For children exploring what it means to be brave and true, this collection features princes and princesses facing quirky challenges and unexpected paths to happiness.
Reach for this book when your child is grappling with self-doubt or questioning what it truly means to be brave or kind. This collection of four original fairy tales moves beyond typical princess tropes, featuring an awkward prince, a princess forced to marry a beggar, and another prince who herds pigs for love. The stories explore themes of self-confidence, perseverance, and the idea that true worth comes from character, not status. Perfect for early independent readers aged 7-10, these quirky and accessible stories provide gentle models for resilience and are excellent conversation starters about inner strength and judging others by their actions.
One story features a princess being kidnapped by a cruel prince. The peril is handled in a classic fairy-tale style, focusing on her cleverness rather than her fear, and the resolution is hopeful. Another story involves a father forcing his daughter, Princess Prue, to marry a stranger against her will as a punishment for her pride. This is a direct adaptation of the King Thrushbeard tale type. It's a metaphorical exploration of humility, with a hopeful resolution, but the lack of agency for the princess could be a discussion point. The approach is secular.
Ideal Reader
This book is ideal for a 7 to 9-year-old who enjoys fairy tales but is ready for more nuanced characters than those in picture books. It's a great fit for a child who sometimes feels overlooked or awkward, as it champions inner qualities like kindness and cleverness over appearance or social status. It also serves as a gentle introduction to the chapter book format.
Parent Prep
Parents may want to preview the story of Princess Prue being forced to marry a beggar to be ready for questions about fairness and why her father made that choice. Similarly, the Prince Percy story involves kidnapping. No major prep is needed as the stories are straightforward, but these two plots offer the richest ground for post-reading conversation. A parent hears their child say something like, "I'm not good at anything," or notices them developing rigid ideas from other media, such as "Princes are always handsome and brave," or "Princesses just need to be rescued."
Age Experience
A 7-year-old will likely enjoy the stories as fun, simple adventures with clear heroes and villains. An older reader, around 9 or 10, will be more capable of appreciating the subversion of classic fairy-tale roles and understanding the central message that a royal title does not automatically confer nobility of character.
What Makes It Special
Unlike anthologies that retell well-worn classics like Cinderella or Snow White, this book provides four less common or original tales. Its primary focus is on the *character development* of its royal protagonists, making it a strong tool for discussing virtues like humility, perseverance, and kindness in a familiar fantasy setting.
Read plot summary
This book is a collection of four short, original fairy tales that subvert common tropes. The stories include: an awkward but kind Prince Colin who must prove his worth to a sad princess; a proud Princess Prue who is forced by her father to marry a beggar; a noble Prince Sam who disguises himself as a pig-keeper to be near the princess he admires; and a cruel, slovenly Prince Percy who kidnaps a princess, forcing her to use her wits to outsmart him.
This overview was generated by AI based on the book's content and reviews, and may not capture every nuance.
Discussion Prompts
1
In the first story, Prince Colin is very awkward and clumsy. What makes him a true hero in the end? Was it magic, or a quality he had inside him all along?
2
Princess Prue is forced to marry a beggar by her father. Do you think this was a fair punishment for her pride? Why do you think the beggar was so hard on her at first?
3
Prince Sam pretends to be a poor pig-keeper. Why do you think he chose to do that instead of just telling Princess Sara he was a prince?
4
Compare Prince Colin, who is kind but awkward, with Prince Percy, who is royal but cruel. What do these stories teach us about what it really means to be 'princely' or 'royal'?
