Fooling around with Cinderella by Stacy Juba is a delightful story featuring Jaine Andersen and her adventure working for Storybook Valley Amusement Park, which is run by the gorgeous Dylan Callahan, the grandson of the couple who started the park. In need of a job, Jaine sends her resume and a letter pitching her ability to raise the attendance numbers to the fairy tale themed park, which has kept its magic through the years but lost its attendance numbers. She charms Dylan into hiring her, but there is a catch. The park is in need of someone to play Cinderella that summer, so because the park can’t afford to hire her on full-time during the summer, Jaine gets stuck having to put on heavy make-up, a fancy taffeta dress, and a golden wig to be Cinderella for little children every day.
Jaine’s life in itself is not very interesting, but it is indeed very busy. She ends up getting stuck with doing all the organizing for one sister’s wedding, bridal shower, and bachelorette party and taking over much of the childcare issues for her other sister. Her entire interest in Storybook Valley has arisen from having taken her 8-year-old niece to the park on a visit. But life at Storybook Valley is a big adventure, from dealing with the handsome boss to developing new marketing ideas.
This charming book gives us a glimpse of life as Cinderella in a theme park and what getting to be Cinderella can mean for a woman, both inside and outside of the costume. It makes us think about what it takes to be ourselves and support each other.
The audio version of this book is narrated by Karen Commins, whose reading makes this fun book even more enjoyable. She adds a touch of twinkle to this book and adds to the sense of fun between Jaine and Dylan.
Fooling around with Cinderella shows pieces of the romance of the fairy tale world as well as the challenges of living in the real world. A sweet romance, this book is highly suitable for all. I give it five stars!
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book for free from the author, but that in no way affected my review or rating of the book.