Cinderella is one of the best known stories of all time. Originally penned by Charles Perrault, in his Histoires ou Contes du Temps Passé, it was an instant success. Perrault reported that he was told the story by some anonymous folk-story-tellers, and added extra details (such as the Fairy God-Mother, the much loved pumpkin carriage, anthropomorphic animal servants and the little glass slippers). Perrault (1628 – 1703) was among the first writers to bring magical children's stories into the literary mainstream, proving to his original seventeenth century readers that such works were important, enjoyable, as well as thought-provoking. They remain as popular today, as they were then.
