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The Princess and the Pea
In this rendition a tiger is proven to be a princess.
32 pages, Hardcover
First published May 8, 1835
29 people are currently reading
2492 people want to read
About the author
Janet Stevens
82 books59 followersJanet Stevens began drawing as a child. Pictures decorated her walls, mirrors, furniture and school work -- including math assignments. While this didn't always sit well with her teachers, it was what she loved to do.
Janet’s father was in the Navy therefore she moved a great deal and attended many schools while growing up.
After graduating from high school in Hawaii in 1971 she landed a job creating Hawaiian designs for fabric. The printed fabric was then made into aloha shirts and muumuus. After she graduated from the University of Colorado in 1975 with a degree in Fine Arts Janet began compiling a portfolio of “characters”, bears in tutus, rhinos in sneakers, and walruses in Hawaiian shirts. In 1977, she attended “The Illustrator's Workshop” in New York City, where it was suggested that her characters might find a home in a children's book. Luckily for libraries (and children's book readers in general), publishers agreed and her first book was published in 1979.
Janet is the author and illustrator of many original stories and frequently collaborates with her sister, Susan Stevens Crummel. Her trademark humorous animals also accompany the texts by such authors as Eric Kimmel and Coleen Salley,
Janet has received numerous book awards, including a Caldecott Honor Award, Time Magazine’s Ten Best Children’s Books , the Wanda Gág Best Read-Aloud Book. Child Magazine’s Best Books of the Year.. Janet's books have been named ALA Notables and have repeatedly appeared on the New York Times Best Seller List.
She is particularly proud of her state book awards, voted on by children -- which include Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Indiana, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Missouri, New York, North Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Nebraska and Washington. Janet has received the prestigious Texas Bluebonnet Award twice.
Janet’s father was in the Navy therefore she moved a great deal and attended many schools while growing up.
After graduating from high school in Hawaii in 1971 she landed a job creating Hawaiian designs for fabric. The printed fabric was then made into aloha shirts and muumuus. After she graduated from the University of Colorado in 1975 with a degree in Fine Arts Janet began compiling a portfolio of “characters”, bears in tutus, rhinos in sneakers, and walruses in Hawaiian shirts. In 1977, she attended “The Illustrator's Workshop” in New York City, where it was suggested that her characters might find a home in a children's book. Luckily for libraries (and children's book readers in general), publishers agreed and her first book was published in 1979.
Janet is the author and illustrator of many original stories and frequently collaborates with her sister, Susan Stevens Crummel. Her trademark humorous animals also accompany the texts by such authors as Eric Kimmel and Coleen Salley,
Janet has received numerous book awards, including a Caldecott Honor Award, Time Magazine’s Ten Best Children’s Books , the Wanda Gág Best Read-Aloud Book. Child Magazine’s Best Books of the Year.. Janet's books have been named ALA Notables and have repeatedly appeared on the New York Times Best Seller List.
She is particularly proud of her state book awards, voted on by children -- which include Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Indiana, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Missouri, New York, North Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Nebraska and Washington. Janet has received the prestigious Texas Bluebonnet Award twice.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 259 reviews
March 2, 2018
I will admit that I wanted to reread some of my childhood books for a long time now and I finally got that chance when I went back and reread one of my most favorite children’s books from my childhood called “The Princess and the Pea” by Janet Stevens! This is seriously one childhood read that I highly recommend to anyone!
The story starts off with the prince wanting to marry a princess and his mother, the Queen, decided that they should search for a real princess (much like herself) and they ended up traveling around to world to find a princess. Unfortunately, all the princesses that they came across did not meet the Queen’s expectations and they ended up going back to their kingdom without a princess. One evening however, a terrible storm came across the kingdom and it was during this time that a wandering visitor came into the kingdom, telling the king and queen that she is a real princess, despite her untidy appearance. The Queen is of course skeptical about the visitor and she decided to let the visitor stay in the castle for the night. However, when the Queen set up the visitor’s bed, she put a small pea on the bed and then puts twenty mattresses on top of the pea. The Queen did all this to see if the visitor is a real princess as she claims that a real princess would have such delicate skin that she could feel a pea underneath all of those mattresses.
Will the (supposed) princess pass this test?
