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On Tomie dePaola



 Like James Marshall, Tomie dePaola enjoyed fairy tales, nursery tales. DePaola gathered many of these into anthologies. (DePaola's attention span seemed limited, at least in this way.)


An exception is the Cinderella story, which dePaola uses for a full-length book. His twist is to move the story to Mexico. Mexican talavera-style tiles frame the pictures. Instead of a slipper, Cinderella has a rebozo, an important shawl. "Once upon a time" becomes "hace mucho tiempo...."

DePaola--throughout his career--shows deep curiosity about the world's cultures; his works include explorations of Passover, the St. Patrick legend, Las Posadas, Hanukkah, the Queen Esther legend, the legend of the Persian carpet, the legend of the Indian paintbrush. It's easy to imagine why he chose Cinderella; like "Bluebonnet" or "Indian Paintbrush," "Adelita" features an oddball character who endures hardship without a loss of morale.

I'm especially fond of the bitchy stepsisters--those scowling faces!--and I'm including them here.
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