I just finished reading "Enchantment" by Orson Scott Card, evidently a rerelease, originally published in 1999. I enjoy picking up young adult fiction, the fantasy is so much more approachable. (I never could slog through Tolkien but loved the movie adaptions, exquisite cinematography!)
"Enchantment" is a retelling of the Sleeping Beauty fairy tale. Ivan, our hero, is a young man who began life in the Ukraine, emigrated with his parents to the US after his family's Jewish origins were exposed. He becomes the scholar his parents desired as well as a runner, an athelete. He releases the ensourcled princess and they learn to trust in each other with all the normal Mars and Venus issues exagerated by the differences of societies a hundreds of years apart.
I began reading fairy tales at a young age and continue enjoying modernized versions to this day. The exploration of the development of "character", the never-ending battle between good and evil, and magical adventure still enchants me, carries me away from my day to day existance. Another favorite device is magic that has its origins in our world, just slightlt skewed.
