January 31, 2019

All The Ever Afters by Danielle Teller - Book Review (January 2019)

Disclosure: This blog post contains some links to books on Amazon. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

For this month's book review, I ventured again to the new bookshelf of my local library. This book stood out to me because it's a retelling of the classic Cinderella fairy tale.

All the Ever Afters: The Untold Story of Cinderella's Stepmother by Danielle Teller is technically a folktale,  as it doesn't contain any magical elements required of a fairy tale (at least according to my definition.) Cinderella's godmother didn't magic the ballgown into being, she paid for it. Nothing magical happened when the clock struck midnight. It was simply the curfew for a 15-year old girl.

All the Ever Afters: The Untold Story of Cinderella's Stepmother 
by Danielle Teller

I'm sure all of you are familiar with the tale of Cinderella, "The beautiful downtrodden maiden who ascends to the royal palace, the jealous stepsisters, the glass slipper that would not fit..." [pg 2]. All the Ever Afters is a new spin on the classic fairy tale, looking at events from the point of view of Cinderella's stepmother, Agnes. According to Agnes, those tales, that the minstrels sing, are nothing more than "compelling fiction that obscures the humble truth" [pg 2].

In All the Ever Afters, Agnes's shares her own account of events. The stepmother does not mean to discredit or belittle Princess Cinderella, but to tell her side of the story and clarify all those nasty rumors about her and her daughters.
"I do not set out to write the princess's history, but my own, the only tale I have the authority to tell. My quill may resurrect ghosts to keep me company during the long days at the castle, and if it cannot, at least my mind will be occupied and my hands busy. As for fables about good and evil and songs about glass slippers, I shall leave those the minstrels. They can invent their own tales about Cinderella" [pg 4].
Agnes was born to a poor farmer and his wife. She was the youngest of 3 children. After her mother dies, Agnes is sent, at age 10, to the local manor to work in the laundry. We follow Agnes's journey as she makes her way through the world, trying to raise her social standing. She does so through hard work and intelligence, with the ultimate aim of giving her (and her daughters) a good, stable life.
By looking at these years, before Agnes even married Ella's father, we understand the story of Cinderella better. The last part of the book still follows the traditional Cinderella story, but Teller gives the events new meaning.

Cinderella's midnight departure from the ball is just the result of a 15-year-old's curfew and a step-mothers concern about the predatory nature of the Prince.
"Ella would be easy prey for any man, and a prince would be used to taking what he wanted." [pg 334].
You might just see that Agnes's actions stem from a place of love and concern for Cinderella.



Some Musings on: 
All the Ever Afters
With each month's book review, I share with you some of my musings on the book. What I thought interesting, thought-provoking and inspiring, etc.

Children's story?
One of the goals of our monthly book review is to study different genres and categories of books. And as fairy tales are often thought of as children's stories, one of the questions I had to ask myself was, "Is this appropriately categorized as adult fiction, opposed to children's fiction?" (I.e. If I was a librarian, which shelf would I place this book?)

We deciding between children's fiction and adult fiction, we can answer this question by looking at 3 things:
  • Subject Matter - How old is the protagonist, what topics or issues are addressed, etc.
  • Reading Level - How many words per sentence, difficulty/familiarity of the words, how often words repeat, etc.
  • Length of Book - How many words, pages, chapters, words per page, etc.
The subject matter, while not completely inappropriate for children, was adult. There was mature content (e.g. sex, possible rape, physical & verbal abuse, racism), although it didn't go into great detail about those things. The reading level was high due to the authors overuse of big, unfamiliar words. And the length was typical of an adult novel.

My answer was a resounding "yes." All The Ever Afters is definitely Adult Fiction, opposed to Middle Grade or Young Adult.

When switching genres or categories, it is extra important to make it clear what you are you are doing. And I think Teller handled the change to adult fiction quite well.

Frame Narrative

This book featured a frame narrative. A frame narrative is a story within a story. (A famous example of a frame narrative is The Princess Bride.) 
"The seasons slip by as I scribe my history, and while new events keep the court gossip mill turning, there is a sameness to everyday that obscures the passage of time" [pg 234].
The prologue starts with Agnes at supper at the Royal Court, after Cinderella married Prince Henry. Agnes is chatting with her supper companion, who is new to court and has heard the rumors of Cinderella, her evil stepmother, and ugly step-sisters. Agnes decides to set the rumors straight by sharing her own account of events, which is what the rest of the novel is, except for a few journal entries that bring us back to the "present day" of Agnes at the Royal Court. 