Read this book to find out!
Now, I have to tell you that part of the reason why this version of the classic fairy tale has a special place in my heart is because it was the very first version of the fairy tale I had ever read, therefore being the one to introduce me to the story of “The Princess and the Pea!” Janet Stevens had done a fantastic job at both writing and illustrating this classic fairy tale as the story and artwork were both beautiful and cute to read through! I loved the way that Janet Stevens wrote this tale as it was quite an adorable read and I really liked the scenes where the Queen and her son searched across the land to find a real princess for the Prince to marry as the Queen’s expectations were quite hilarious such as a real princess “can play soft music on three instruments at once” or “a real princess can skip across the lawn without bending the grass.” Janet Stevens’ artwork is truly dazzling to look at as I loved the fact that all the main characters are animal characters, which added to the creative nature of this story. I really loved the appearances of the royal family themselves as the king and the prince are lions while the queen is a tiger and I never once questioned about how can a tiger and a lion have a lion son together (because in stories like these, those questions do not matter as long as the story is good)!
Overall, “The Princess and the Pea” is a truly fantastic fairy tale that children both young and old will definitely enjoy! I would recommend this book to children ages four and up since there is nothing inappropriate in this book.
Review is also on: Rabbit Ears Book Blog
June 28, 2010
I enjoyed the fun illustrations with a variety of animals trying out as princess (elephant, bear, hippo, etc.) and the leading felines, the tiger queen and princess and the lion prince. I have never been that big a fan of the actual fairytale, though, and this one brought nothing new to story. For a more appealing definition of what makes a princess, I recommend The Princess and the Pea by Lauren Child.
January 8, 2012
A very silly story, but a wonderful children's book.
July 18, 2012
The Plot:
A prince wanted to test his beloved to see if she were a real princess. His mother demanded that the prince be sure. Each time the prince met someone he fell in love, she failed the test. One could not play soft music, another ate like a pig, and still another could not dance.
When a rainstorm brought in a young tiger who claimed to be a princess, the queen decided to lay out 20 mattresses with a pea beneath them all. Would the young tiger sense the pea and prove she was a real princess?
The story is all there. The problem is that there is nothing exciting in the language. There is no alliteration or assonance, and no word play. The writer goes through the motion of storytelling without ever bringing the story from her heart into the child's.
A prince wanted to test his beloved to see if she were a real princess. His mother demanded that the prince be sure. Each time the prince met someone he fell in love, she failed the test. One could not play soft music, another ate like a pig, and still another could not dance.
When a rainstorm brought in a young tiger who claimed to be a princess, the queen decided to lay out 20 mattresses with a pea beneath them all. Would the young tiger sense the pea and prove she was a real princess?
The story is all there. The problem is that there is nothing exciting in the language. There is no alliteration or assonance, and no word play. The writer goes through the motion of storytelling without ever bringing the story from her heart into the child's.
January 4, 2025
داستان سوم از همخوانی آثار کریستن اندرسن
یه سری وقت ها یه سری زرنگ بازی ها خوبن. بامزه میشن.
بیشتر از خود داستانش که خیلی کوچک بود، توضیحاتی که راجع به زندگی اندرسن و بعدش ارتباط اندرسن و گریمها گفت هم برام جالب بود.
و این نکته:
As in “The Little Mermaid,” a storm signals a life-threatening situation, but it typically produces the opportunity for a romantic alliance. Lightning and thunder, once again, produce the chiaroscuro effects that repeatedly flash through Andersen’s fairy tales.
دی ۱۴۰۳
یه سری وقت ها یه سری زرنگ بازی ها خوبن. بامزه میشن.
بیشتر از خود داستانش که خیلی کوچک بود، توضیحاتی که راجع به زندگی اندرسن و بعدش ارتباط اندرسن و گریمها گفت هم برام جالب بود.
و این نکته:
As in “The Little Mermaid,” a storm signals a life-threatening situation, but it typically produces the opportunity for a romantic alliance. Lightning and thunder, once again, produce the chiaroscuro effects that repeatedly flash through Andersen’s fairy tales.
دی ۱۴۰۳
January 30, 2022
Read for my Storytelling class.
This was a great version of this tale with animal illustrations.
