121 Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine

There must be dozens of versions of the Cinderella fairy tale, but this one belongs at the top of the list.  Ella is a great character who was given a terrible gift at her birth.  That gift curses her throughout her life as others learn about it and take advantage of her because of it.  But she manages to be a fun, intelligent, courageous girl in spite of the curse.  The story includes the standard fare of the mean stepmother, two ugly stepsisters, a handsome prince, and a fairy godmother; all much more enjoyable characters than in the basic story.  There is just more substance to them, bad or good.  I really enjoyed this fun, light story and hope that the other book I have by Levine is just as good.  I haven't seen the movie based on Ella Enchanted, but I heard it wasn't as good as the book.  Too bad as I enjoy Ann Hathaway.  Maybe I'll watch it anyway.  Stay tuned.  Rating:  4.5