Ashputtel Skin

Issue seven: poem by Jessica Cook

We are delighted to share with you a poem by the magical writer Jessica Cook, whose poem ‘Ashputtel Skin’ draws inspiration from The Grimms version of ATU510 The Persecuted Heroine, ‘Ashputtel’. The poem, with its direct and engaging voice, references the common cultural practice of covering mirrors after a death to draw in notions of home, mourning, and fairy tales. Jess tells us:

The agentive Cinderella of this story aligns with the freedom I experience as a woman, wife, and mother—independent, yet with the inner voice that speaks with the judgement learned from the patriarchy.

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