This was a great version of this tale with animal illustrations.
September 8, 2011
This short story by Hans Christian Andersen is a delightful read for children in their early years. Based on the life of a prince who is desperate to find himself a princess, the prince goes in search to the four corners of the earth with no luck. He returns home to find a princess knocking on the town gate. Astonished, the queen herself lets her in and agrees to give her a place to sleep for the night. Upon revealing her identity the queen decides to test the validity of her claim. so, the queen places a single pea underneath 20 matresses and 20 feather beds for the princess to sleep on. In the morning the queen asked the princess how she slept the night. The princeses responds in ne negative. Thereupon the queen realised that she truly was a princess as only a princess with such delicate skin would be able to feel a pea beneath 20 matresses and 20 featherbeds. Comical and pleasant, the princess and the pea is a light hearted read to treat the children with.
February 21, 2016
A re-telling of this fairy tale, using a variety of animals ranging from tigers to pigs.
Okay illustrations.
Okay illustrations.
April 9, 2022
This book is about a prince who wanted to marry a real princess, not a fake one. The Queen suggests they search around the world. Unfortunately, all the princesses they met were fake princesses and they end up going home without a princess. One evening, a terrible storm came across the kingdom and there was a wandering visitor at the door, telling the King and Queen that she was the real princess despite her appearance. The Queen, of course, was skeptical about the visitor and she decided to let the visitor stay for the night. However, the Queen place a pea on the bed and ordered 20 mattresses to be put on top of the pea. The Queen did this to test if the visitor was a real princess as she claims that a princess has delicate skin that she could feel a pea underneath those mattresses.
Is the visitor the real princess or not? Read to find out!
My final rating: 4.5 stars
Is the visitor the real princess or not? Read to find out!
My final rating: 4.5 stars
February 12, 2023
I read this to my mom last night because she is so particular about her bed routine and setup. I've always found it a little amusing and this fairytale story would always come to mind. She enjoyed it and thought the illustrations were lovely. She had never heard of the story, so it was a fun experience for both of us.
Rating: G
Langauge: clean read
Recommend: yes
Rating: G
Langauge: clean read
Recommend: yes
January 29, 2020
Hahaha. I just remembered the character of Blinda of "The Rape of the Lock" who had a mark of a hair on her back which was under the seven matresses. According to this tale Blinda was the real princess. LoL
December 30, 2021
aww. leer este libro fue un gran trowback a mi infancia, cuando recuerdo estar en estados unidos y leer este libro. es muy significativo haber leído esto en mi infancia, y ahora en 2021.
Read
February 16, 2022A cute version of the famous tale but with animals and some charming illustrations.
May 22, 2022
Es un cuento breve y bonito, quiero comprarlo para que mi hija lo pueda leer 😍
July 9, 2024
Listened to this not being able to sleep so nostalgic I wish I was the princess omg 20 matrasses n duvets
September 10, 2024
there is no moral to the story ??????
December 8, 2015
This is a story about a princess that needs to prove that she is actually what she says she is. They put a pea under a multitude of mattresses, but they prince gets worried that she will not pass the test. So, he does something to ensure that she will feel that "pea" under her mattress that night. This story is a real classic and would be good to engage your little scholar if they are in need of and interesting book to read.
May 9, 2018
A quick and delightful read!
Ages: 3 - 7
**Like my reviews? I also have hundreds of detailed reports that I offer too. These reports give a complete break-down of everything in the book, so you'll know just how clean it is or isn't. I also have Clean Guides (downloadable PDFs) which enable you to clean up your book before reading it! Visit my website: The Book Radar.
Ages: 3 - 7
**Like my reviews? I also have hundreds of detailed reports that I offer too. These reports give a complete break-down of everything in the book, so you'll know just how clean it is or isn't. I also have Clean Guides (downloadable PDFs) which enable you to clean up your book before reading it! Visit my website: The Book Radar.
October 23, 2007
i think everyone has read this one
October 3, 2016
The illustrations are great. I love the use of wild animals as the characters.
