★★★★★ 4
Beloved childhood classic for a reason
Format: Paperback
Not to give away my age, but I owned this book when I was younger and lent it to a friend and never got it back. I finally gave into my desire to own it again and purchased it from amazon. I'm so happy that I did. This book definitely holds up even after all these years. It's this kind of writing that helped me fall in love with the idea of being a writer. I've read some of Gail Carson Levine's other books and enjoyed them to varying degrees. I remember reading The Wish and thinking, even as a child, that it was incredibly bland. But Ella Enchanted is truly one of her gems.
It is heartfelt and well-written with a truly wonderful heroine. Now that I'm older I do see more of the problems. The writing is a lot simpler than I remember but I suppose that it needs to be for the reading level of the target audience so I won't count that as a negative. As with most young adult novels, it is on the shorter side. This leads to some awkward pacing and a lack of development. There's not really enough of her friend Areida or her adventures. The romance with Char is underdeveloped though conveyed skillfully enough that by the end I was very invested in the outcome. The ending and epilogue after the dramatic conclusion also come across as a little rushed. Still, I think it's a wonderful story for young girls and a truly inspiring heroine for them to identify with. For older readers, it's a pleasant diversion. The strength of the story is Ella and the way Levine writes the scenes that are meant to have a big emotional impact. I understand when people say the story meanders a bit and how it could be boring for some people. Levine doesn't do a great job with descriptions despite the complexity of the world she's imagined. It's difficult to really picture anything in your head based on the descriptions she gives. She's not a world-builder like the big name fantasy writers. She's more interested in the characters and the main plot arc for the heroine.
I would recommend this book for a reader or parent looking for a strong, believable female protagonist. It's not a great fantasy novel and it's a little underdeveloped but the individual scenes are well written and the emotion, lesson, and strong character arc are there. I'd also recommend getting the new version as there are great extras including information about the languages Levine developed for the various creatures in the world of Ella Enchanted. I don't remember these being included in the first edition.
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Reviewed in the United States on July 20, 2012
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