Fay's Fairy Tales: Cinderella ANNOTATION
In her haste to flee the palace before her fairy godmother's magic loses effect, Cinderella leaves behind a glass slipper. Photographs show the characters depicted as dogs.
FROM THE PUBLISHER
William Wegman, known throughout the world for his startling and revealing photographs of his weimaraners, presents the classic ashes-to-riches tale as it has never before been conceived. With Battina as the lovely, uncomplaining Ella, and Fay as the evil stepmother, the story unfolds in true fairy-tale fashion.
FROM THE CRITICS
Publishers Weekly
With his signature humorous, surreal photographs of weimaraners, the creator of Man's Best Friend glibly retells a much-loved story. Wegman poses his canine models in minimal sets; the dogs' heads pop out of kitschy gowns and campy wigs, while human hands rather than paws project from the clothing. (In one scene a character extends a human foot with garish red toenails to try on the glass slipper.) The unkind stepmother, wearing a disheveled black wig, intimidates readers with a cold gaze; more winsome are Cinderella, exhibiting a shy dignity, and the prince, who wears a beseeching expression. Wegman even finds six liver-colored puppies to act as ``coach horses'' for Cinderella's carriage. Attached to such arresting images, a lengthy--and only intermittently witty--text seems almost an afterthought, and may well be over children's heads. Audiences have grown accustomed to cartoons featuring animals with human bodies, but this spooky parade of stiff characters treads a delicate line between the comic and the grotesque. While some readers will find it prepossessingly silly, others may feel unsettled or alarmed. All ages. (Apr.)
Children's Literature - Mary Sue Preissner
Recently it seems that our most loved fairy tales have experienced a rebirth, from original tales with stunning illustrations, to a retelling from the perspectives of the other characters involved. In Wegman's books, he holds true to the basic tales we all remember from our childhood, with a little sugar coating added to the endings. His tales however, command your attention because of his remarkable photographs. Most of them are full-page color, with detailed backgrounds. Wegman uses a special photographic technique involving 20 x 24 inch Polaroids. The surprise for readers is his use of dogs, Wegman's weimaraners to portray the characters in the stories. While the text is for the more advanced reader, it's never too early for children to expand their vocabularies.
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