Fairy tales for every age!
Happy National Fairy Tale Day! To celebrate, we’ve collected some of our favorite fairy tales, both classic and brand new, for every age group! From the tiniest of tots to the most rebellious of teens, here is a fairytale for each. Or, maybe they’re all for you. As a lover of all things fairy tale, from picture book to novel, I won’t judge!
Picture Books
This collection of classic fairytales, retold by Chris Colfer and lushly illustrated by Brandon Dorman, is the perfect addition to any book collection. With thirty-five stories, this book will keep your kids engrossed with a new tale everyday – granted they don’t ask you to read the same story eighteen times. But even if they do, with each lushly illustrated page, you’re bound to find something new each time you read!
We love the Little Mermaid, and this absolutely gorgeous retelling from Jerry Pinkney will be a bedtime classic for sure! A poignant tale of friendship and redemption is coupled with downright stunning artwork from an absolute master! Seriously, one glance inside and I’ll guarantee you’ll be sold!
Simply put, this book is beautiful! A retelling of the segment from Edmund Spenser’s The Faerie Queene in which George, the Red Cross Knight, slays the dragon that has been terrorizing the countryside for years. As a child who dreamed of becoming a knight (only to be sorely disappointed to learn that dragons did not exists and knighthood was not really a viable career option) this books spoke and still speaks to me!
Jerry Pinkney, you’ve done it again! The classic Grimm Brother’s tale is retold by Jerry Pinkney with a few added twists! And I challenge any fool who says they won’t get sucked into that glorious art! Seriously, Jerry Pinkney’s paintings are so warm and inviting. A perfect read-aloud for any fairy tale fantatic!
Middle Grade
Sometimes, all I want is to by sucked into a good story. Well, when it happens to the Bailey twins, not everything is as it seems. They get pulled into their grandmother’s book of fairy tales, only to discover that the stories don’t end where they thought and that maybe getting back home is going to be harder than they thought.
In this different kind of fairytale, Newberry Medal winner Kelly Barnhill weaves a beautiful tale about the power of stories. In this fairytale, the princess is not beautiful, the dragon is not terrifying, and the stories are anything but harmless.
This modern classic from wunderkind Lev Grossman is the perfect sort of fairy tale – entirely fresh but with a timeless feel. When Kate is gifted a magic train by her absurd and mysterious Uncle Herbert, she and her brother, Tom, will wander upon the adventure of a lifetime. And who knows? They might just end up saving the world.
Young Adult
The queen of Faerie is here, and she’s taking no prisoners! Holly Black has been writing in the world of Faerie for years, pulling from classic folklore for inspiration. But these Faeries are not like your typical fairies. They cannot lie, but they are deceivers, and they’ll trick you into bargains you’re not prepared for. They are devious and dangerous and not to be trifled with. Dip your toe into her heady world with stand-alone tale in the same universe as The Cruel Prince.
A story of love and grief, magic and curses, The Bone Houses is a modern fairy tale with a touch of horror. Seventeen-year-old Ryn only cares about two things: her family and her family’s graveyard. As a gravedigger in her remote village at the foot of a hash and deadly mountain, Ryn must deal with the “bone houses” – the risen corpses of the dead. When mapmaker apprentice Ellis comes to town with a mission, Ryn and Ellis will team up to make it to the heart of the mountain and perhaps discover the source of its mysterious curse.
This haunting, queer retelling of Cinderella will pull you in from page one, and turn your expectations on their head. In the wake of her father’s death, Ash is left at the mercy of her cruel stepmother. Consumed with grief, her only joy comes from the fairy tales her mother once told her. When the dark and dangerous fairy Sidhean comes to take her away, Ash believes all her dreams have come true. But Ash will soon have to choose between her fairytale dreams, and true love.