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The Princess and the Pea
From book cover:
"A lonely young prince wants to get married, but how can he find a real princess? Find out in this charming retelling of Hans Christian Anderson's classic story about a very tall bed and a very small pea."
"READ WITH USBORNE has been developed with the help of reading experts to support and motivate children in the early stages of reading. Clear, carefully leveled text and appealing illustrations help children progress and grow in confidence."
"A lonely young prince wants to get married, but how can he find a real princess? Find out in this charming retelling of Hans Christian Anderson's classic story about a very tall bed and a very small pea."
"READ WITH USBORNE has been developed with the help of reading experts to support and motivate children in the early stages of reading. Clear, carefully leveled text and appealing illustrations help children progress and grow in confidence."
- GenresChildrensPicture Books
24 pages, Paperback
Published March 8, 2018
19 people want to read
About the author
Lorena Álvarez
45 books15 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
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September 13, 2019Book Review #2: The Princess and the Pea
The retelling of The Princess and the Pea by Matthew Oldham (2018) puts an entertaining and slightly feminist spin on the classic fairy tale. This is one of my children's favorite books. They love the adventure and colorful illustrations. And as a parent, I love the updated context to give it a 21st century sensibility.
The story opens with a brave prince who loves to explore the world, but who is lonely. He recounts tales of his adventures to many princesses, but realizes they are only interested in his wealth. To him, a true princess seeks adventure, not assets, so he decides they are not true princesses. His parents invite the best inventors to create a "true princess" test to determine a proper suitor. After lots of experimenting, one inventor creates a tower of mattresses and hands the prince one tiny pea. She explains that a true princess notices everything around her and will surely be able to tell if her bed is lumpy. The prince then sets out to test this new invention and find a true princess once and for all.
I am drawn to this version of the classic tale for many reasons. In my opinion, the original story has a somewhat sexist theme. The prince believes that a woman who can feel a pea beneath 40 mattresses is a true princess because only a real princess is that sensitive. To me that conjures images of a dainty, fragile woman who can feel a pea from a mountain of fluff. In Oldham's adaptation, although a "true" princess still feels the pea, she also has her own agenda and has been searching kingdom after kingdom to find a "true" prince to go on adventures with. This small change guides young children into a more current (although not perfect) example of equal love. She is not simply at the whimsy of a prince who finds her beautiful, but has her own needs and desires before she settles down.
Another insightful addition is that the inventor who creates the test is a woman. Her illustration is that of a scientist with a lab coat and glasses. In our society, we tend to push males into more mathematical or scientific roles, and leave the artsy realm for females. I love that the inventor is a woman because it challenges this very concept. It is important to expose children to the idea that both genders are equally capable of thriving in nontraditional endeavors.
Although this retelling pushes past some stereotypes for women, it still lacks in other areas. Unfortunately, like many fairy tales, Oldham's version gives cues that heterosexual love is the only type that leads to marriage. Just as we look critically at gender roles in fairy tales, I believe it is important to also evaluate sexual orientation in children's literature. Longstaf calls the "distinct lack of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans (LGBT) characters... institutional discrimination", and I agree. Children are often confused about their bodies from a young age. If the only example of love and marriage is heterosexual, it can cause feelings of isolation and depression should they feel differently inside. I believe it is our duty to provide different examples that highlight the idea of all love being acceptable.
Overall, this book is well written and puts a new, crucial light on gender roles in this beloved fairy tale. Visually, it is eye-catching and the drawings pair perfectly with the text. The reading level is intended for those who are just beginning to read on their own, but it is definitely a book all ages can enjoy.
Works cited:
Longstaf, Abie. "A history of human rights abuses in fairytales". The Guardian. Web. 22 May 2015.
The retelling of The Princess and the Pea by Matthew Oldham (2018) puts an entertaining and slightly feminist spin on the classic fairy tale. This is one of my children's favorite books. They love the adventure and colorful illustrations. And as a parent, I love the updated context to give it a 21st century sensibility.
The story opens with a brave prince who loves to explore the world, but who is lonely. He recounts tales of his adventures to many princesses, but realizes they are only interested in his wealth. To him, a true princess seeks adventure, not assets, so he decides they are not true princesses. His parents invite the best inventors to create a "true princess" test to determine a proper suitor. After lots of experimenting, one inventor creates a tower of mattresses and hands the prince one tiny pea. She explains that a true princess notices everything around her and will surely be able to tell if her bed is lumpy. The prince then sets out to test this new invention and find a true princess once and for all.
I am drawn to this version of the classic tale for many reasons. In my opinion, the original story has a somewhat sexist theme. The prince believes that a woman who can feel a pea beneath 40 mattresses is a true princess because only a real princess is that sensitive. To me that conjures images of a dainty, fragile woman who can feel a pea from a mountain of fluff. In Oldham's adaptation, although a "true" princess still feels the pea, she also has her own agenda and has been searching kingdom after kingdom to find a "true" prince to go on adventures with. This small change guides young children into a more current (although not perfect) example of equal love. She is not simply at the whimsy of a prince who finds her beautiful, but has her own needs and desires before she settles down.
