The Rough Faced Girl

by Refe Martin and David Shannon
This is an Algonquin Cinderella story and the tone of the book is very serious, not the usual happy Cinderella story. The dark colors of the illustrations helped to create this serious, almost haunting tone. What helps to make the book so haunting is how cruelly the rough faced girl is treated by her sisters. The rough faced girl is a simple servant girl who wants to try to marry the invisible being who is powerful, rich, and handsome. The invisible being can only be seen by his sister and the girl who he wants to marry. After her two beautiful sister try to marry the invisible being the rough faced girl goes to try. The invisible being sees her good heart and finds her beautiful despite her appearance. I think this is an amazing story, much better than the Disney Cinderella we are all used to. Children can actually learn that they you look does not matter there are more to people than we see. This story stays with you long after you read it. I don’t know if it is how cruelly she is treated or transformation at the end of the book. It made a lasting impression on me and hopefully it would have the same impact on children.