Weave Posted April 20, 2008 Share Posted April 20, 2008 Title of book: Confessions of an ugly Stepsister Name of author: Gregory Maguire Hardcover: 352 pages Publisher: Headline Review (3 April 2008) ISBN-10: 755341678 ISBN-13: 8-0755341672 Synopsis: We have all heard the story of Cinderella, the beautiful child cast out to slave amongst the ashes. But what of her stepsisters, the homely pair exiled into ignominy by the fame of their lovely sibling? What fate befell those untouched by beauty ...and what curses accompanied Cinderella's looks? Set against the backdrop of seventeenth-century Holland, confessions of an ugly stepsister tells the story of Iris, an unlikely heroine who is swept from the lowly streets of Haarlem to a strange world of wealth, artifice, and ambition. Iris's path becomes intertwined with that of Clara, the mysterious and unnaturally beautiful girl destined to become her sister. While Clara retreats to the cinders of the family hearth, Iris seeks out the shadowy secrets of her new household - and the treacherous truth of her former life. Far more than a mere fairy tale, this is a novel of beauty and betrayal, reminding us that deception can be unearthed - and love unveiled - in the most unexpected of places. ‘Confessions of an ugly stepsister’ tells the story of Iris, a young girl taken to a different country and forced to start all over again following the death of her father. Along with Iris, there is Ruth, Iris’s older sister who is seen as a ‘beast’ because of her disabilities and Margarethe, Iris’s formidable mother who will stop at nothing to get what she wants, 'Give me room to cast my eel spear, and let follow what may' is her favourite saying. The family become involved with different characters, Master Schoenmacker or ‘The Master’ a troubled but good hearted artist who wants to teach Iris how to paint, Casper ‘The Master’s apprentice, who becomes friends with Iris, Ruth and eventually Clara. As the story progresses the family are employed by the van den Meer family, Cornelius, Henrika and Clara. Clara is the only child of the van den Meer family and is protected by her mother Henrika against the outside world. You find as you read more of the book that even though the book is called ‘Confessions of an ugly stepsister’, neither Iris or Ruth are ugly, they only feel ugly and Clara although very beautiful has ugliness inside, as do Iris and Ruth, the insight that Gregory Maguire gives is really well thought out, you see what you want to see. This is the first time I have read anything by Gregory Maguire and I really enjoyed ‘Confessions of an ugly stepsister’, the story was interesting, at parts exciting, you get easily engrossed in this story. 'Confessions of an ugly stepsister’ takes the Cinderella fairy tale and puts a different spin on it. I will be reading more books by Gregory Maguire. Highly recommended. Rating: 10/10 Confessions of an ugly stepsister - Film information Confessions of an ugly stepsister - Amazon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Esiotrot Posted April 20, 2008 Share Posted April 20, 2008 Great review Gyre - Thanks. I have had Wicked on my wish list for a while but havent got round to it. I will adding this to my list and am hopefully pick up one or the other at the library this week. Kx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weave Posted April 22, 2008 Author Share Posted April 22, 2008 Thanks Esiotrot, I think you will enjoy it, at the moment I am reading 'Wicked', hopefully it will just be as good as 'Confessions of an ugly stepsister':D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michelle Posted May 5, 2008 Share Posted May 5, 2008 These were my thoughts: Having only read a few pages of Wicked, this was my first introduction to Gregory Maguire, and to begin with, I found the style rather difficult. About half way through the book, everything seemed to start making sense.. I’m not sure if that’s just the way the book is, or if I suddenly ‘adapted’ to his style. The story is an unusual retelling of the tale of Cinderella, told from a very different viewpoint, and in a way you wouldn’t expect. By the conclusion, the characters are well developed, and expected events are presented in a rather unusual way. I’ve seen mixed reviews from those who have read Wicked, as to which they prefer. If you’re struggling at the beginning, please stick with it, as it develops into a great retelling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madcow Posted May 5, 2008 Share Posted May 5, 2008 (edited) A friend from work has offered to lend me this and I have to admit it sounds good. It's something I would never have considered to read before joining BCF! I'm even thinking about reading Wicked. Edited May 5, 2008 by madcow added a bit Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kell Posted May 5, 2008 Share Posted May 5, 2008 I've not read this, but having very recently seen the film adaptation of it, I may well be tempted to pick up the book as I rather enjoyed it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simonsays Posted July 30, 2008 Share Posted July 30, 2008 What a great concept! Cheers for the review. Have just ordered this Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madcow Posted July 30, 2008 Share Posted July 30, 2008 I really enjoyed this book when I eventually got round to reading it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lilywhite Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 I picked this up in Waterstones today but had to put it back down again. I just couldn't justify £15 for a book right now. I've already read Wicked and Son of a Witch, so I'm really looking forward to giving this one a go. I love Gregory's style and he has such a wonderfully dark humour Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michelle Posted July 31, 2008 Share Posted July 31, 2008 I'm sure it's a re-release, so you should be able to pick it up cheaper somewhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nursenblack Posted August 2, 2008 Share Posted August 2, 2008 I read Wicked and Confessions Of an Ugly Stepsister about a year ago and thought they were very creative. I read Wicked first and loved it. But I felt that Confessions was a bit of a let down, which is one reason I haven't read Son of a Witch or Mirror Mirror yet. I had forgotten about them so I think I may have to visit my library soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anika Posted November 11, 2009 Share Posted November 11, 2009 Someone bought me this book for a present last year and I have to confess I still haven't read it.....I'm sure I'll get to it eventually. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weave Posted November 11, 2009 Author Share Posted November 11, 2009 Someone bought me this book for a present last year and I have to confess I still haven't read it.....I'm sure I'll get to it eventually. Happy reading when you do Anika Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BookJumper Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 I've got mixed feelings about this one. On the one hand, I love Maguire's writing (I bought this hot on the heels of Wicked and Son of a Witch, which I loved and fully intend to purchase from the States in snazzy leather editions as soon as the wallet allows), and I found Confessions for the most part almost as challenging, moving and important as I had those earlier offerings. However, I did not like the ending at all. In the Wicked series, things are spiced up a little, but always for a good character-related reason (i.e. to portray Elphie's mum's loneliness, or Shell's opportunism) and allowing for the development of important intrapersonal feelings (Elphie-Fiyero, Liir-Candle, Liir-Trism) . In Confessions, I found Clara's implied loss of virginity a cheap way of darkening the tale - it was unexplained and unnecessary. It ruined the whole book for me, which is a shame as some bits (particularly the Epilogue... I didn't see that one coming) were really quite brilliant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twingijon Posted November 27, 2011 Share Posted November 27, 2011 I read Wicked and Confessions Of an Ugly Stepsister about a year ago and thought they were very creative. I read Wicked first and loved it. But I felt that Confessions was a bit of a let down, which is one reason I haven't read Son of a Witch or Mirror Mirror yet. I had forgotten about them so I think I may have to visit my library soon. I completely agree. Wicked was... so wickedly good!! Confessions.. not so much. But Son of a Witch.. right back there. So he has this genre and maybe he should stick with the land of Oz. Maguire just released his 4th in the series. I have not read #3 cause I do not want it to end. cheers... twingijon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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