Amazon.com: Customer reviews: Confessions Of An Ugly Stepsister (Turtleback School & Library Binding Edition)

Top positive review

Could this be the original?!

Reviewed in the United States on August 9, 2017

When Maguire rewrites familiar takes like this, I'm often left feeling that his is the true original and the others are just pale reflections.
In Confessions, the characters are well fleshed out, the scenery set so divinely, and the pacing precise. Maguire's impeccable use of language draws you fully into the story, hanging on every word.
I was quite startled by the ending, and felt it a little abrupt, but how could I be disappointed after such a magical book! Having a daughter with a disability, I found myself cheering for Ruth. I wish we could find out even more about her. I liked the art slant to the story. Iris held my heart, and Clara , my pity.
I wish the story could have gone on and on, as Wicked has. These are great characters that feel alive.

12 people found this helpful

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Casey K. Conrad

Slow but interesting retelling of the Cinderella tale

Reviewed in the United States on January 2, 2017

Compared to Wicked, Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister is a slow, complicated read. The writing is somewhat difficult and I found myself skimming a lot of the pages.
The story is similar to the original Cinderella story; however, the characters personas (for the most part) are all together different. One of the stepsisters is the "hero" in the story, while Cinderella is a spoiled, selfish brat. When she is reduced the ashes, I almost felt like cheering, she was such an annoying character.
The stepmother is pure evil. She is probably the best written character in this book as she is such a horrible person. I found myself wanting to know more and more about her... why was she such a horrid character. She gets her due in the end.
The story does improve near the end; however then the last few pages (or the epilogue) are so abrupt, I found myself asking.. "so that's it???"

It is an interesting read... just be ready to take some time to get through it.

18 people found this helpful

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Paul Bradford

Could this be the original?!

Reviewed in the United States on August 9, 2017

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12 people found this helpful

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Emily Peterson

Good Story, Somewhat Abrupt Ending

Reviewed in the United States on March 4, 2020

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I read the author's other book, Wicked, several years ago and really enjoyed it, so I had been considering reading this book for a while. The main conceit of this book is pretty similar to Wicked where it's telling the origin of a classic villain, this one being the ugly stepsister from Cinderella.

Similarly to Wicked, this book mainly serves to humanize the villain of the original story. This one is a lot less fantastical though. It focuses a lot more on historical elements like the Dutch Renaissance and the tulip craze rather than fantasy elements. The story still follows a similar path as the original story, but not as many fantasy elements.

I enjoyed the story for the most part. It adds in a lot of new elements and storylines, like the stepfamily's relationship with the painter and the whole element of painting in general that weren't in the original. I like art and art history, so those additions really appealed to me.

The only big complaint I had about this, is the way it ends. It 'ends' pretty abruptly with a lot of plotlines still open ended. All the things that are still open ended are then explained in the epilogue. It just feels a little unfulfilling to have fairly big parts of the plot explained to you in an epilogue rather than actually 'see' them happen in a real chapter.

3 people found this helpful

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MikiA

Surprising riff

Reviewed in the United States on November 19, 2017

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This is not your fairy tale Cinderella. The characters are complex and have multiple motives. The setting in Holland at the time of the tulip "bubble" allows us to see the characters in both prosperity and adversity. As with the Oz series, the female characters are more strongly written and carry the story. I suspect that some of the disappointment expressed in reviews arises from an expectation of magic or at least magical realism that does not exist in the novel. However, since its absence means that the characters must solve their problems themselves, it should not be seen as detracting from the truth of the story.

5 people found this helpful

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Kindle Customer

Fairy Tale Overturned.

Reviewed in the United States on September 8, 2017

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A quick but very interesting read. I'm still getting used to reading books digitally but this was one of the first and totally turns around the Cinderella story in a most interesting and socially-conscious fashion. What would happen if beauty was more of a curse than a blessing? What would happen if poverty turned a desperate mother into an evil manipulator and simultaneously enabled her daughter into thinking for herself in old world Europe? While still demonstrating that kindness and generousity of spirit are vital attributes for anyone to nurture.

Fascinating, indeed!

