Traditional Literature- Rough Face Girl

In this Native American variant of Cinderella we find three sisters living with their poor father in a village on the shores of Lake Ontario. The youngest sister was made to sit by the fire and feed the flames by the older hard- hearted sisters. After years of sitting by the fire the youngest sister’s face and hands are scarred and her black hair is charred. The girls of the village want to marry the Invisible Being as he is “a great, rich, powerful, and supposedly handsome Invisible Being”. The older sisters take all their father has so they can dress in the finest to go and marry the Invisible Being. The sisters fail to see the Invisible Being and return to the village ashamed. The youngest daughter asked for buckskin, beads and shoes like her sisters so she could go and marry the Invisible Being but her father had nothing left but old shoes and broken shells. She walked to the shore and told the Invisible Being‘s sister “I have come to marry the Invisible Being”. The sister could see she had a good and kind heart. The youngest sister was able to see the Invisible Being. As she bathed the in the lake to scars vanished from her skin and her hair grew long and glossy again. She became as beautiful on the outside as she was on the inside. This story has the good/bad sister element that goes across cultures. The youngest sister is treated cruelly but continues to have a good and kind heart. Her reward is the ability to see the Invisible Being. This variant of Cinderella allows the reader through the words and the illustrations to experience the spiritual beliefs of the Native American culture depicted in this story. The illustrations of the Invisible being in the sky brought in nature, animals and space. David Shannon’s watercolor illustrations set the mood and the drama of the events that happened from page to page. The art and text create a wonderful layout for reading this book aloud to a group of children.
The School Library Journal review- “ … a splendid read aloud.”, Kirkus –“ …a strong distinctive with art to match.”, Booklist- “libraries will find this a well-used picture book.”
The Rough-Face Girl is a book I have used every year during the Traditional Literature study. I have used many variants of Cinderella as well as the traditional versions and created charts to compare the different versions. I have not included illustrator or country of origin on my charts but want to add those two areas for next year. I teach first grade and after reading several versions, my first grade students create their own story. I have many retells but I am always amazed by how many children come up with a new Cinderella character and have followed the Cinderella story pattern.