The Other Side
June 06, 2012
Every story has two sides. Sure, it’s an old platitude, but it’s also true of some of our favorite classics. If you’ve ever been dissatisfied by the ending of a book everyone else seems to love, maybe you should read it from another point of view. Try one of these "other side" stories to get fresh perspectives on old tales.
Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys
The other side of Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
The Wind Done Gone by Alice Randall
The other side of Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
March by Geraldine Brooks
The other side of Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
Fairest by Serena Valentino
The other side of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm
Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister by Gregory Maguire
The other side of Cinderella by Charles Perrault
Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West (and its sequels) by Gregory Maguire
The other side of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (and its sequels) by L. Frank Baum
Finn by Jon Clinch
The other side of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
The Magic Circle by Donna Jo Napoli
The other side of Hansel and Gretel by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm
Mary Reilly by Valerie Martin
The other side of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
Ahab's Wife, or, The Star-Gazer by Sena Jeter Naslund
The other side of Moby-Dick by Herman Melville
Peyton J.
Buckner Branch
Comments
A whole new perspective
I never knew there were so many books out there that provided alternate endings to such popular stories! Although I never really hated some of these original endings, I like that there are other options. It keeps the story alive, even though it's a little different.
It all comes down to Point of View.
I happen to LOVE these kind of stories. From 'Mr. Darcey's Diary' by Amanda Grange to 'Finn' by Jon Clinch, which you mentioned above.
One of my favorites is 'Lady Macbeth' by Lisa Klein. A retelling of Shakespeare's 'Macbeth', it had my attention from page one. Lisa Klein gives us another twist on Shakespeare, with 'Ophelia'. Was Hamlet truely mad...or just pretending all along?
Keep 'em coming!!
Wow!
This is an awesome list and will become part of my Goodreads list!
Thanks!
Thanks for your kind comments and suggestions. I can't believe I forgot Grendel: what a great idea for a story!!! :)
The Other Side
Thanks for the recomendations. I've already checked out the Magic Circle, but haven't yet read it. I'll be sure to add the others to my list.
To this end, I'd also
To this end, I'd also recommend "Grendel" by John Gardner, which retells Beowulf from the perspective of the monster.
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