Cinder

Cinder

By Marissa Meyer

Feiwel & Friends, 2012. 390 pages. Fairy tale.

ISBN: 9780312641894

Reading/Interest Level: Ages 13+

Curriculum ties: Social classes

Booktalk Ideas: Twisted tales: Describe the setting including the tension with the Lunars, and introduce the character of Cinder.

Challenge Issues: N/A

Challenge Response: First Defense File

Reader’s Annotation:

In this retelling of Cinderella, Cinder is a gifted mechanic and cyborg who just wants to be accepted by her family and society. When she meets Prince Kai her life is thrown into an intergalactic struggle.

Plot Summary:

In New Beijing, Linh Cinder is a gifted mechanic with a tent at the local market and the work she does is famous. Her? Less so. Medicine and mechanics have advanced considerably in this future world and when replacement body parts are needed either because someone has an accident or a disease, mechanical pieces can replace the organic ones, creating cyborgs. However, there is a serious prejudice against cyborgs, and Cinder is just that, a cyborg.

When the handsome Prince Kai brings a broken android to Cinder for repair, Cinder hides her cyborg foot and agrees to fix the android. Shortly after his visit the market is evacuated because of a confirmed case of the deadly plague, letumosis.

When one of Cinder’s step-sisters also contracts it shortly after, Cinder wonders if somehow she brought it home, but she isn’t showing any symptoms. It turns out Cinder might be even less human than she originally thought, and since Prince Kai’s father, the King, is also dying of letumosis Cinder must help any way she can to find a cure. She may be just what Earth needs.

Critical Evaluation:

Though essentially a retelling of Cinderella, Cinder strongly stands on its own as a unique work. The setting of New Beijing was a unique choice that allows for various East Asian customs and cultural traits to work their way into the book. For example, Cinder’s full name is Linh Cinder, with Linh as her family name and Cinder as her given name. The order of the names is the opposite of most western cultures. The other character names are also very East Asia with Kai, Iko, and Chang Sacha just to name a few. When Prince Kai holds a ball and Cinder’s family attends, Cinder’s aunt is described as wearing a kimono which is traditionally Japanese.

In many Cinderella stories the protagonist is portrayed as a helpless hero who is saved by her fairy godmother and the handsome prince. Cinder however doesn’t rely on anyone. She is very independent, and in fact plans on running away from her horrible family and making it on her own before she turns back and heads to the ball. Prince Kai isn’t the one that’s going to save Cinder, she will save herself. This is a refreshing take on the Cinderella story, and one that I very much enjoyed.

About the Author:

Meyer was born in Tacoma, Washington and attended Pacific Lutheran University, where she received a degree in creative writing. Before writing Cinder, Meyer worked as a book editor for five years and wrote Sailor Moon fan fiction under the pen name of Alicia Blade. In an interview with The News-Tribune, she said that doing the fan fiction helped her learn the craft of writing, gave her instant feedback and how to take criticism.

Meyer states that she was initially inspired to write Cinder after participating in 2008 in the NaNoWriMo writing contest where she wrote a story focusing on a futuristic Puss in Boots. The Lunar Chronicles is a four book series (tetralogy) with volumes based on Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel, and Snow White. The first book, Cinder, was a New York Times bestseller.

In 2013 Meyer received a new 2-book deal from Feiwel & Friends for a young adult series featuring the Queen of Hearts from Alice in Wonderland. The first book, Heartless, is set for a Fall 2015 release.

-from author’s Wikipedia page-

Justification of Selection:

This is a very fun and modern retelling of the classic fairy tale. What makes it even more special is that it’s set in East Asia and thus includes a lot of cultural aspects that aren’t present in the original tale. Because Cinder is an amazing mechanic this book may appeal to male readers as well as female readers.