Fairest

Published in 2006, Gail Carson Levine’s Fairest is a middle-grade fantasy novel that reimagines the Snow White fairy tale. Set in the magical land of Ayortha, the story follows Aza, a kind young woman with an unconventional appearance but a remarkable singing voice. When she becomes entangled in royal intrigue and dangerous magic, Aza must learn to embrace her uniqueness and inner strength to save herself and the kingdom. The story is set in the same world as Ella Enchanted, Levine’s Newbery Honor-winning debut novel, and explores themes of The Importance of Authenticity, The Impact of Beauty Standards on Self-Worth, and The Power of Music. 

Citations in this study guide refer to the e-book edition released by HarperCollins in 2012.

Content Warning: The source material and guide feature depictions of bullying, suicidal ideation, and animal death.

Plot Summary

Aza lives in the village of Amonta in the kingdom of Ayortha. She was abandoned at the Featherbed Inn when she was only a month old, and the innkeepers who adopted her believe that she is highborn. The kingdom places great importance on song and beauty and although Aza possesses the best singing voice in her village, she is considered ugly because of her pale skin, black hair, red lips, and large-boned frame. In an attempt to shield her feelings, her parents assign her chores that keep her out of sight of rude guests, and the girl longs for a fairy godmother or a magic spell that will make her pretty.

When Aza is 12 years old, a gnome named Master zhamM predicts that Aza’s appearance will be different when they meet again. When the Duchess of Olixo stays at the Featherbed Inn, Aza charms the peevish noblewoman with the help of her cat. At age 14, Aza teaches herself how to throw her voice and mimic other people’s voices, a skill she calls illusing.

When Aza is 15, the duchess asks Aza to accompany her to Ontio Castle for King Oscaro’s wedding. The king marries Ivi, a commoner from another kingdom. Although Ivi is resplendently beautiful, she doesn’t sing during the ceremony, which the Ayorthians consider a bad omen. Ivi and Aza bond over their shared status as outsiders in the castle, and the new queen appoints Aza as her lady-in-waiting. After the wedding, Aza befriends the handsome and charming Prince Ijori and his loyal hound Oochoo. 

During the celebration the day after the wedding, the king is gravely injured. He may never awaken, so Queen Ivi becomes Ayortha’s sole ruler. Because the kingdom places great importance on singing, Ivi demands that Aza use her illusing to make it seem that Ivi has a beautiful voice. This deceit goes against Aza’s conscience, but the queen forces her to obey by threatening to throw her into prison and shut down her family’s inn. Aza discovers that Ivi possesses a magical hand mirror that makes Aza’s reflection look stunningly beautiful.

The kingdom holds an event called a Sing in the hope of healing the king. Aza illuses to give the queen a beautiful voice, but the queen’s song angers her subjects because it declares her intention to rule with a firm hand.

Aza and Ijori’s responsibilities to attend to the queen bring them closer together. When Ivi dissolves the king’s council, Ijori extends his trust and friendship to Aza by sharing his concerns with her. Ivi becomes increasingly paranoid as public opinion turns against her. She keeps guards with her at all times and often secludes herself in her chambers. 

The king’s second-in-command, Sir Uellu, and the council meet in secret to plan a revolt. Aza and Ijori agree that they will only join the rebellion against the queen if the king passes away, and both long for his speedy recovery. The royal tailor believes that Aza is in league with the queen, so the garments he creates for her are deliberately hideous. When the tailor’s cruelty makes Aza cry, Ijori comforts and kisses her. The kiss emboldens Aza, and she convinces the tailor to prepare her a suitable wardrobe.

At the second Sing, Ijori performs a piece about his love for Aza. The queen reveals that she’s deceived everyone by shouting at someone while Aza is illusing for her. After the deception is exposed, Sir Uellu accuses Aza of being part-ogre, misleading Ivi to spark a rebellion, and bewitching the prince so she could become queen. Aza protests her innocence, but Ijori is horrified that he kissed her. The assembled guards and courtiers lock her in the queen’s chambers while they decide her fate. Aza finds the hand mirror, a beauty potion, and a disguise potion among the queen’s belongings. She takes a dose of the beauty potion and becomes stunning. A creature named Skulni speaks to the girl from the magic mirror and calls her the fairest in all the land.

On Sir Uellu’s orders, Aza is taken to the dungeon, but she escapes by soothing the guard to sleep with a lullaby. Ivi sends a guard named Uju to take Aza far from the castle and kill her, but Aza’s beauty moves him to pity her. He leads her to Gnome Caverns instead, where Master zhamM welcomes her graciously in fulfillment of his prediction. When Aza tells him of her troubles and the accusation that she is part-ogre, he determines that she is part-gnome instead. She asks zhamM to look into her future again, and he sees her lying motionless on the ground. Master zhamM’s messenger brings Aza a letter from Ijori in which the penitent prince apologizes for believing Ivi’s lies, professes that he always thought Aza was beautiful, and reveals that he is searching for her.

Ivi disguises herself as a gnome and gives Aza a poisoned apple. The girl’s spirit is separated from her body and trapped inside the magic mirror with Skulni. The malicious spirit can only leave the mirror if someone who drinks the beauty potion dies, but Aza’s body is still alive. Skulni tries to bring about Ivi’s death by telling the queen that they can be together if she dies by suicide. Aza uses her music’s power to break out of the mirror and save the queen. Skulni disappears, and Aza’s spirit returns to her dying body. Prince Ijori saves her by making her cough up the apple. When Aza awakens the next day, she sees that the effects of the beauty potion have worn off and resolves to accept her natural appearance.

Aza and Ijori return to the castle, and she convinces the queen to visit the king even though the potion that made Ivi ethereally beautiful has lost its power. The queen’s company speeds up the king’s recovery, and he remains deeply in love with her. However, after listening to Aza’s story, the king decides to send Ivi to another castle so that she will never rule Ayortha again. He announces that he will give the throne to Ijori in three years. The prince proposes to Aza, and they are married during a jubilant Sing in front of the people of Ayortha, Aza’s family, Master zhamM, and the duchess.