“Glass Slipper, Gold Sandal: A Worldwide Cinderella”
by Paul Fleischman, illustrated by Julie Paschkis.
Henry Holt and Company, New York, 2007, 32 pages, K-2.
Fairy tales have long been used in many cultures to entertain children and to instruct the young in morality.
The joyful part of fairy tales is commonly understood, but the moral aspect is increasingly rejected in modern media. The reasons for this rejection are many, but the primary failure of this mindset is that societies have used fairy tales to teach youngsters to understand what is right and what is wrong. This presupposes a universal awareness within people of being able to distinguish good from evil.
The Cinderella fairy tale is one of the best-known stories in the world. Award-winning writer Paul Fleischman has used versions of Cinderella from many countries to tell the tale in this book. It is a very interesting approach and is entitled, “Glass Slipper, Gold Sandal: A Worldwide Cinderella.”
The story has a basic setting with the death of a wife and a widowed husband. Only a single daughter remains from this union. In the Mexican version, the daughter is given sugarcane by a nearby woman. The child encourages her lonely father to marry this nice widow woman. The lady has two daughters as well, and the young girl believes she will have a happy family.
The father finally gives in and marries the woman. However, soon trouble begins as the new mother favors her own daughters and insults the girl.
Next, we see the Korean version of the fairy tale, with the stepmother making the child sleep among the ashes near the fireplace. Covered in soot, she is now named Cinderella.
In the version from Iraq, Cinderella is now lonely, hungry and frightened. Thinking of her plight, the girl blames herself for the awful marriage of her father, since she begged him to marry the widow.
Not knowing what to do, the Russian tale has Cinderella taking care of the family cattle. In her misery, one of the cows pours honey for her from one of its horns. Other countries, such as Iran and India, have animals giving the girl various types of rich foods in their stories.
Cinderella now is eating well and blooms into a beautiful young woman. Her two stepsisters are selfish and ugly and continually taunt Cinderella. At this time the Zimbabwe tale relates how the King of the country is trying to find a wife to be the queen. He sends out an invitation to all the unmarried women in the country to come to a party at the palace. But the Cinderella saga continues to take many different twists and turns in various countries.
What is the basic point of all the Cinderella stories? How does Cinderella respond to the unkindness and meanness she experiences in the fairy tale?
Why are all the versions of Cinderella so different and yet have so much in common? The French version by Perrault is the most common form of Cinderella in the United States. Did you even know there were other versions of the fairy tale? If not, go to the library and check out this enjoyable compilation of Cinderella stories by Paul Fleischman.
The Cinderella stories are very popular and common in most societies. Again, the point of the Cinderella story is that there is a punishment for choosing evil. The watered-down Disney versions in which everyone lives happily ever after are harmful to the purpose of fairy tales. The point of all fairy tales is that you will be punished if you act in a mean and selfish manner, and will be rewarded for choosing love and charity.
I hope you get an opportunity to read this interesting compilation of Cinderella stories. Though slightly different, they are all interesting versions of a beloved tale.
