Fairy Tales Retold

Hungry for Once Upon a Time..., but craving a twist? Here are some picture books from recent years that might satisfy.

Updated January 12, 2023
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The little mermaid
Pinkney, Jerry
In this captivating reimagining of Hans Christian Andersen's classic, Caldecott medalist and bestselling artist Jerry Pinkney conjures a poignant friendship story and an epic tale of redemption -- the definitive new version for our time. Melody, the littlest sea...
Tortoise and Hare : a fairy tale to help you find balance
Verde, Susan
Tortoise and Hare is a fractured fairy tale to help kids slow down and find their energy, from New York Times bestselling author and mindfulness expert Susan Verde and illustrator Jay Fleck. Once upon a time there were two neighbors, Hare...
Three billy goats gruff
Barnett, Mac.
Instant New York Times bestseller! The MOMENTOUS debut of a groundbreaking Fairy Tale series -- a brilliantly crafted, hilarious twist on this beloved classic, The Three Billy Goats Gruff, from renowned, award-winning, and New York Times bestselling duo and...
REAL DADA MOTHER GOOSE
SCIESZKA, JON
The classic nursery rhymes we know and love--upside-down, backward, in gibberish, and fresh out of bounds--as only Jon Scieszka could stage them Mother knows best, but sometimes a little nonsense wins the day. Inspired by Dadaism's rejection of reason and rational thinking, and...
ARAB FIARY TALE FEASTS
ALRAWI, KARIM
Arab Fairy Tale Feasts is the latest title in the highly-praised Fairy Tale Feasts Collection, a creative series that folds enchanting folk tales into cookbooks of kid-friendly recipes. Award-winning writer and storyteller, Karim Alrawi, draws on his deep knowledge of Arab culture to create original...
Little Red and the cat who loved cake
Lehman, Barbara
A highly visual fractured-fairy-tale retelling of Little Red Riding Hood (and a cat who loves cake) from Caldecott Honor-winner Barbara Lehman. With simple picture bubbles and pictograms, this is perfect for budding graphic novel readers. Little Red has baked a cake with...
The little wooden robot and the log princess
Gauld, Tom
A New York Times/New York Public Library Best Illustrated Book of the Year   In this fresh new fairy tale, a wooden robot embarks on a quest to find his missing sister-- making for a memorable contemporary bedtime story in acclaimed graphic novelist Tom Gauld's first...
Blancaflor : the hero with secret powers : a folktale from Latin America
Spiegelman, Nadja
One of the New York Times Best Children's Books of 2021 A Children's Book about finally being seen. Blancaflor, a superb graphic storytelling of a classic Latin American folktale, showcases the invisible labor of women and the contributions of Indigenous...
Batman tales. Once upon a crime
Fridolfs, Derek
Gotham City is filled with stories--of heroes and of villains, of police and criminals, of families both lost and found. But the enchanted short stories in BATMAN TALES are brought to life with a classic fairy-tale twist that will fill you with wonder. Once upon a crime in Gotham...
Reading Beauty
Underwood, Deborah
An empowering tale for all kids, Reading Beauty features fun, rhyming text, loveable characters, and a heartwarming ending that will keep young minds entertained. A irrepressible fairy tale retelling that is sure to charm readers of all ages: When a fairy's curse--a...
Interstellar Cinderella
Underwood, Deborah
Once upon a planetoid, amid her tools and sprockets, a girl named Cinderella dreamed of fixing fancy rockets. With a little help from her fairy godrobot, Cinderella is going to the ball. But when the prince's ship has mechanical trouble, someone will have to zoom to...
Marcy and the riddle of the sphinx
Todd-Stanton, Joe
Kids will love this exciting excavation of ancient Egyptian myths as they follow along with the clever Marcy on a quest to save her dad from the belly of the sphinx! Many years have passed since the tale of Arthur and the Golden Rope, and Arthur is now a world-famous adventurer....

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