Another insightful addition is that the inventor who creates the test is a woman. Her illustration is that of a scientist with a lab coat and glasses. In our society, we tend to push males into more mathematical or scientific roles, and leave the artsy realm for females. I love that the inventor is a woman because it challenges this very concept. It is important to expose children to the idea that both genders are equally capable of thriving in nontraditional endeavors.
Although this retelling pushes past some stereotypes for women, it still lacks in other areas. Unfortunately, like many fairy tales, Oldham's version gives cues that heterosexual love is the only type that leads to marriage. Just as we look critically at gender roles in fairy tales, I believe it is important to also evaluate sexual orientation in children's literature. Longstaf calls the "distinct lack of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans (LGBT) characters... institutional discrimination", and I agree. Children are often confused about their bodies from a young age. If the only example of love and marriage is heterosexual, it can cause feelings of isolation and depression should they feel differently inside. I believe it is our duty to provide different examples that highlight the idea of all love being acceptable.
Overall, this book is well written and puts a new, crucial light on gender roles in this beloved fairy tale. Visually, it is eye-catching and the drawings pair perfectly with the text. The reading level is intended for those who are just beginning to read on their own, but it is definitely a book all ages can enjoy.
Works cited:
Longstaf, Abie. "A history of human rights abuses in fairytales". The Guardian. Web. 22 May 2015.
September 3, 2020
"The Princess and the Pea, retold by Matthew Oldham is a book published by Usborne Publishing, LTD in 2018. It is based on the story originally written by Hans Christian Anderson in 1835. I purchased this book through an online book party my friend was hosting. I read this book to my four year old daughter, because I call her Princess Pea as a nick name. She really thought it was fun to have a book with her nickname as the title.
This story is of course much like the original, but it is simplified for even the youngest of readers. The setting is a classic fairy tale castle where a prince is looking to settle down after having great adventures of slaying dragons and finding treasure. It tells of a prince looking for the perfect princess, but every princess he meets just wants his treasure. An inventor comes up with a test to find a real princess. He proposes that a pea be put under a tower of mattresses. The idea was that a real princess notices everything, and thus will notice a pea under her when sleeping. This made me think of the characterization of what a princess was thought to be. Back when the story was written princesses were probably thought to be elegant and sensitive. Maybe the idea was that if a real princess would be sensitive to sleeping on a pea then she would be sensitive to her subject’s thoughts and feelings. The story is a little farfetched, but really aren't all fairy tales?
I think this book would be perfect for anyone who likes fairy tales, but it is especially suited for young kids (ages 0-5). The book has all of the important aspects of the original story, but it is short and to the point. It would be great as a bed time story for sure. The illustrations are beautiful. They are very detailed, and really show exactly what is going on at every point in the story. This is good for a young reader book, because it puts a picture with the words they hear. This really helps when kids are learning to read.
Usborne has taken an old story, and made it new with great illustrations and giving developing readers a great story that is at their level. All in all I really recommend this book to anyone looking for the classic fairytale with a happily ever after ending. You will not be disappointed.
This story is of course much like the original, but it is simplified for even the youngest of readers. The setting is a classic fairy tale castle where a prince is looking to settle down after having great adventures of slaying dragons and finding treasure. It tells of a prince looking for the perfect princess, but every princess he meets just wants his treasure. An inventor comes up with a test to find a real princess. He proposes that a pea be put under a tower of mattresses. The idea was that a real princess notices everything, and thus will notice a pea under her when sleeping. This made me think of the characterization of what a princess was thought to be. Back when the story was written princesses were probably thought to be elegant and sensitive. Maybe the idea was that if a real princess would be sensitive to sleeping on a pea then she would be sensitive to her subject’s thoughts and feelings. The story is a little farfetched, but really aren't all fairy tales?
I think this book would be perfect for anyone who likes fairy tales, but it is especially suited for young kids (ages 0-5). The book has all of the important aspects of the original story, but it is short and to the point. It would be great as a bed time story for sure. The illustrations are beautiful. They are very detailed, and really show exactly what is going on at every point in the story. This is good for a young reader book, because it puts a picture with the words they hear. This really helps when kids are learning to read.
Usborne has taken an old story, and made it new with great illustrations and giving developing readers a great story that is at their level. All in all I really recommend this book to anyone looking for the classic fairytale with a happily ever after ending. You will not be disappointed.
December 18, 2022
Part of Usborne Advent calendar. This is an embelishment on the original story. I liked that it explained why the princess was out in the rain, shivering and dripping wet: she wanted to find a prince who would take a stranger in. I still don’t think the pea test is a good test for a princess, but in this version all the other princesses weren’t really interested in the prince while the “real princess” spent time with him sharing adventure stories…
May 9, 2022
It's funny and entertaining!
Willa, 5yo
Willa, 5yo
November 16, 2024
Senosios geros pasakos prieš miegą
Apie princesę neišsimiegojusią ant žirnio.
Apie princesę neišsimiegojusią ant žirnio.
September 23, 2025
I liked this? I don’t know. It felt like there’s a message in it, but maybe I didn’t understand it? I don’t know. I’m still thinking about it.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews