Book Review: Beast by Donna Jo Napoli

Beastis a very interesting look at the ever-famous Beauty and the Beast fairy tale. Orasmyn, a prince of Persia, is a devout Muslim, but after making a minor error of judgement he is cursed by a wicked fairy. He becomes a beast and must try to remember the man in him and also save his father from doing something he will regret forever. After traveling for a long time, beast finds a young woman in France, Belle, who will possibly change him forever.

I thought this retelling was interesting mostly because it focused so much on the beast's story. I liked his personality and the setting (which is really why I picked it up). I also liked some of the elements of this story that others don't have: beast can't talk like a human (they communicate with writing) and the focus of the story is really not on that most well-known part of the tale. There were a few things I didn't like about it: his lion mating habits (which seemed extraneous) and the cover, which is a bit too sappy for me. But, otherwise a rich and beautiful story. A definite choice for the beauty and the beast fans.

RATINGS:
s-factor: none

mrg-factor: X
The lion-mating mentioned above.

v-factor: ->
Beast hunts and eats other animals.

Overall rating: ***