I think the frame narrative works really well here, because it sets the whole thing up as Agnes, the "evil" step-mother telling her side of the story. This allows the reader to decide if they believe Agnes's account of events or the court gossip.

Short scenes

Another thing Teller did a really good job of was keeping her scenes short and always moving the story forward. The novel covers a long period of time (a few decades), so she could not dwell on the day-to-day.

In addition to chapter breaks, Teller had scene breaks, which were denoted with a blank line between the two paragraphs.

This is definitely something I know I need to work on. And she is a very good example of how to do it well.
The Brimming Lexicon

Impress people with your awesome ideas, not your big words. 

I am not opposed to a big vocabulary with long or new words. Words are such wonderful things that can bring your story alive in the reader's imagination. But you need to take into account the effect of your word choice.

My big problem with this book was the overuse of unfamiliar words. I started writing down each word whose definition I didn't feel I could give accurately. I either had a fuzzy understanding of the word or had no idea what it meant. By the end of the book, the list was 60+ words long.

A reader is usually willing to look up a few words if they feel it is really necessary to understanding the story, but they will not look up 60 words.

I'm sure Teller was hoping to have great detail and beautiful language, but in instead some of her details were fussy or lost because I didn't understand what she was trying to say, or significance of it.

Example:
"The only glass windows I knew were the narrow lancet windows at church; This house boasted grand mullioned windows, recessed under decorative arches" [pg 11].
How many of you know what "lancet" & "mullioned" windows are? or what point Teller is trying to make by comparing the two windows?

The words "narrow" & "grand" are actually telling me much more about the windows & Teller's point than the old architectural terms.

A lancet window is:
"a high and narrow window, terminating in an arch acutely pointed, often double or triple, common in the first half of the 13th century." - Chambers' Twentieth Century Dictionary of the English Language

A mullion window is:
"an upright division between the lights of windows, between panels." - Chambers' Twentieth Century Dictionary of the English Language
Rev. Thomas Davidson 1856-1923 (ed.)
[Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
Rev. Thomas Davidson 1856-1923 (ed.)
[Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Teller is trying to make a point about the wealth of Aviceford Manor, compared to the church in the poor farming village Agnes grew up in. But using the words "lancet" & "mullions" requires an understanding of not only what those windows are, but what they mean in terms of wealth and social class.

And sure this is one example, it's not a huge deal by itself. But by continuously using words that are unfamiliar to the reader, you are preventing them from fully understanding and getting the most out of your story. This problem is made worse when the reader can't simply look up the definition but needs to figure out what the social, economic, etc. implications are.

The Setting & Time Period

The Cinderella story can trace its origin to about 7 BC in Egypt, with the story Rhodopis. But the version of Cinderella most people are familiar with is based on the European versions from 1600-1800s:

Name of Version
Author
Time period written
Location
Cenerentola Basile 1600s Italy
Cendrillon Perrault 1600s France
Aschenputtel Brothers Grimm 1800s Germany

I would expect a retelling of Cinderella to play off of the Cinderella story most people are familiar with.

But Teller made some bold choices. All The Ever Afters is set in England, during the late 1300s. Both Tellers setting and time period differ from the traditional Cinderella story.

As a reader, I wondered why she chose that time period & setting. With a few rewrites, it could have fit well in another time & place. So, why England in the late 1300s?

And this was a very conscious decision on Teller part. There are numerous references that make the location and time period very clear and distinct.

The whole novel functions on the premise
  • The reader is familiar with the traditional Cinderella story
  • The traditional Cinderella story is the gossip being told around the Palace
  • This novel is the step-mother's "true" account of events
So, to stray so far from the traditional story is interesting. As a reader, I never thought there was a good explanation for the change in setting and time period.  And I did feel like it was noticeable, especially the shift in the time period.

Royal Insight

As our blog is called The Royal Novelist, a book review should obviously talk about what royal insights we can get from this novel.

This book spends very little time actually looking at the Royal world. It is only in the last part of the book that Cinderella meets Prince Henry.

Most of the book focuses on Agnes's rise in social class. She starts as a peasant, moves to the working class, middle class and then nobility. This book gives a good example of the social structure in late  1300s England.



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January 30, 2019

Fairy Tales, Folk Tales, Legends & Myths - Genre

Cinderella and the Fairy Godmother
Painting by William Henry Margetson [Public domain]
Fairy tales, folk tales, legends, and myths are, traditionally, stories that get passed down generation to generation.

Some of these stories were originally written down and have clear origins, such as The Ugly Duckling by Hans Christian Andersen.

