Book Review: Cinderella is Dead by Kalynn Bayron

Let's start with the author's note at the end of the book:

"When I sat down to draft Cinderella I started with a few questions: What effect do the fairy tales we are told as children have on us? What happens to our view of the world when the characters in these stories don't look like us or love like us? When do we get to be the heroes of our own stories?"

The fun thing about fairy tales is that we can own them much in the way that Bayron owned this book. She put together a bunch of "what if" questions and then started playing her ideas in the context of Cinderella. Her story is a dark story filled with magic, evil intent, and greed. The society that she built in this book looks at the Cinderella story in a sacred way and uses it to strip women of their rights. Our main character, Sophia, just wants to love another woman instead of Prince Charming and this is where the story starts. Where it ends is with personal battles fought.

Just one more word - I found this an amazing story to read while Afghanistan's government fell and the Taliban is taking over the leadership of the country. Many are frightened that women will lose the rights that they have gained over the last 20 years. The Taliban is saying that they will honor the rights of women within the constraints of Islam Law.  I hope Afghanistan's story ends with - "and they lived happily ever after."

If you like fairy tales - try this book out. You can find it in SORA or in print at the Nashua Public Library.  

Book Review: We Set the Dark on Fire / Tehlor Kay Mejia

Daniela's parents worked hard to give her all of the opportunities that they didn't have. They traversed the boarder between worlds, they bought papers, and they found a pathway to sneak Daniela into the premier school for women, a school that prepares women to be a wife in a country where the elite have two wives, the Primera (a partner in intellect) and a Segura (a lover and mother). Daniela is the first Primera in her class and is paired with Mateo, a husband planning to run for the presidency. Unfortunately, the Segura is a woman who has bullied her throughout school. 

And married life isn't what she had thought it would be. Mateo is a nasty man intent on keeping those who are privileged rich and those without privilege poor.  Children are starving, many people are without healthcare, and things are not all right in the world. Daniela's secret past results in bribery by a band of rebels who are threatening both herself and her family if she doesn't help them. The rebels want a better world - is it more important for Daniela to honor her family's sacrifices and stay safe, or push against the horrors perpetrated by this government?

This is a story that is set in an imaginary world with an imaginary mythology, but the issues are real and there are so many parallels with our lives in today's world.