The Egyptian Cinderella

by Shirley Climo

illustrated by Ruth Heller

Summary

In this Egyptian version of Cinderella, a young girl named Rhodopis was stolen from her home in Greece by pirates and sold as a slave in Egypt. Because she was Greek, she looked different than the other Egyptian servants girls, as she had copper hair and pale skin. Her master was very kind, but because he was old he never saw the other servant girls ordering Rhodopis around. Because the servants were mean to her, Rhodopis made friends with the animals, sometimes dancing for them. One day her master awoke while she was dancing, and proclaimed that "No goddess is more nimble...You shall go barefoot no longer." The other servants were very jealous of Rhodopis, and when an opportunity arose to attend court for the Pharoah, Rhodopis had to stay behind to weed the garden and wash the linens. The next morning Rhodopis followed the other servant girls to the riverbank with the hopes they would change their mind, but they "poled their raft around the bend in the river without giving Rhodopis a backward glance." Rhodopis was getting ready to go back, when a great falcon, "the symbol of the god Horus," came. Rhodopis bowed to him, and he flew off, but he had one of her slippers in his talons. She bid him stop, but he "flew towards the sun untiul he was no more than a dark speck against the gold." Rhodopis sighed and went back to doing her chores. The falcon flew along the Nile and arrived at the Pharaoh's party, where it dropped the slipper into the Pharaoh's lap. The Pharaoh saw this as a sign from the gods that whoever's foot fit the slipper should be the queen, because it "is the will of the gods." He traveled the land, but no one's foot fit into the rosy red slipper. He came to the riverbank near Rhodopis and the other servants, and she was last to try on the shoes. When the slipper he offered fit perfectly, she pulled its mate from among the folds of her tunic.

Discussion

The last passage in this book details the history of this version of Cinderella, which is known as one of the oldest Cinderella stories, first recorded by Strabo in first century BC. The story is a mixture of fact and fiction as well, as there was a Greek slave girl named Rhodopis that married the Pharaoh Amasis and was his queen from 570-526 BC. The book is in full bleed style, and the illustrations are gorgeous. This spin to the classical tale of Cinderella would be a great addition in a classroom, as it varies from the original so greatly but maintains the basic story parts that make Cinderella so unique. This version especially shows the differences between Rhodopis and the other servants, as she has a different ethnic background and that is what sets her apart, instead of a mean stepfamily. The book shows that even if someone is different, they can be beautiful, and they have something to offer a nation. At the end of the story, the other servants exclaim to the Pharaoh that Rhodopis isn't even Egyptian, but he says that she is the most Egyptian of them all. This book would be great to use during a study of ancient Egyptian history or customs, as well as a way to open the classroom to talk about diversity and racial differences.

Climo, S. (1991). The Egyptian Cinderella. New York: HarperTrophy. (Original work published 1989)