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Ash |  | Author: Malinda Lo
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Category: Book
List Price: $16.99
Buy New: $9.00
as of 9/3/2010 18:27 CDT details
You Save: $7.99 (47%)
Seller: marmaladegrl
Rating:  reviews
Media: Hardcover
Edition: 1
Reading Level: Young Adult
Pages: 272
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.8
Dimensions (in): 8.3 x 5.6 x 1.1
ISBN: 0316040096
EAN: 9780316040099
ASIN: 0316040096
Publication Date: September 1, 2009
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Features:
| • | ISBN13: 9780316040099 | | • | Condition: New | | • | Notes: BUY WITH CONFIDENCE, Over one million books sold! 98% Positive feedback. Compare our books, prices and service to the competition. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
Cinderella retold
In the wake of her father's death, Ash is left at the mercy of her cruel stepmother. Consumed with grief, her only joy comes by the light of the dying hearth fire, rereading the fairy tales her mother once told her. In her dreams, someday the fairies will steal her away, as they are said to do. When she meets the dark and dangerous fairy Sidhean, she believes that her wish may be granted.
The day that Ash meets Kaisa, the King's Huntress, her heart begins to change. Instead of chasing fairies, Ash learns to hunt with Kaisa. Though their friendship is as delicate as a new bloom, it reawakens Ash's capacity for love-and her desire to live. But Sidhean has already claimed Ash for his own, and she must make a choice between fairy tale dreams and true love.
Entrancing, empowering, and romantic, Ash is about the connection between life and love, and solitude and death, where transformation can come from even the deepest grief.
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| Customer Reviews:
We need more books like these September 2, 2010
VioletCrush
By now most of us know this book is a retelling of the favorite childhood fairy tale -Cinderella. But this is book is similar enough to remind you of Cinderella but different enough to have a flavor of its very own.
Aisling or Ash has to live with her step-mother and 2 daughters after her parents death. Ash has grown up in a world where people are afraid of magic and the disbelief is beginning to take hold. People no longer believe in magic and curses and fairies. But there are some who do. Ash's mother was one of them. After her parents death, to get away from her everyday deary life, Ash finds refuge in the jungle close to her house.
And then she meets Kaisa. Kaisa is the King's head huntress. Gradually there forms a bond between Ash and Kaisa. What I loved most about the novel is how the author describes their attraction effortlessly. There is no talk about how Ash is attracted to a women. It seems natural which is just as it should be.
I didn't like Ash as a character but I understood her most of the times. I was more enamored by Kaisa. She seemed like such an intriguing person. Also, loved the fairy tales in the novel. I had lots of fun reading them.
One thing I would like to admit here is that I did not feel a lot of romance between Ash and Kaisa. I was wondering if it was the writing or if the situations themselves weren't romantic enough when suddenly I had a weird thought. I tried substituting Kaisa with a man in my head and tried to re-imagine the situations. I have to say the romance was nicely and beautifully built.
It probably happened because I am not a lesbian and I found it difficult to get into the romance, which again takes me to another point. If I as a non-lesbian can find it difficult to get into lesbian romance, it would be difficult for GLBT people to get into a man-woman romance as well. Isn't it just unfair that we have such small number of GLBT books and even lesser awareness about them?
I was always with GLBT literature but now I feel very strongly about it. I hope we have more books like Ash.
Poignant and simply amazing August 19, 2010
Donna Lordi (Joliet, IL USA)
Many years ago I read a fantasy book that was written in the style of a fairy tale called 'Deerskin'. It blew my mind. Ask comes close, but doesn't quite amaze. Still, it's an untypical story with an untypical heroine, and thus fills a much needed void in YA fiction. The writing was solid, and it backs up the story quite well.
It's an interesting retelling of Cinderella. Ultimately, Ash is lucky because she is accepted perhaps much better than she would have been in some places here in the real world. In a way, I like it all the more, because it offers hope to young people who might read this and be struggling with their own sexual and identity issues. The world can use more well-written GLBT friendly literature, especially ones as well crafted and enchanting as this.
Not your average fairy tale. August 15, 2010
Ellz Readz (Eastern US)
My thoughts...Ash is a hauntingly beautiful retelling of the fairy tale classic Cinderella. That being said, this is an entirely different story, one that left me turning pages, desperate for a happy ending.
Ash is full of colorful characters that are both entertaining and mysterious. The heroine Ash, finds herself an orphan child who is forced to live with the cruel stepmother and her selfish stepsisters. We see quite a bit of growth in this story, both physically and mentally. She comes of age as a girl, but she also grows into a strong woman who is able to endure the physical abuse of the step-family while maintaining her sanity.
Ash spends a great deal of time in the woods where she encounters the other two important characters. The first friend she makes is Sidhean, the fairy. He is very mysterious and rather creepy. The reader is often left to guess his true intentions. Ash also develops a friendship with Kaisa the King's Huntress. They develop an impossible friendship that causes Ash to make some decisions that could affect the rest of her life.
This story is based on the original fairytale, but Ash is something else. She does not crave the prince and all of his riches. She does not desire to live in a palace surrounded by servants. This is what makes the story interesting. Ash finds comfort and strength in the woods. While she does crave a different life, it is an unexpected one.
Ash is a beautifully written story that leaves readers craving more. My only qualm with the story was the ending. I want to know what happens next. Ash is full of old stories and magic. I would also want to learn more about the legends and lure provided by the greenwitch. This character made several appearances and I was always sad to see her go. Overall I love this book. I recommend it to fans of YA fantasy and fairy tale retelling.
Review from Mrs. Magoo Reads August 3, 2010
Mrs. Magoo (California, United States)
Title: Ash
Author: Malinda Lo
Grade: A
Ideal Audience: Girls & Some Boys, 13+
Summary: After Ash's mother dies- providing quite a blow to the young girl- Ash is quite surprised to see her father remarry within a few months. But nothing at all can prepare her for the death of her father, leaving Ash to the mercy of her stepmother and stepsisters. Soon, Ash has gone from looking upon a bright future to being her stepfamily's maid.
While mourning the deaths of her parents, especially her mother's, Ash seeks refuge in the magical, forbidden dream world of the fairies. Traipsing through the forest near her home, Ash encounters Sidhean, a mysterious fairy who is determined to claim the girl for his own- and Ash is not inclined to refuse him.
But then Ash meets Kaisa, the king's huntress. The two begin meeting everyday, and Kaisa even teaches Ash how to ride a horse, how to hunt. As Ash's heart is torn in two, she has to discover the difference between magical bindings and her true feelings.
My thoughts: Ash is a darker retelling of Cinderella. Ash herself is nothing like the bouncy, happy Cinderella seen in Disney movies: rather, she mourns the death of her parents, and yearns to escape her harsh reality by retreating into strange and forbidden worlds.
Furthermore, there is a twist in Ash's love interests: in Malinda Lo's novel, the heroine does not fall for the handsome and rich prince. However, she is still conflicted about where her heart lies. Teenagers and adults alike will find Ash to be a lyrical, honest fairy tale.
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