(2) K-3 Illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky. A fairly standard retelling changes course quickly when Cinderella storms out of the ball ("What a disaster!") declaring that the prince is a snob and her feet are killing her ("Seriously? Glass high heels?"). As her horse turns back into a mouse and the pumpkin coach cracks open on the road, "Ella" blithely kneels on the ground, picks out the seeds, and pockets them. "I'll find my own destiny, thank you very much"--and she does, with mouse pal Fred witness to it all. Zelinsky's humorous illustrations have fun with Cinderella's clown-like stepfamily and their ridiculous attempts to squeeze large feet into the tiny glass slipper. Ella, on the other hand, is depicted as a down-to-earth pumpkin farmer who soon finds true love with another like-minded farmer. The two women (yaaas!) marry and move to a small farm, where they grow spectacular pumpkins, in a truly satisfying fairy-tale ending. Hopkinson's enhanced retelling even adds a small pourquoi tale: "And that, dear readers, is the story of how fairytale pumpkins got their name." Sorry, Prince Charming--this revisionist tale ends quite happily without you.

Reviewer: Jennifer M. Brabander | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2023

(3) 1-3 Hamster Princess Harriet is forced to attend a ball--in a dress!--and gets pulled into a mystery involving a hamster in glass shoes (Whiskerella). A rodent-girl in a bright red hood asks Harriet for help with weasel-wolves lurking around her grandmother's cottage (Little Red). Vernon's fifth and sixth trippy fairy-tale takeoffs use humor, quick pacing, occasional comic book–style panels, and snappy dialogue to engage young and struggling readers. Review covers these titles: Hamster Princess: Little Red Rodent Hood and Hamster Princess: Whiskerella.

Reviewer: Carolyn Shute

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Raphaëlle Barbanègre. In this feminist fairy tale, Cinderella answers a fairy godmother's ad but gets an unsightly dress, beastly slippers, and a turnip coach. When Cinderella wins the prince's weird dance contest and discovers that he, too, "was much better in the magazine," she runs off to a girls-only job fair. Zany digital illustrations depict a fairy-tale realm that--like our real world--is far from picture perfect.

Reviewer: Lisa Catherine Findlay

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Lesley Vamos. Elly lives a life fit for a princess, but she longs to play baseball ("she dreamed of opening days and double plays and being on their team"). Her fairy godfather provides a grungy uniform so she can attend a game and show off her skills. This simple but good-natured tale inverts the Cinderella story with self-referential humor and comical digital illustrations.

Reviewer: Jeannie Coutant

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Laura Francesca Filippucci. This traditional portrayal of the Brothers Grimm version of the tale has dense, small-print text that tends to crowd the page. Italian illustrator Filippucci's delicate ink lines and watercolors are precise but airy and rich in color. A balance of detailed full spreads and spot images makes the book enjoyable to explore; better for quiet at-home reading than group sharing.

Reviewer: Jeannie Coutant

(3) YA Recasting Prince Charming as Darien, dreamboat star of a cult sci-fi show's new reboot, and the prince's ball as "ExcelsiCon," Poston delivers a sweet, breezy "Cinderella" update. A cosplay contest offers heroine Elle a chance to attend the premiere of her beloved Starfield--with Darien. This sweet rom-com smartly serves up hidden identities, unabashed fandom, thwarted yearnings, and satisfying triumphs.

Reviewer: Claire E. Gross

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Deborah Marcero. Tinderella, used to sharing with twin Cinderella, can solve any fraction. When both girls attend the ball but leave one shoe behind, Tin suggests their fairy godmom "double" the prince. Cin and Charming rule the kingdom; their lesser-known twins win math awards and have quadruplets. Ink, gouache, watercolor, and digital illustrations create a cartoonlike fairy-tale setting for the silly but satisfying math-centric takeoff in peppy rhyme.

Reviewer: Melinda Greenblatt

(4) 4-6 This "Cinderella" retelling is narrated in alternating chapters by teenage Cinderella and Char, a rat prince who falls in love with her. When the rodent is turned into a coachman, he must expose the true nature of the human prince at the ball. Machinations and secrets, as well as some humor, run through this love story, which slows at times but ends neatly.

Reviewer: Nancy Sheridan

(3) 4-6 Tyme series. Ella will do anything to revolutionize the unjust garment factories that worked her mother to death--even forming an unlikely alliance with a prince struggling to recover from a curse and a fairy godfather who's almost forgotten how to care. Morrison's second fairy-tale revisioning (Grounded), here of "Cinderella," is bursting with originality and emotionally complex characters in a richly developed, nuanced world.

