There are many heroines throughout time who were not recognized. This storybook contains four stories that will show each reader the importance of women over time and how they were not just mere bystanders during fairy tales--they were the stars of the stories!
        I decided to include stories that featured heroines--some that were new to me and some that I grew up reading and which were my favorites. For instance, the first story in my storybook is Cinderella. The reason I chose this story to be in my storybook and also chose it to be first in my storybook was because it is sort of the cornerstone for the rest of the stories contained in my storybook.
       Cinderella is one of the oldest stories and it dates as far back as 850 A.D. This story was included in the storybook because it is the ultimate feminist story. Although it is commonly believed that women were supposed to do whatever they were told, Cinderella found a way to combat this stereotype and to overcome her own unfortunate situation.
       All the stories in this storybook relate back to Cinderella, especially the second story in my storybook. The next story I chose to include in the storybook is called Psyche and Cupid  and it is an ancient Roman story--even older than Cinderella!  This is somewhat similar to Cinderella in that the heroine found true love in the end, but Psyche also overcame a hardship within her life, therefore becoming the heroine of her story.  This story is similar to Cinderella also because the heroines both put on a different "face" for their true loves, both of which found out the truth and loved them anyway.
       The next story, King Thrushbeard, was also new to me. This story was a very interesting story, probably my favorite out of all the ones in the storybook This one is also about a woman who, unlike Cinderella, is very picky and kind of snooty. She has trouble finding a mate, and finds herself living with a fiddler. Later, this story also has a happy ending where the heroine overcomes her unexpected situation.
       Beauty and the Beast was the last story I decided to include in my storybook. This one related the most to Cinderella. Because the main character in this story was humble and living with her situation, just as Cinderella was, she was put in a similar, yet different end situation. Mainly her situation was different because she overcome her primary thoughts about the beast and decided she loved the beast, no matter what he looked like--a situation Cinderella did not have to encounter. Ultimately, this story also has a happy ending like the classic Cinderella story that we all know and love.
       The storytelling approach I used in my storybook was narrative. Although I do enjoy reading diary-entry stories and dialogue-based stories, I feel like it really is a fairy tale when narrated.
       My favorite thing about this class and the storybook project was the opportunity to read other's storybooks. Also, because my peers were able to comment on my storybook each week, I was able to gain ideas, as well as change things that were suggested to me. I think the most helpful tool in the development of my storybook was the feedback I received each week from my peers as well as the instructor. The best reference tool that I used was SurLaLune--the author of this website, Heidi Heiner has so many stories to choose from and read.
       Happy reading and enjoy!
      
 

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