5 people found this helpful

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Fractured fairy tale

Reviewed in the United States on January 7, 2002

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I bought this book thinking it was a fantasy, but it turned out to be an historical romance patterned after the tale of Cinderella. The only goblins are shadows in an attic or a mind. There is alas, no fairy Godmother. Not for anyone.
Is it okay to subtract a star if a book doesn't meet my expectations for `real' magic? Not really. All I can do is alert potential readers to the lack of dragons, mages, magical potions, and all the other usual gizmos of fantasy. "Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister" is a panorama of every-day life in seventeenth century Holland (especially if you happen to be a painter or a grasping widow), quite colorful and beautifully written. However, I didn't care for the author's habit of leaning over my shoulder and pointing out the lessons I should be learning from his book. There is even a "Reader's Group Guide" at novel's end with questions such as, "...Each character in `Confessions' has blinkers or blinders on about one thing or another. What do the characters overlook, in themselves and in one another?"
Some reviews found this habit to be "ironic and sophisticated," but I found it to be pretentious. Ultimately it was the reason why I subtracted a star, even though `Confessions' is a fascinating character study---no one behaved as might be expected from Charles Perrault's fairy tale.
The action takes place while Marie de' Medici is Queen Mother in France, sometime during the first half of the seventeenth century. In the story, she is pictured as an old woman who `travels' to Holland to pick an artist worthy of painting her last portrait (she was indeed, a very well-painted queen, most notably by Peter Paul Rubens). A ball is given in her honor by the richest family in Haarlem, and it wouldn't be giving away much of the plot to say that the Cinderella character meets her prince at this ball. However, this is a fairy tale turned inside-out (as you may have guessed from the book's title). The characters I found most appealing were the scheming stepmother (at least until the last few pages of the book), one of the ugly stepsisters, and the painter who wanted Queen Marie to pick him as her ultimate portraitist.
Note: Marie de' Medici was actually forced into exile by her son, Louis XIII of France. She died in the Netherlands in 1642.

7 people found this helpful

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David D. Warner

A GREAT FOLLOWUP TO WICKED ...

Reviewed in the United States on May 31, 2000

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Where WICKED was a study of the true nature of evil, CONFESSIONS OF AN UGLY STEPSISTER examines societal concepts of beauty. Maguire is expert at demonstrating that things are not always as they appear and, many times, what may be considered ugly on the surface is the epitome of beauty underneath. And vice versa.
My 4-star rating of this book is actually a compromise and slightly lower than my true rating of this work. Why? I liked WICKED so much more that, on principle, I couldn't give STEPSISTER 5 stars in homage to that other piece of pure, inspired genius. However, in it's own right STEPSISTER was superbly written, well-developed and a completely captivating second novel, following up on a now-familiar theme. The one weakness I would acknowledge with STEPSISTER is that it was a bit slow to develop in the beginning ... but surely, this is not a big deal. Since there's no such thing as a rating of 4 1/2 stars, I compromised and settled for 4 ... a disservice to Mr. Maguire and his most eloquent writing, for certain. Next time, Mr. Maguire, I'll round up!

4 people found this helpful

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Lance C. Panzer

Beautiful, disturbing, heartbreaking.

Reviewed in the United States on May 8, 2003

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A convincing, sobering reinterpretation of the story of Cinderella. Who exactly was Cinderella? How did she come to live with two ugly stepsisters and a domineering stepmother? Was her beauty a blessing or a curse? And what exactly did transpire the night of that fateful ball, when she was suddenly "freed" from her bondage? And what of the morning after?

This book is not for children; it's for adults. Its portrayal of human nature approaches that found in "Peyton Place." To quote from the text: "In the lives of children, pumpkins can turn into coaches, mice and rats into human beings. When we grow up, we learn that it's far more common for human beings to turn into rats."

The import of this story, and the lives of its characters, will stay with you long after you turn the last page. And if you should happen upon a brave little tulip on a blustery Spring day, you will remember Clara, Iris, and Ruth . . . and perhaps shed a tear.

4 people found this helpful

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Erica non-fiction junkie

Another Hit!

Reviewed in the United States on June 24, 2007

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I did love "Confessions of an Ugly Step-Sister". The story was told well, and there was more closure to this story than there was to "Wicked" (not as many unanswered questions).
However, I have noticed a trend with ALL Maguire books and that is the painfully slow beginings. It took me several days to get through the first 80 pages, and I nearly put the book down and gave up. HOwever, around page 80 or so, I was unable to put the book down and read it in 2 days. I also felt "Wicked" was slow to start for the first 50 pages or so, and then -the same thing the story took off and I read it in a day or 2.
The beginings of Maguire's books are necessary because he gives you so much background information right off the bat. It is just hard to read. But I assure you - get yourself through the begining and you will be happy you did!
Also, if you're expecting the Disney Fairytale stay away from this book. It is Pleasantly unlike any Cinderella tale I have ever read!

2 people found this helpful

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Kelli Simoneaux

Well written, didn’t love it

Reviewed in the United States on October 18, 2017

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Have you ever read a well written book that you just couldn’t like? The characters, the subject matter, the plot. There are a few gems in here that I did like, but for the most part this was a struggle for me to finish and a depressing story all around. However, as I said, it is well written, so I’m sure many people do enjoy it.

3 people found this helpful

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Brenda Baldeck-Seubert

Twisted works

Reviewed in the United States on November 7, 2019

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Thoroughly enjoyed this tale of Cinderella. Stories are truly different from different perspectives. This gives a whole new look at the ugly stepsisters versus poor pitiful orphan child. Enjoyed this as much as wicked. Bring on more of this type of fairy tale to enjoy.

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