Moving on to the last Disney book, A Whole New World.

The book begins like the movie Aladdin but it takes a turn when Abu doesn’t steal the lamp from Jafar and Aladdin, Abu, and Magic Carpet get stuck inside the Cave of Wonders. Jafar goes back to Agrabah, summons Genie, and right away uses his first 2 wishes. Just like in the movie, his first wish is to become Sultan and his second wish is to be an all powerful sorcerer. He also uses his last wish to make Jasmine fall madly in love with him but like in the movie, Genie can’t make anyone fall in love. Jafar kills the Sultan by throwing him off the balcony in front of all the citizens of Agrabah. He uses his new powers to make it rain gold coins and bread. That doesn’t last long as gold coins become worthless since there’s so much of it and Jafar starts distributing food with the condition that each person pleads total allegiance to him. Jafar starts looking for a way to raise the death and create an army which in the end he does. He continue seeking knowledge to bypass the limits of the lamp. Jasmine escapes the palace before Jafar forces her to marry him and she reunites with Aladdin. Together they unite thieves, merchants, bandits, and regular citizens to fight and overthrow Jafar. They succeed and Jafar is killed by one of Aladdin’s friends. Before he dies, Jafar uses his third wish: the moment he dies, magic ceases to exist. Genie becomes a regular human being. Jasmine becomes the new Sultan or Sultana, Aladdin becomes a prince. Jasmine and Aladdin kiss and they live happily ever rebuilding Agrabah together.

I enjoyed the story. I did struggle the first few pages but I kept reading and it did get interesting. Instead of Aladdin being the main character, it’s Jasmine. She develops a friendship with Genie when they realize that their situation is similar; they’re both trapped. The first time Jasmine escaped the palace, she sees life outside her prison isn’t that great. While her dad, the Sultan plays with his toys and kites, the poor people of Agrabah struggle everyday for basic necessaries such as food. She promises to be better and help her people once she becomes Sultana. I like that Jasmine took charge and Aladdin was there as support. I never saw Jasmine and a weak princess. She’s pretty badass even in the movie but I enjoyed that they added more of that in the book. She’s not afraid to put herself at risk for a greater cause.

I might pick up 2 more Twisted Tale books. I originally was going to purchase Frozen and The Little Mermaid versions but A Whole New World came in a box set with Once Upon A Dream and As Old As Time. I’m taking a break from Disney books though and going back to Star Wars novels. I know, I know, Star Wars is Disney but it’s different. Those books have been waiting to be read.