Reviewer: Siena Leslie

(4) K-3 Fairy Tale Adventures series. Adapted by Giada Francia. A touch overlong, especially for younger readers, these retellings stick mostly to the traditional ingredients, with a pinch of something new added here and there. (In Snow White, the evil queen is a crow; in Red Riding Hood, the wolf worries about maintaining his big, bad public image.) Rossi's stylized illustrations curve and flow, with particular attention paid to hair and clothing. There are four other spring 2015 books in this series. Review covers these Fairy Tale Adventures titles: Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Sleeping Beauty, and Snow White.

Reviewer: Tanya D. Auger

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Migy Blanco. Gertie, a previously unnoticed stepsister to Cinderella, doesn't behave with the requisite mean-girl behavior her family demands. Instruction from villains of "Snow White," "Hansel and Gretel," and "Little Red Riding Hood" is of no use--Gertie can't help being nice, which eventually gives her a leg up on Cinderella in this satisfying fractured fairy tale. Blanco's digital illustrations have a neat retro air.

Reviewer: Megan Lynn Isaac

(3) YA Nicolette must clean house for her demanding "Steps," when she would rather be inventing in her mother's old workshop. Miniature mechanical animals, a little Fey magic, and her own initiative are all this re-imagined Cinderella needs to attend the royal Exposition. Skillful combinations of old and new weave together, creating a meaningful tale exploring social justice, family and love.

Reviewer: Jeannie Coutant

(4) K-3 Fairy Tales Today series. Illustrated by Becka Moor. Cinderella, an inventor's daughter, builds housework robots so she can focus on her invention: techno-slippers that make "her feet move perfectly." Her smooth dance moves save the toy factory where her father works and leave her stepmother to do the cleaning. This folktale re-imagining offers a modern heroine who takes charge. While they don't extend the text much, the illustrations are amusing.

Reviewer: Morgan Stewart

(3) PS Illustrated by Sue Heap. This book casts Cinderella as a spunky toddler ("Cleaning all done. Now I have cookie"), complete with "Ugly Sisters" and "the Fairy Godmother" (babysitter). Headstrong Cinderella crashes the party wearing "my blue dress" but must leave at midnight without "my bestest boot." As in Very Little Red Riding Hood, Heapy's tongue-in-cheek text is well matched by Heap's animated watercolor illustrations.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn

(3) YA In this dystopic Cinderella story, a magical thimble is the only clue to Pin's true identity. Pin--beleaguered but not broken--is a Seamstress, locked in the Godmother's prison, where she is one of many abused workers. Pin breaks free--but, unfortunately, the Godmother also controls "ever after." Creative world-building and an intriguing voice make this a compelling read.

Reviewer: Breanna J. MCDaniel

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Meg Hunt. A pink-haired Cinderella dreams "of fixing fancy rockets," but she's stranded on her planetoid repairing "robot dishwashers and zoombrooms" while her stepfamily attends the Royal Space Parade...that is, until her fairy godrobot arrives. This clever rhyming retelling focuses on what Cinderella can do, not what she can wear. Mixed-media illustrations incorporate muted pinks, purples, and greens for a zippy sci-fi feel.

Reviewer: Shoshana Flax | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2015

(4) 4-6 Twicetold Tales series. Illustrated by Michelle Lamoreaux. In a straightforward Rapunzel retelling, Dandelion has been imprisoned in a tower by an evil witch, with only her violin to keep her company. A Cinderella story has Chantella, whose mother was a songstress before she died, competing in a singing competition. The thin modern-set re-imaginings feature manga-like two-tone illustrations that may appeal to reluctant readers. Notes on the source tales are appended. Review covers these Twicetold Tales titles: Dandelion and the Witch and The Glass Voice.

Reviewer: Lisa Catherine Findlay

(4) YA Orphan charmer Ellie seeks escape from the wrath of her "Strepmother" in this twisted spin on the Cinderella fairy tale. Fey slippers are paired with charms and Minotaurs as St. Crow constructs an elaborate and dark world. Convoluted at times and thick to get through, this book will appeal to more die-hard fantasy readers.

Reviewer: Andrea Curtis

(4) K-3 This incarnation of the Cinderella story features a kindhearted elephant and her "Furry Godmouse," with the wicked stepsisters depicted as warthogs. There is little other novelty in the text, which stays true to the original tale: "As she rushed from the palace, she dropped one of her beautiful shoes." However, the wacky, cartoon-style art is perfectly suited to depict lumbering fairy-tale elephants.

Reviewer: Lisa Catherine Findlay

(3) K-3 Folk Tale Classic series. These four books appear in uniform paper-over-board editions. Galdone was a refreshingly modest illustrator: his retellings are straightforward and his unassumingly loose-lined, color-separated pictures provide just enough embellishment. Plenty of white space gives the stories all the room they need. Review covers these Folk Tale Classic titles: Cinderella, Henny Penny, Jack and the Beanstalk, and Rumpelstiltskin.

Reviewer: Roger Sutton