20 supremely cozy books and movies for hibernation season

19. Ella Enchanted

We’re specifically referring to Ella Enchanted the book, rather than the loose film adaptation that garnered mixed critical reviews. Gail Carson Levine’s novel, however, is a Newbery Honor book. So, not only is it the perfect kind of novel for a cold, indoors sort of day, but it’s well-regarded, too.

Ella Enchanted begins with the birth of Ella of Frell, who is given a rare gift by a fairy. However, said fairy, Lucinda, doesn’t quite have her stuff together and gives baby Ella an odd gift — the gift of obedience. This means that Ella is compelled to obey any direct order given to her. Thankfully, this is a novel originally meant for children, and so the darkest implications of that “gift” are thankfully left unexplored.

At first, things work out okay. Ella’s mother, Lady Eleanor, and Mandy the cook manage to protect the young girl for most of her childhood. However, when Lady Eleanor dies, fifteen-year-old Ella is sent off to finishing school. There, her fellow students learn of her condition and almost immediately begin to exploit it.

Sir Peter, Ella’s father, eventually remarries. Lucinda shows up and, like one of those aunties whose gifts you just can’t politely refuse, gives Sir Peter and his new wife Dame Olga the gift of always loving one another. That doesn’t mean she has to be nice to her new stepdaughter, however. Ella is quickly reduced to a Cinderella-esque servant in the household, thanks in large part to that “gift” of hers.

Of course, this book could not very well be on this list if it were just a long series of terrible things happening to Ella. After a twisty-turny series of events takes Ella through other elements of the Cinderella story, she is finally able to break through the curse (let’s call a spade a spade, after all) and live her own independent life.