Matchless

With *Matchless, *Gregory Maguire has reinvented the Hans Christian Andersen classic *The Little Match Girl* for a new time and new audiences. Originally asked by National Public Radio to write an original story with a Christmas theme, the *New York Times *bestselling author of *Wicked *and *A Lion Among Men* was once again inspired by the fairy tales we all loved in childhood—and he composed a poignant and enchanting tale of transcendence. A lovely and beautifully illustrated gift, *Matchless *places Andersen’s pitiful waif in the august company of Maguire’s previously re-imagined Snow White (*Mirror, Mirror*), Cinderella (*Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister*), and, of course, the Wicked Witch and other denizens of Oz.