But most of these stories were first told orally and have unclear origins. And as these stories were passed down and spread to different parts of the world, there are often different versions of each story. The changes in the story often reflect the difference in region, values, customs, and way of life.

In this genre, it is quite acceptable to add your own take on the story and change things.

We can break this genre into 4 categories:
Fairy Tale - A story that has elements of magic or fantasy creatures (e.g. faries, trolls, witches, etc.). Fairy Tales often depict the conflict between good and evil.  
Folk Tale - A story passed down by people, often to teach some lesson or emphasis certain traditions or values of the society. (There are usually no magical elements or fantasy creatures.)  
Legend - A story of "real" people and events, that is not completely verifiable. It usually has some fiction with facts that have been distorted or exaggerated. These stories are based on history.
Myth - A story that explains natural events through symbolism and metaphors (i.e. a story that explains why things happen). Myths often involve a god, supernatural being, or hero, etc. Myths are generally considered to be fiction and not historically accurate. 
Book Reviews: 

January 28, 2019

Stella och Hemligheten (Stella and The Secret) by Princess Madeleine of Sweden - Book News

"Stella och Hemligheten" (Stella and The Secret) is a children's book written by Princess Madeleine of Sweden.

Stella och Hemligheten (Swedish Edition) will be published on June 4th, 2019 by Bonnier Carlsen, a Swedish publisher. It is unclear if/when an English edition of the book will be published.

The book is a Beginner Chapter Book, recommended for ages 6-9. There will also be a teacher's guide published for use in the classroom.

Profits from this book will go to the World Childhood Foundation, a charity founded by Queen Silvia, Princess Madeleine's mother. The foundation works to prevent the abuse and exploitation of children. The book's release coincides with the foundation's 20th anniversary.

Princess Madeleine has been working on this book for a few years. She first announced this project in February 2017.
"[Stella och Hemligheten is] a book which will hopefully show children how important it is to stand up for themselves and to tell someone when something doesn't feel right." - Princess Madeleine
Stella och Hemligheten
(Stella and the Secret)

When nine-year-old Stella and her father move to Sweden, everything feels new and a bit strange: the language, school, and fun activities. Everything is different and takes some time to get used to. One day, Stella's friend Elena tells her a terrible secret. Something that Stella can't tell anyone. She promised! But Elena's secret is too much for Stella to handle. What should she do?

Stella och Hemligheten is a story about integrity, self-esteem, and trust. It touches on some of the issues of the World Childhood Foundation's work to prevent the abuse and exploitation of children.

About the Authors & Illustrator

Photo Credit: Charles Lidbom, Kungahuset.se
Princess Madeleine of Sweden (co-author) works full-time for the World Childhood Foundation in the USA. She has worked for the organization on & off in its various offices since 2006. She currently works for the foundation in Flordia, USA, where she lives with her family. This is Madeleine's first published book.

The book is published under the name Madeleine Bernadotte. Bernadotte is the name of the Swedish Royal House, and as such, the Swedish Royals often use Bernadotte as a surname.

Karini Gustafson-Teixiera (co-author) works at the Childhood Foundation in New York, USA and has known Princess Madeleine of years through her work at the foundation. Gustafson-Teixiera and Princess Madeleine came up with the idea and basic story together.

Marie Oskarsson (co-author) is a journalist and author of over 25 books (in Swedish), primarily for children and young people. Oskarsson joined the project to help develop the story into a book.

Stina Lövkvist (Illustrator) is a children's book illustrator.

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January 23, 2019

The Walkabout - Writing Prompt (January 2018)

Photo: Northern Ireland Office [CC BY 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons
I have to be seen to be believed,” those are the famous words attributed to Queen Elizabeth.
A Royal walkabout allows the Royals to interact and be seen by the public. Walkabout usually happens on Royal tours or "away days," where the Royal has a day of engagements in a city.

Interactions between the Royal and individuals are usually very quick and brief as there may be hundreds, or thousands, of people to meet in a relatively short time. The royal must constantly be moving along.

Writing Prompt:
Write a scene about a Royal walkabout (3-5 pages):
  • Feel free to write the scene from the prospective of anyone at the walkabout.
  • Think about how all the different characters are interacting: The Royal, members of the Royal & organization's staff, police, bodyguards, journalists, photographers, members of the public, etc. 
  • Include 3+ separate conversations with different people.
  • Describe what happened either right before or after the walkabout. How as the mood changed when the Royal is present or not?
If you would like to you can take this writing prompt a step further:
  • Try writing some tweets from a journalist or member of the public about what happened on the walkabout. Include some extra information that wasn't in your walkabout scene. 

The Royal Novelist's Recommended Reading