levine was working fulltime, and she spent almost four hours a day commuting to and from her job in manhattan. At birth, ella of frell was given the gift of obedience by a fairy. This book was still interesting, and not a complete waste of time, but i enjoyed ella enchanted, fairest, and even the two princesses of bamarre much more. I saw the movie years ago and thought id give the book a try. In the film, he is the only son of the deceased king and nephew of sir edgar.
With unnecessary flourishes and misspellings, hatties letter complains of course that ella was. At last readers get a reasonable explanation for cinderellas meek behavior. As the main character, ella is a young girl living in frell, a land within her magical world. Writing ella enchanted gave levine a chance to explore the missing details in fairy tales that hadnt bothered her as a kid. But after i lay my eyes on the fascinating story, it became my all time favorite of adventure, comedy, and love. When you think of the intense power struggles between 11 to yearolds and. When she started writing this novel, gail carson levine wanted to base her story on cinderella but didnt want ella to be a goody twoshoes. In the book, many of these connections are made much clearer. You may know that ella enchanted was my first published book after ten years of trying i wrote it because i love fairy tales and id just read beauty by robin mckinley, which i admired enormously. I wished i could spend the rest of my life as a child, being.
Areida has and adoptive sister named aza,who is the protagonist of fairest. Ellas mother and the cook mandy realize that this is a bad idea. At birth, ella is inadvertently cursed by an imprudent young fai. Comparing cinderella stories ella enchanted book units. In 2006, levine went on to write fairest, a retelling of the story of snow white, set in the same world as ella enchanted. Reading guide for ella enchanted by gail carson levine. If youve read harry potter, try ella enchanted publishers weekly. Sir edgar is the main antagonist of the 2004 film ella enchanted. Page 18 this category is for questions and answers related to levine, gail carson, as asked by users of. Ella lives in a magical world in which each child, at the moment of their birth, is given a virtuous gift from a fairy godmother. You may know that ella enchanted was my first published book after ten years of trying. The father is an evil man and gives any young child the chills to think how unfair he can be.
Why ella enchanted is the most perfect book ever book riot. The movie was directed by tommy ohaver and starred anne hathaway and hugh dancy. Identify additional differences and similarities between ella enchanted and the classic fairy tale cinderella. Ella is under a spell to be constantly obedient, a fact she must hide from her new stepfamily in order to protect the prince of the land, her friend for whom shes falling. Ella must obey any order, whether its to hop on one foot for a day and a half, or to chop off her own head. I really hope you stay and watch and that it inspires you to readreread this book.
This is actually because the original book by gail carson levine, was supposed to be a spin on the cinderella story. Print word pdf take our free ella enchanted quiz below, with 25 multiple choice questions that help you test your. Ella soon realizes that this gift is little better than a curse, for how can she truly be herself if at any time anyone can order her to hop on one foot, or cut off her hand, or betray her kingdom and shell have to obey. About the book ella enchanted by gail carson levine. Ella enchanted, which was a newbery honor book in 1998, is levines take on the traditional cinderella story, giving her own explanation of how the heroine came to have a wicked stepmother and stepsisters, ended up becoming a servant, and is finally chosen by the prince. Ella enchanted starts with explaining the curse of obedience that poor ella was cast under only hours after her birth. The ella enchanted community note includes chapterbychapter summary and analysis, character list, theme list, historical context, author biography and quizzes written by community members like you. I was starting a new writing class and needed an idea, so i thought maybe i could expand a fairy tale too. Fairest, a best book of the year for publishers weekly and school library journal, and a new york times bestseller. When ella is born, a fairy named lucinda gives her the gift of obedience. Gail carson levines book was awarded the newbery honor in 1998 after its 1997 publication. It is also the title of the american movie based on the novel, released april 9, 2004. Movies dg this category is for questions and answers related to ella enchanted, as asked by users of. Interesting facts about gail carson levine page 18.
Identify additional differences and similarities between ella enchanted and the. Regretting to the introduction from my friend to this book. Dave at night, an ala notable book and best book for young adults. They dont seem to follow each other too closely but both are fun for different reasons. That one knock aside, the author adds so many newer elements that one misstep isnt that big a deal. Ella is born, and the fairy lucinda visits ellas mom, lady eleanor. Adapted from author gail carson levines awardwinning childrens book of the same name, the miramaxfinanced modern fantasy ella enchanted is directed by tommy ohaver and stars the princess.
It is also the title of the american movie based on the. We also learn that ellas father is away on some trading expedition, as usual. Read free book excerpt from ella enchanted by gail carson levine, page 1 of 3. Time to bestow some beauty, grace, and intelligence, right. Starring anne hathaway and hugh dancy, the film plays with the usual fairy tale genre the film is a coproduction between companies in the united states, ireland, and the united kingdom. I wrote it because i love fairy tales and id just read beauty by robin mckinley, which i admired enormously. Ella is born, and the fairy lucinda immediately slaps her with an obedience spell. Ella has a fairy godmother, who puts her in a gown for the ball. Find all the books, read about the author, and more.
But this reader thinks ella enchanted is the one and heres why. A team of editors takes feedback from our visitors to keep trivia as up to date and as accurate as possible. Ella and areida become close friends, until hattie orders ella to end her friendship with areida, prompting ella to run away from finishing school. With anne hathaway, hugh dancy, cary elwes, joanna lumley. Ella enchanted does a great job of managing this, save for the end which felt exactly the same as the original tale.
Ella enchanted newbery honor book levine, gail carson on. In the land of kyrria, ella is born into a noble family. In fact, aside from the last few chapters, there were times i forgot this was a new. If you want to experience the real pleasures of ella enchanted, do not expect a faithful recreation of gail carson levines book.
Ella enchanted by gail carson levine is a fairy tale novel based on the story of cinderella. So levine created the obedience gift, which forces ella to be good. Ella enchanted by gail carson levine, paperback barnes. Ella enchanted is part of a string of projects hathaway took on while studying at either vassar or new york university she transferred, but either because she kept taking time off to act or for some other unknown reason, hathaway never finished her degree.
Ella s quest to break the curse and discover who she really is, is both funny and poignant. An ayothorian girl who attends finishing school with ella. When gail carson levine wrote ella enchanted, her very first novel. Ella enchanted is a newbery honor book written by gail carson levine and published in 1997. One difference in the book, ella enchanted by gail carson levine, there is not an evil uncle edgar character seeking to take the throne from prince charmont, but in the movie he is played by cary elwes. Apr 28, 2020 interesting facts about gail carson levine.
Her childhood is actually okay, except for little incidents like not being able to stop eating her birthday cake until her mom clues in and tells her to stop, and her childhood buddy abusing the curse. This lesson will focus on the characters and summary of ella enchanted. Free will is an important theme of ella enchanted, as for much of the story, ella does not have free will. Kirkus 1998 newbery honor book ala 1998 best book for young adults.
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