Princess Frog. (Tadpoles: Fairytale Twists). Enid Richemont. Illustrated by Galia Bernstein. St. Catharines, ON: Crabtree, 2014. 32 pp., pbk., hc., pdf & html, $8.95 (pbk.), $20.76 (RLB.). ISBN 978-0-7787-0452-2 (pbk.), ISBN 978-0-7787-0443-0 (RLB.), ISBN 978-1-4271-7563-2 (pdf), ISBN 978-1-4271-7555-7 (html). Preschool-grade 1 / Ages 4-6. Review by Michelle Lawrence. ***½ /4

This is not your typical fairytale!

     Princess Frog is about a young princess who is tired of being a princess and all of the glory that follows. In this story, her fairy godmother turns her into a frog where she is able to jump and play all day.

Miranda liked being a frog. She liked floating on lily pads….
and leaping through the leaves.
And catching flies.

     Once a frog, Miranda finds a gardener with whom she falls in love. In traditional fairytale fashion, a kiss from the gardener returns Miranda to a princess. Of course, the gardener asks her to marry him, but she asks if that would mean she has to return to wearing dresses and crowns. Thankfully, he had no interest in her dressing or acting like a princess and let her wear whatever she liked. Although most of the story has abandoned traditional fairytale themes, the princess and the gardener do live happily ever after.

     The illustrations in this story are clean and clear and help depict the story for emerging readers. The structure of the story, the amount of words on each page, font size and spacing are other ways the authors/illustrators and publisher thought about how to create a successful reading experience for young readers.

     Princess Frog is recommended for those who would like a slightly different take on a traditional fairytale, while still being predictable, as well as for those who have a child/student who is learning to read independently on her/his own.

Highly Recommended.

Michelle Lawrence, a music therapist/educator, lives in Winnipeg, MB.

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