As you know, my preschooler has been very interested in fairy tales lately, so we’ve been checking out a lot from the library. The most popular (surprise surprise) have been Disney-princess themed, but here are a couple that she’s enjoyed for other reasons.
The End by David LaRochelle, Illustrated by Richard Egielski
One of my daughter’s recent repeated requests is for me to read books backwards. This started with Corduroy one day when she thought it could be fun to start with the happy ending back to the uncertain beginning. Enter The End–a backwards book that starts with The End (even the title page is at the back end of the book). My only gripe is that it can’t strictly be read backwards from the beginning of the story because of ambiguous pronouns, but it’s very fun to read it this way in any case.
There’s a Princess in the Palace Retold by Zoe Alley and Illustrated by R.W. Alley
This is a large book told in comic-book format with lots of little details and funny quips. It contains four separate but interwoven princess stories: Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, and Princess and the Pea. I read this one to my daughter about a zillion times (you know, give or take). Unfortunately, this meant I had to read the entire book with every sitting (“Just ONE more Mommy, I promise!”), which was difficult when I was recovering from a bout of laryngitis. I think independent readers will enjoy this as well, since there are many clever jokes (both in the words and in the pictures) geared for older readers. The large size of the book also makes it rather unique. And–it’s pink!