Someday, she believes, she will marry a prince. When the town mayor announces he is throwing a grand ball, Fanny is convinced her time has come. She puts on her best calico dress and goes out to the garden so that she'll be ready when her fairy godmother arrives. As the seconds tick by, Fanny waits and waits. Finally, she hears a voice. It isn't her fairy godmother-but it is someone who will change her life forever.

    In an adventure equal to any a storyteller might relate, a crippled serving girl faces the intrigues of the harem, the dangers of the streets, and the anger of the Sultan himself to find the needed ending to an incomplete story.

    Margaret McNamara (How Many Seeds in a Pumpkin?) and Mark Fearing (The Book that Eats People) have created a humorous and visually stunning story that kids will adore—and that will introduce them to the planets and the solar system. The endpapers even include a labeled diagram of all the planets.

    Except for the sarcastic frog narrator, the garlic-scented fairy, and--oh yeah--the princess in this book not only sleeps and snores . . . she's also been turned into a hot-pink and purple dragon!Certain to charm and delight fairy tale fans across the land, this raucous retelling is anything but a snoozer.

    Gennady Spirin, in his adaptation of the Brother Grimms' earliest version of "Little Red Cap," tells the story of a young girl in a red hood who takes a cake to her sick grandmother. Along the way, she meets a wicked wolf who tricks her into thinking he's her granny. Sumptuous illustrations, inspired by the golden age of Dutch painting in the 17th century and Renaissance, capture the charm and spirit of a tale that has remained steadfast in oral and written versions throughout the centuries. An Author's note about the tale's history is included.

    Best-selling authors Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson have turned back the clock to reveal the wonderful story that precedes J. M. Barrie’s beloved Peter Pan. Peter and the Starcatchers is brimming with richly developed characters, from the scary but somehow familiar Black Stache and ferocious Mister Grin to the sweet but sophisticated Molly and fearless Peter. Page after page of riveting adventures take readers of all ages on a voyage from a filthy, crime-ridden port in old England across the turbulent sea. Aboard the Neverland is a trunk that hold the “greatest treasure on earth” —but is it gold, jewels, or something far more mysterious and dangerous? Roiling waves and raging storms; skullduggery and pirate treachery provide the backdrop for battles at sea. Bone-crushing breakers eventually land our characters on Mollusk Island—where the action really heats up. This impossible-to-put-down tale leads readers on an unforgettable journey—fraught with danger yet filled with mystical and magical moments.

    Until one day a handsome prince, passing by on his horse, is transfixed by the magical sound of Rapunzel singing to her animals friends and knows he must reach her... Can true love transform Rapunzel's life forever?

    When the Princess learns what her father has done, she is horrified. But she is as clever as she is beautiful. Quickly, the Princess devises a plan to escape and, relying on her own spunk and good sense, ultimately marries the man she chooses for herself.

    Priscilla the princess has accidentally switched places with Pigmella, the farmer's new piglet. The kindly farmer and his wife believe it's the work of a good witch, while the ill-tempered king and queen blame the bad witch-after all, this happens in fairy tales all the time! While Priscilla grows up on the farm, poor yet very happy, things don't turn out quite so well for Pigmella. Kissing a frog has done wonders before, but will it work for a pig?Sure to hog all the attention, this story's frequent nods to well-known fairy tales such as Sleeping Beauty, The Frog Princess, and Thumbelina-plus hilarious illustrations-will delight readers of any age.

    But do you know Maria?      With gorgeous, Peruvian-inspired illustrations and English and Spanish retellings, Angela Dominguez gives a fresh new twist to the classic rhyme. Maria and her mischievous little llama will steal your heart.

    One day, the rabbi asks his children a powerful question: "How much do you love me?" His older daughters profess their love in gold and diamonds, but his youngest daughter, Mireleh, declares she loves her father the way meat loves salt. For this remark, she is banished from her father's home. In this flavorful Jewish Cinderella tale, Mireleh's courageous journey is peppered with a perfect blend of magic and romance, leading to a reconciliation with her beloved father. Lavishly illustrated in Louise August's bold linocuts, The Way Meat Loves Salt will make a wonderful gift for the Jewish holidays.

    The Zemachs have interpreted the folk tale which the play dramatized, recognizable as a version of the widespread Rumpelstiltskin story. Its main themes are familiar, but the character and details of this picture book are entirely Cornish, as robust and distinctive as the higgledy-piggledy, cliff-hanging villages that dot England's southwestern coast from Penzance to Land's End.The language spoken by the Christmas players was a rich mixture of local English dialect and Old Cornish (similar to Welsh and Gaelic), and something of this flavor is preserved in Harve Zemach's retelling. Margot Zemach's pen-and-wash illustrations combine a refined sense of comedy with telling observation of character, felicitous drawing with decorative richness, to a degree that surpasses her own past accomplishments.Duffy and the Devil is a 1973 New York Times Book Review Notable Children's Book of the Year and Outstanding Book of the Year, a 1974 National Book Award Finalist for Children's Books, and the winner of the 1974 Caldecott Medal.

    After her royal father decides to retire and become a wood carver, Princess Paulina has no idea what to do with herself. She can't survey the kingdom from her leaky cottage roof, and no one waves back when she proceeds through the town on her father's cart.When she hears that a neighboring queen is seeking a bride for her son, Prince Drupert, Paulina sees her chance to get back to princessing. But it will take all her wit and determination to pass the Queen's tests. . . . and in the end, maybe there are better fates than a royal marriage.Full of tongue-in-cheek references to stories like Rapunzel, Snow White, and the Princess and the Pea, this fractured fairy tale is an hilarious twist on traditional tales in which a young woman's practicality, good humor, and intelligence let her shape her own happy ending-- with extra cheese and all the toppings her heart desires.

    Candace finds herself cast out of her home by jealous older sisters, but with the help of a witch woman and a magical moss gown, she captures the heart of the young plantation owner.

    Each year on Legacy Day, students sign the Storybook of Legends to seal their scripted fates. For generations, the Village of Book End has whispered that refusing to sign means The End-both for a story and for a life.As the daughter of the Evil Queen, Raven Queen's destiny is to follow in her mother's wicked footsteps, but evil is so not Raven's style. She's starting to wonder, what if she rewrote her own story? The royal Apple White, daughter of the Fairest of Them All, has a happy ever after planned for herself, but it depends upon Raven feeding her a poison apple in their future.What if Raven doesn't sign the Storybook of Legends? It could mean a happily never after for them both.