November 28, 2020
1. n/a
2. 1-3
3. The prince is in search for a "real" princess to marry but can't seem to find the right person for himself so he travels back home for the night where he then finds a girl who is drenched from the rain who claims to be a real princess. The Queen, the prince's mother, doesn't believe her and sets up a test of sorts: placing a pea underneath several layers of bedding where the princess will sleep for the night. The next morning, the Queen asks how the princess slept to which she replied that she felt so uncomfortable that she couldn't sleep, therefore convincing the Queen that she is a real princess (despite her messy look from the rain) as only a princess could be so sensitive and delicate to feel something as small as a pea under all of that bedding.
4. This adaptation of the timeless fairy tale by Hans Christian Anderson tells the classic story in a great way to intrigue children with cute illustrations and simple sentences. It is a great starter book for introducing students to the genre of fairy tales. It's silly and slightly stereotypical but has a great moral that teaches students that making assumptions and jumping to conclusions is never a great idea/ never judge a book by its cover.
5. Teachers can create an alphabet activity in a similar style to "The Princess and the Pea" in which students come up with alternative titles that can tell a similar yet silly story. The "P" letter comes up with both nouns in the title. Students can create titles with matching noun letters such as "The Teacher and the Tooth". They can give as many examples as they want and will be strengthening their skills with recognizing words that start with the same letter.
Teachers can set up a classroom activity that students each participate in at their tables. The activity includes a marble to represent the pea and a stack of thin sponges to represent the mattresses. Students will guess how many sponges they can stack over the marble while still being able to feel it with their palm through the sponge. They will add one layer until they can't feel the marble any more and see how close their guess was to the actual number of sponges it took for them to not feel the marble anymore. This will introduce ideas of making hypotheses and testing results.
2. 1-3
3. The prince is in search for a "real" princess to marry but can't seem to find the right person for himself so he travels back home for the night where he then finds a girl who is drenched from the rain who claims to be a real princess. The Queen, the prince's mother, doesn't believe her and sets up a test of sorts: placing a pea underneath several layers of bedding where the princess will sleep for the night. The next morning, the Queen asks how the princess slept to which she replied that she felt so uncomfortable that she couldn't sleep, therefore convincing the Queen that she is a real princess (despite her messy look from the rain) as only a princess could be so sensitive and delicate to feel something as small as a pea under all of that bedding.
4. This adaptation of the timeless fairy tale by Hans Christian Anderson tells the classic story in a great way to intrigue children with cute illustrations and simple sentences. It is a great starter book for introducing students to the genre of fairy tales. It's silly and slightly stereotypical but has a great moral that teaches students that making assumptions and jumping to conclusions is never a great idea/ never judge a book by its cover.
5. Teachers can create an alphabet activity in a similar style to "The Princess and the Pea" in which students come up with alternative titles that can tell a similar yet silly story. The "P" letter comes up with both nouns in the title. Students can create titles with matching noun letters such as "The Teacher and the Tooth". They can give as many examples as they want and will be strengthening their skills with recognizing words that start with the same letter.
Teachers can set up a classroom activity that students each participate in at their tables. The activity includes a marble to represent the pea and a stack of thin sponges to represent the mattresses. Students will guess how many sponges they can stack over the marble while still being able to feel it with their palm through the sponge. They will add one layer until they can't feel the marble any more and see how close their guess was to the actual number of sponges it took for them to not feel the marble anymore. This will introduce ideas of making hypotheses and testing results.
October 18, 2017
“The Princess and the Pea” adapted and illustrated by Janet Stevens, published by Holiday House;
New York; copyright 1982
1. Awards: No acknowledgable awards have been received.
2. Appropriate grade level: This book is appropriate Pre-K through 2nd grade.
3. Summary: Once upon a time, a royal family of lions search for a princess for the prince of the kingdom. They interview many different animals from the kingdom by asking them to do ridiculous tasks in order to prove that they are a true princess. Finally, on a rainy night, a lion that claims to be a princess stumbles into the castle, and the queen tests her royalty by sticking a pea underneath twenty feather mattresses to see if she would feel it. The two get married after it is concluded that only a true princesses’ delicate skin could get bruised by a pea.
4. Review: I like this book takes a classic fairytale and adapts it into something whimsical and attractive. The characters in the book are all animals, which adds a certain comical twist to the old-fashioned tale. The book flips our ideals of princes and princesses upside down in a good way. I think that children would definitely enjoy this book.
