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molang_madrigal's review against another edition
I quite enjoyed this book the first time I read it, but this time round I found it quite dark and depressing. Put it this way: Rumaysa’s tower is nothing like some adaptations of Rapunzel where she has lots of activities to do in the tower and it’s quite a nice place other than not being able to leave. Rumaysa’s tower is grey and dingy and hopeless and has nothing remotely nice in it except some books (which get promptly destroyed by the witch as a punishment) and is surrounded by a dark scary forest with poisonous rivers. And Rumaysa has to spin literally all day, and doesn’t get to eat anything except oats. It’s a bit more heartening when she escapes of course, but then the Cinder-ayla story starts off all about Ayla’s grief for her parents and once again, just general hopelessness. But some elements of the book are good - I really like the Islamic twists on the stories, and how Rumaysa and the other fairytale characters all help each other throughout the stories, and it was really great that none of the girls’ stories end with a relationship (Cinder-ayla was proposed to by the Prince but she turned him down because he was rude to her. Rumaysa and Sleeping Sara don’t have any romantic storylines, which is very refreshing.)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Death, Grief, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Pregnancy
Minor: Injury/Injury detail
Poverty2freads's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Thank you so much to the author for writing this book and to the illustrator for their beautiful illustrations. Rumaysa includes three interconnected fairytale retellings centering brown and Muslim children. The writing style is simple, appropriate of course as it is intended for younger audiences, but even so the author subtly weaves the characters complex personalities in her writing. Rumaysa was such an enjoyable read that I intend to share with my nieces and nephews once they’re a little older.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail, Confinement, and Domestic abuse
Minor: Death of parent, Infertility, and Classism
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