Aladdin: A Whole New World: A Twisted Tale (Twisted Tales)

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What happens next? A Street Rat becomes a leader. A princess becomes a revolutionary. And readers will never look at the story of Aladdin in the same way again. When Jafar steals the Genie’s lamp, he uses his first two wishes to become sultan and the most powerful sorcerer in the world. Agrabah lives in fear, waiting for his third and final wish.To stop the power-mad ruler, Aladdin and the deposed Princess Jasmine must unite the people of Agrabah in rebellion. But soon their fight for freedom threatens to tear the kingdom apart in a costly civil war. What happens next? A Street Rat becomes a leader. A princess becomes a revolutionary. And readers will never look at the story of Aladdin in the same way again. A Whole New World (Twisted Tales, #1) by Liz Braswell – eBook Details

Braswell, Liz (September 4, 2018). Part of Your World: A Twisted Tale. Disney-Hyperion. ISBN 9781368013819.Welcome to a new YA series that reimagines classic Disney stories in surprising new ways. Each book asks the question: What if one key moment from a familiar Disney film was changed? This dark and daring version of Aladdin twists the original story with the question: What if Jafar was the first one to summon the Genie? Anyway...I think what bugged most people was that for the first 25% of the book is basically play by play from the movie. I thought I'd hate it too, but honestly it worked for me. Could the author have gone in a different route? Sure. But she didn't and that's ok with me. Yikes! This could have gone a lot better. If you've seen the movie Aladdin (1992), then you're set. This book isn't necessary at all, if you've watched the movie. And even if you haven't watched the movie... there are issues with this book that are issues that I have that have to do with the writing, the structure, the plot, the basic development. This wasn't a good story, and it wasn't a good book based off the movie. Whatever it was, it wasn't great. When Jafar steals the Genie’s lamp, he uses his first two wishes to become sultan and the most powerful sorcerer in the world. Agrabah lives in fear, waiting for his third and final wish.To stop the power-mad ruler, Aladdin and the deposed Princess Jasmine must unite the people of Agrabah in rebellion. But soon their fight for freedom threatens to tear the kingdom apart in a costly civil war. Being a fan of the Disney movie, I found myself saying some of the lines before the characters. And, the small prologue aside, we once again meet Aladdin in the market when he is stealing bread and being chased by the Sultan's guards - just like in the movie. He even says the same old line to Abu:

The first six chapters are a mirror re-telling of the classic Disney movie. In fact, the tagline on the cover of the book “ What if Aladdin had never found the lamp?” is wildly misleading. Aladdin does find the lamp, and it is only once this happens do things start to go awry. Up until that point, we get all the same scenes, all the same dialogue, except built upon with more detail. Also, what's really killing me is that it's written in oddly overblown language, contrasting with the flatness. Chapters open with sentences like this:It was surprisingly dark, at times, and brought into play plot ideas that I didn't particularly care for, particularly with Jafar's army which I found idiotic and somewhat demeaning to the story and Jafar's character. Iago's role in the retelling also deeply upset me, again in regards to Braswell's portrayal of Jafar's character. More often than I would have liked, I found myself feeling as though the characters were not themselves, and it is here that I think Braswell hit her largest snag. She simply did not have a great grasp of the original characters and struggled at times to write them in a way that remained true to their nature in the Disney version. I was most disappointed in Jafar, followed closely by Jasmine and the Genie. Aladdin, however, was rather impressive, even if he had moments--albeit small--where he didn't quite fit himself. And it never fails to remind us that Jafar is evil, yo. Every scene he's in, he's using an oily voice. The tower where he lives is encased in an "evil orange glow". When he laughs, "not evilly" has to be added because he obviously does it so often. Had this been an original story, without my previous love for the Disney movie, I may have been less critical of some things. I do believe the romance was a bit awkward, however, I was willing to overlook that due to my previous experiences with the story of Aladdin. This book was not better than the movie. It did not impress me as the broadway play did. But it was good, in its own way. Books: Comic book • Aladdin's Quest • A-Mazing Aladdin • Jasmine's Magic Charm • Royal Weddings • Aladdin: One True Love • Jasmine: The Missing Coin • Jasmine the Matchmaker • Disney Princess Beginnings • The Art and Making of Aladdin • Aladdin: Far From Agrabah• The Magic Carpet's Secret