Beauty by Robin McKinley

Friday, April 18, 2008

Challenges
Twisted Fairy Tales
Spring Reading Thing
Once Upon a Time
In Robin McKinley's take on the original fairy tale, Beauty is not very pretty. She is thin, awkward and undersized, with big hands and feet and consders herself to be very plain. In fact, she was named Honour at birth but requested the name, Beauty, when she was five; and the name stuck. This version tells how Beauty and her two beautiful sisters live with their rich father in a city until misfortune strikes and they are forced to move with one sister's fiance to a small town, living in a cottage next to a dark forest. Yes, the forest is enchanted; and eventually, the father encounters the Beast. At this point, the story follows pretty much the way I remembered it; just with more interesting characters and great details. I love how McKinley describes the enchantment in the castle; and the gradual feelings that grow in Beauty for the Beast. The author even throws humor into the mix, always a good thing. I found this book to be a great one for both challenges and recommend it highly. McKinley writes wonderfully with beautful descriptions and great characters.
Rating: 4.5
Posted by Framed at 8:48 PM

11 comments:
Ana said...
I really liked this book too! :)I am reading next another one by her: Spindler's End, It seems it is a retelling of Sleeping Beauty!
4/19/2008 2:50 AM
Rhinoa said...
I am so looking forward to reading this. I have a couple of books I want to read first, but it is pretty near the top of my list now. I hope to read more of McKinleys books after this one.
4/19/2008 8:11 AM
Nymeth said...
I enjoyed this one a lot. I'm glad you did too :)
4/19/2008 11:42 AM
Booklogged said...
Are you going to mooch this book? Sounds like a fun retelling.
4/19/2008 1:38 PM
Natasha @ Maw Books said...
This one sounds like a lot of fun. I'll look into it. Did you go to the SLC library book sale this morning? Fun, fun!
4/19/2008 1:44 PM
Stephanie said...
I didn't have this one on my list to read for the Once Upon a Time Challenge....but I definitely need to read this one. I've already read a couple of really good reviews for it!!
4/19/2008 3:20 PM
Noel De Vries said...
Without a doubt one of my very favorite fairy tale renditions.
4/19/2008 7:36 PM
Cath said...
I'm reading this one for Carl's challenge too and am looking forward to it very much. I'm not a huge lover of retold fairy tales but Beauty and the Beast is one I do actually enjoy.
4/20/2008 3:42 AM
Carl V. said...
I've mentioned on other people's reviews of this book that this is definitely one I want to read. I think it sounds good every time I read someone's review of it.
4/20/2008 10:30 AM
Tristi Pinkston said...
I'm so glad you liked this book! It's one of my favs of all time.
4/20/2008 11:56 PM
Jeane said...
This was the first Robin McKinley book I ever read, and it remains my favorite of hers