5. 2-3 possible in-class uses:
- Map out the sequence of events that happened in the book.
- Brainstorm new ridiculous ways to test if someone is really a princess.
New York; copyright 1982
1. Awards: No acknowledgable awards have been received.
2. Appropriate grade level: This book is appropriate Pre-K through 2nd grade.
3. Summary: Once upon a time, a royal family of lions search for a princess for the prince of the kingdom. They interview many different animals from the kingdom by asking them to do ridiculous tasks in order to prove that they are a true princess. Finally, on a rainy night, a lion that claims to be a princess stumbles into the castle, and the queen tests her royalty by sticking a pea underneath twenty feather mattresses to see if she would feel it. The two get married after it is concluded that only a true princesses’ delicate skin could get bruised by a pea.
4. Review: I like this book takes a classic fairytale and adapts it into something whimsical and attractive. The characters in the book are all animals, which adds a certain comical twist to the old-fashioned tale. The book flips our ideals of princes and princesses upside down in a good way. I think that children would definitely enjoy this book.
5. 2-3 possible in-class uses:
- Map out the sequence of events that happened in the book.
- Brainstorm new ridiculous ways to test if someone is really a princess.
April 5, 2022
The Princess and the Pea is classic folklore. It tells a story of a prince who wants to marry a princess but is having difficulty finding a wife suitable for him. With every princess he meets, he finds something wrong with them and is not pleased. The prince wants a REAL princess and none of the ones he is meeting so far will do. After searching and searching, he comes home to find a princess knocking on the home. The queen herself lets her in and allows her to sleep there for the night. After revealing her identity the queen decides to put her to the test to see if she is being honest. The queen places one pea underneath 20 mattresses for the princess to sleep on. In the morning the queen asked the princess how she slept the night. The princess conveys she did not sleep well. The queen then knew she was being truthful because only a princess would be able to feel the pea.
Overall, this is classic folklore that would be interesting to students in grades 3-5. It is an interesting story that would allow students to practice their comprehension skills and infer how the story will end. I also think students will enjoy the illustrations. This book would be a great read-aloud and gives for good "pausing moments" for the teacher.
Overall, this is classic folklore that would be interesting to students in grades 3-5. It is an interesting story that would allow students to practice their comprehension skills and infer how the story will end. I also think students will enjoy the illustrations. This book would be a great read-aloud and gives for good "pausing moments" for the teacher.
October 1, 2019
The Princess and The Pea by Janet Stevens is a book adapted from The Princess and The Pea by Hans Christian Andersen. This book talks about a prince and a queen looking for the real princess to marry the prince, they go around the world looking for one but none of the candidates they find is the “real” princess they are looking for. One night the real princess appears soaked by the rain, and the queen doesn’t believe her because of her appearance and tests her by putting a pea under the bed she was staying in, the bed had many mattresses on top of the pea to cover it. The next morning the queen asked the princess if she slept well and she said no, that she had been very uncomfortable during the night, and she showed her the bruises she had. The queen realized that she was the real princess, the prince, and the princess then got married. This book teaches you not to judge based on appearances like the queen did to the princess, and after she tested her, she found out she was wrong.
April 11, 2021
Book Title: The Princess and The Pea
Author/Illustrator: Adapted and Illustrated by Janet Stevens
Reading Level: 2.0
Book Level: K-2
Book Summary: This is an adaptation of the fairytale by Hans Christian Andersen. Instead of people as characters, they are various animals, such as lions, tigers, mice, and reptiles. There is a young prince who wants to marry a real princess. The prince meets many princesses who play music too loudly, eat too loudly, and do not dance gracefully. The queen wants her son to marry a princess who is a real princess. When a princess comes to the castle during a thunderstorm, the queen devises a plan to see if the princess is a real princess.
Bookshelf Genre: Traditional Literature
Bookshelf Mentor Writing Traits:
Presentation: This story uses animals as characters in place of people. The illustrations are beautifully presented to match the sentences on each page. The sentences are also very detailed. As a writing assignment, I would have students create a picture, and then they will write detailed sentences to match their picture.
