I watched it every day for an entire week when I borrowed the video cassette (90s, man) from the library. Was this supposed to be an ad for the Disney movie? Because you don't need to sell me that shit. Right up to 20%, practically one-fifth of the book, it was a near play-by-play replica of the Disney movie. Crushed it like Beyonce crushed at the VMAs.

I was ready to love it.Īnd it crushed that hope. I put a gif with Aladdin throwing money and everything. I deleted my pre-review so you can't see, but I was super excited for A Whole New World. Welcome to a new YA series that reimagines classic Disney stories in surprising new ways. Just sayin'.īlog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Tumblr | Youtube It's kind of cringy and embarrassing when a white person sets a book in the Near East and shows EVERYONE eating almost nothing but baklava. But if I was going to write a novel set in that area, I would at least do a bit of research. Like most annoying, uncultured white people, my experience with Near East/former Ottoman Empire cuisine equates to basically. It moves from darkness and violence into cartoonish territory and back again, never quite becoming anything more than a mess.Īnd one more thing. I struggle to believe either fans OR newbies will find anything to love here. Have watched the Disney movie? Then go watch it again. Haven't watched the Disney movie? Then go watch that instead. Honestly, there is no reason to read this book.

Aladdin has no personality beyond his desire to save everyone else. Jafar is nothing more than a pantomime antagonist. They are never developed beyond one-dimensional hero/villain/love interest archetypes. The novel is contradictory in that it's boring to read it having already watched the movie, but the story almost assumes the reader is familiar with the Disney characters. So, don't things get better after that? In one word: nope. Why bother when I can just watch the excellent Disney version instead?īut, yes, after about 25% the story changes when Jafar traps Aladdin underground (no magic lamp this time) and proceeds to take over and terrorize Agrabah with the genie. It was actually painfully boring to read the parts that were an exact novelization of the film. “All this for a loaf of bread?” Aladdin asked, exasperated. 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. 25% - down to copying the exact dialogue in parts - but then changes a single element of the plot to spin the story in a new direction.īeing a fan of the Disney movie, I found myself saying some of the lines before the characters. Instead, it's more of a fan fiction that recreates the Disney film for the first approx. A Whole New World, contrary to what I initially believed, is not really a retelling.

A twisted tale aladdin