Power to the Princess has a fantastic premise! I'm always looking for new strong female characters, so I was really looking forward to reading about "These fifteen girls are smart, funny, and kind, and can do anything they set their minds to. Power to the princess!"

Unfortunately, the stories in this book did not really live up to the promised premise. Although they were all more modern, and most shunned traditional gender roles, with the exception of Sesi (The Snow Queen, who had a magically-induced fault) all the princess were pretty much the same character, and they all might as well have been named Mary Sue.

Oddly, considering the heroines were all so similar, the treatments for each tale were not handled in a consistent way. Some of the stories followed the originals fairly closely, but others had almost nothing but the princesses' names in common with the original. I would have preferred to see the original moral of each story be re-examined and restructured to reflect modern life.

I also struggled to understand exactly which age group this book was meant to reach. Much of the vocabulary seemed too advanced for a first chapter book, but the plots were all much too basic for even an average middle grader. On the other hand, I found some parts amusing, but I suspect those jokes would be lost on anyone under the age of 25 or so; likewise some of the messages to be learned were quite advanced.

Considered as a collection of short stories about girls, this is an ok way to spend a bit of time reading. I found the illustrations to be cute enough, and the stories weren't horrible. But if you're seeking a powerful re-telling of the classic fairy tales, I would pass on this one.

I wish I read this book when I was younger, it was just beautifully amazing and everything fairytales need to be. Short and sweet, like the originals, but even better because princesses to the power! All of them were seriously wonderful and inspiring, I want to be like them when I grow up (what do you mean I am already grown up??)

I think this book teaches something very special, and it is why you should all read it (for yourself, to your kids, younger siblings, grandparents, EVERYBODY).

Modern fairytales with a feminist twist... I’d like to say I was moved and inspired. The short stories were predictable and featured one dimensional characters. I had a difficult time pinpointing the age group I would “market” this to in my K-8 school.

Great concept, disappointing execution. The illustrations were neither cute nor reflective of powerful princesses. The storytelling was some middle ground between picture book level and young adult.

I felt that the collection of fairy tales was a bit hit and miss. There were a handful (about 3) that were really good and stood out and the rest were either fine or on the verge of being uninteresting. I went into it being very excited for the stories but i finished it feeling underwhelmed.

The text in this book was a little difficult to read, which took away from my enjoyment of it. Even without that negative though, this book fell flat for me. The idea behind it is admirable, but the stories were a bit clunky (particularly Cinderella's).

'If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales’

If you want to show them that thoughtfulness, strength, and social consciousness are more important that being pretty, read them these fairy tales.
These stories are GORGEOUS
I will now be ordering this book for all of my nieces and nephews.
Right now