Author/Illustrator: Adapted and Illustrated by Janet Stevens
Reading Level: 2.0
Book Level: K-2
Book Summary: This is an adaptation of the fairytale by Hans Christian Andersen. Instead of people as characters, they are various animals, such as lions, tigers, mice, and reptiles. There is a young prince who wants to marry a real princess. The prince meets many princesses who play music too loudly, eat too loudly, and do not dance gracefully. The queen wants her son to marry a princess who is a real princess. When a princess comes to the castle during a thunderstorm, the queen devises a plan to see if the princess is a real princess.
Bookshelf Genre: Traditional Literature
Bookshelf Mentor Writing Traits:
Presentation: This story uses animals as characters in place of people. The illustrations are beautifully presented to match the sentences on each page. The sentences are also very detailed. As a writing assignment, I would have students create a picture, and then they will write detailed sentences to match their picture.
June 24, 2022
🚨SPOILER ALERT 🚨
This folk tale is one to remember. In the 19th century, writing something like this story for children was astonishing. That said, every little girl, no matter the era, wanted to be a princess. This book shows us the meaning of not jumping to conclusions just because you've experienced dishonesty. The story follows a prince that wants to marry a princess, but not every girl that says they are a princess truly is one. What left me curious about this book is that we never found out how the prince figures out the other girls he met before were not princesses? Were they also submitted to the "pea under 20 mattresses challenge," or were there other methods in determining if one is royalty on the spot? The fragment of the story that gave me mixed feelings was the confirmation of the girl being indeed a princess. It was only confirmed after she complained about how badly she slept last night. The girl complained so much that the queen said she was a princess because no one could be THAT sensible.
This folk tale is one to remember. In the 19th century, writing something like this story for children was astonishing. That said, every little girl, no matter the era, wanted to be a princess. This book shows us the meaning of not jumping to conclusions just because you've experienced dishonesty. The story follows a prince that wants to marry a princess, but not every girl that says they are a princess truly is one. What left me curious about this book is that we never found out how the prince figures out the other girls he met before were not princesses? Were they also submitted to the "pea under 20 mattresses challenge," or were there other methods in determining if one is royalty on the spot? The fragment of the story that gave me mixed feelings was the confirmation of the girl being indeed a princess. It was only confirmed after she complained about how badly she slept last night. The girl complained so much that the queen said she was a princess because no one could be THAT sensible.
November 27, 2020
This was just a re-telling of the actual fairytale and using animals instead. I loved that they used animals though because it changed up the story. This book was about a prince who searched the world for a princess but from his mother's point of view all of the princesses did not match her description that she was looking for for her son. That night a princess came and the mother doubted she was a princess but still she allowed her to stay but before bed she put a pea under the mattress and added 40 mattresses on top. The next morning the mother found out that her doubts were wrong and that the girl was a princess so then the family accepted her and she became the new princess. The illustrations in this book were beautiful and the colors were so soft. This book was on the simple side with how easy the words were. I wonder if there are any fairy tales with any bad endings? I would read this book again.
April 22, 2020
There was a prince who wanted to marry a princess a real princess not a fake one. But that seemed to be all the prince was finding. To find out if the princess was real or not. The queen places a pea under the 20 mattresses, and 20 feather beds. The queen asked if the princess slept well. the princess said no that she laid on something so hard that she barely slept a wink, and she was black and blue all over. The declared that she was a real princess because she was so delicate that she felt the pea under all the bedding. I do not know how I would use this in my classroom. I feel like it has no real meaning that it is just a fun book. That this book is just one for pleasure. this book is an easy read and would be good for younger students to read. I was not a real big fan of this book. I felt like there was no substances to the book, it just felt like words on the page and that was it.
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June 8, 2019A prince is searching far and wide for a TRUE princess to make his wife. He dated many differnt women, but none of them were true princessess. One woman stuck out to him. The queen wanted to test her princessness. She ordered her servants to layer twenty matressess down along with twenty pillows on top of those. The queen placed a single pea under the matressess and asked the woman to sleep on top of them all. The next morning, the queen asked her how she slept and was pleased to hear that she slept awful and had bruises all over her body. She said that only a TRUE princess had skin so deligate that even something as small as a pea would bruise her up. The prince and princess lived happily ever after.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 259 reviews