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Stepsister

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Stepsister

By: Jennifer Donnelly
Narrated by: Helen Duff
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About this listen

A stunning and shocking retelling of the Cinderella fairytale from a Carnegie Medal novelist

In an ancient city by the sea, three sisters - a maiden, a mother, and a crone - are drawing maps by candlelight. Sombre, with piercing grey eyes, they are the three Fates, and every map is a human life....

Stepsister takes up where Cinderella's tale ends. We meet Isabelle, the younger of Cinderella's two stepsisters. Ella is considered beautiful; stepsister Isabelle is not. Isabelle is fearless, brave, and strong-willed. She fences better than any boy, and takes her stallion over jumps that grown men fear to attempt. It doesn't matter, though; these qualities are not valued in a girl. Others have determined what is beautiful, and Isabelle does not fit their definition. Isabelle must face down the demons that drove her cruel treatment of Ella, challenge her own fate and maybe even redefine the very notion of beauty.

Cinderella is about a girl who was bullied; Stepsister is about the bully. We all root for the victims, we want to see them triumph. But what about the bullies? Is there hope for them? Can a mean girl change? Can she find her own happily ever after?

In Autumn 2020, Jennifer Donnelly will be giving another classic fairy tale, Snow White, a feminist makeover in her new book Poisoned.

©2019 Jennifer Donnelly (P)2019 Bonnier Books UK
Coming of Age Fantasy Literature & Fiction Magic Science Fiction & Fantasy Fiction
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I enjoyed listening to this.
Not my usual style or genre, but I will listen to another story by this author

What a good story

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This book is a great fantasy read. I was hooked from the start and devoured every word. A great read, I really enjoyed it.

Stepsister

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The best interpretation of Grimm's Wolf I have come across so far.
I cried with sympathy and relief and sorrow and truth.
Read it - and then tell the tale to your daughters.

The Fairy Tale you want to read to your daughters

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well written, well voiced.
enjoyed every moment
will listen to it again very soon

Amazing

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In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.