Ella Enchanted: A Newbery Honor Award Winner

Gail Carson Levine

Dec 2012 · Sold by Harper Collins

About this ebook

This beloved Newbery Honor-winning story about a feisty heroine is sure to enchant readers new and old. 

At her birth, Ella of Frell receives a foolish fairy's gift—the “gift” of obedience. Ella must obey any order, whether it's to hop on one foot for a day and a half, or to chop off her own head! But strong-willed Ella does not accept her fate...

Against a bold backdrop of princes, ogres, giants, wicked stepsisters, and fairy godmothers, Ella goes on a quest to break the curse forever.

A tween favorite for 25 years—now shared with today's young readers by moms, teachers, and other adults who remember the pleasure of discovering this fun fairy-tale retelling themselves!

Ratings and reviews

I first read this book in sixth grade after buying it at the book fair. I picked it because I liked the original cover art. It was the best superficial choice I've ever made. I've read this book over and over and it never gets old. Love, love, love. And rereading it as an adult I realized that it's not just a love story or a fantasy story, but a tale of one girl's journey to find agency in her own life. The movie was a poor imitation that reduced Ella's story to a flat tale of a girl trying to find a happy life and a crown. This is so much more.

This has been one of my all-time favorite books since I first opened it in 1998. It's such a unique take on the Cinderella story, and I appreciate the amount of agency that Gail Carson Levine was able to weave not only into Ella's character, but Char, Hattie, and the rest of the motley crew as well. Even though it's written for YA girls, this book has a lot to offer the adult lover of fairy tales as well. It's nothing at all like that Disney movie they made, and has a wonderful story about love and growing up that is so hard to put down. I had to add a digital version to my collection because the physical copy has literally fallen to pieces.

The book takes a new spin on the story, adding great comedy and a sense of realism in this fantasy world. It allows readers to connect to the character, and feel the conflict and connections she feels. It truly is a one of a kind must read book.

About the author

Gail Carson Levine's first book for children, Ella Enchanted, was a Newbery Honor Book. Levine's other books include Ever, a New York Times bestseller; Fairest, a Best Book of the Year for Publishers Weekly and School Library Journal and a New York Times bestseller; Dave at Night, an ALA Notable Book and Best Book for Young Adults; The Wish; The Two Princesses of Bamarre; A Tale of Two Castles; Stolen Magic; The Lost Kingdom of Bamarre; Ogre Enchanted; and the six Princess Tales books. She is also the author of the nonfiction books Writing Magic: Creating Stories That Fly and Writer to Writer: From Think to Ink, as well as the picture books Betsy Who Cried Wolf and Betsy Red Hoodie. Gail Carson Levine and her husband, David, live in a two-centuries-old farmhouse in the Hudson Valley of New York State.