Princess and the Rainbow Coat, The

This visually striking book is a retelling of the Cinderella or Donkeyskin theme, in which a monarch falls in love with a mysterious beauty who appears at a ball to dance with him before vanishing. In this version, the lady is herself a princess who has fled her court in the face of a forced marriage, and serves as a scullion in the besotted King’s kitchen.

Waters writes in luscious prose that strictly conforms to the rules of the genre. Princess Elianor is golden haired and lovely, her dead parents were noble, wise and kind, the palace is saturated with riches, her predatory suitor is a trollish yob, and the king who falls in love with her a paragon. Negrin’s radiant illustrations parallel this depiction of the fairy tale world, presenting sumptuous visions of gardens, palaces, bedrooms and ballrooms. The result, although almost cloyingly rich, is an attractive book that might provide readers with an evocative contrast to more austere and ironic retellings. GH