This book review is the first in a series of reviews of teen novels that adapt Shakespeare. As I explore what adaptations can do to enchance the Shakespeare experience for teens, I look at how Grace Tiffany's adaptation interprets the characters of The Tempest.
Please note: Book reviews will contain spoilers, so if you want to read the book you might want to do so before reading my review.
Summary
Ariel is born out of the mind of a dying sailor in the first century AD. A spirit of whimsy and magic, she dominates her island and creates other spirits whose names reflect her nature: Madness, Mind, and Fantasy. She thrives for centuries on the power that the sailor gave her, but when she realizes that she cannot cross a barrier onto the other half of the island, she becomes determined to find new people who will strengthen her with their belief in her power.
She latches hope onto a human girl who lands on her island, but Sycorax is practical and has no use for the fantasies that Ariel creates in the air, and when Ariel refuses to help Sycorax through her difficult childbirth, Sycorax traps Ariel in the form of an ant and imprisons her in a tree. Ariel's only hope is that she can convince Sycorax's son, Caliban, to believe in her power and let her go. She tricks Caliban into murdering his mother, hoping that with Sycorax gone the spell will be broken. When Caliban realizes what Ariel has done, he turns on her and leaves her helpless--until yet another man shipwrecks on her shore.
