Indian Cinderella
In order to marry the “Invisible One,” an Indian maiden must be able to see him and answer two questions correctly. Little Burnt Face’s sisters try to succeed through deceit. Little Burnt Face is able to see the “Invisible One” and becomes his wife. She is dressed in fine buckskin and the scars are washed away. Her cruel sisters are changed into quaking aspens and to this very day they tremble when the “Invisible One” comes through the forest. In some versions of this Cinderella story, the father asks why his youngest daughter’s face is burnt and why she is covered with soot. The hateful older sisters reply that she is careless and falls in the fire and he asks no further questions.
Bibliography
The Rough-Face Girl, retold by Rafe Martin
Sootface: An Ojibwa Cinderella Story, retold by Robert D. San Souci, Doubleday Books, New York, 1994.
“The Indian Cinderella,” The Book of Virtues, William J. Bennett, editor; Hey! Listen to This: Stories to Read Aloud, Jim Trelease, editor; “Little Burnt Face” in Ready-To-Tell Tales, David Holt & Bill Mooney, editors; “The Invisible One” in Cinderella, Judy Sierra.
The Hidden One: A Native American Legend (Indian Cinderella), retold by Aaron Shepherd http://www.aaronshep.com/rt/RTE12.html (This is a Reader’s Theater version written for grades 2 and up)
Cinderella Stories http://www.ucalgary.ca/~dkbrown/cinderella.html
Mi’kmaq Cinderella (Story) http://www.kstrom.net/isk/stories/cinder3.html
Native American Resources http://www.kstrom.net/isk/mainmenu.html#mainmenutop