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The Princess And the Pea
A long time ago, there lived a prince who was looking for someone very special to marry… One of Hans Christian Andersen’s most beloved stories gets a breathtaking showcase, with lavish art and an elegant retelling by acclaimed writer, professor, and radio host John Cech. It’s the second exquisite entry in the Classic Fairy Tale Collection series.
Although the handsome prince meets ladies blessed with beauty, wealth, and brains, he knows in his heart that none is the true princess he longs for. Then, one stormy night, a wet, disheveled, and very weary young woman knocks at the castle door. Could she be his queen? One tiny pea buried underneath twenty soft mattresses might reveal the truth…
Bernhard Oberdieck’s stunning images, with their soft color and unusual perspectives, capture all the fantasy and romance of Andersen’s appealing tale.
Although the handsome prince meets ladies blessed with beauty, wealth, and brains, he knows in his heart that none is the true princess he longs for. Then, one stormy night, a wet, disheveled, and very weary young woman knocks at the castle door. Could she be his queen? One tiny pea buried underneath twenty soft mattresses might reveal the truth…
Bernhard Oberdieck’s stunning images, with their soft color and unusual perspectives, capture all the fantasy and romance of Andersen’s appealing tale.
24 pages, Hardcover
First published September 1, 2007
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
May 29, 2018
This classic fairy tale by Hans Christian Anderson is retold in easy to understand language with beautiful, imaginative watercolor illustrations and will be a treat for any child who likes fairy tales. My grandson liked it even though it was a "girly" story!
February 5, 2018
The Original story of the princess who comes to the castle, wet from wandering the woods because she got lost from her family due to the storm. The queen finds out she is a princess and decides to find out for sure. A true princess is sensitive, so she puts a pea under twenty mattresses and twenty feather comforters for her to sleep on. When she got up in the morning, she said she hardly slept because it felt like she was sleeping on a rock not mattresses. So the Prince tells his mom the queen that he knew she was the right one because of the gentleness of her eyes, and her personality, he didn't need a pea to tell him that.
February 15, 2017
This is a lovely edition of the story and BEAUTIFULLY illustrated. Bought it for my Husband, who is another Princess and the Pea (or Prince and the Pea) and had never read the story.
February 15, 2017
I can relate.
January 18, 2022
Many are familiar with the classic Hans Christian Andersen tale of a young woman who was walking in the forest with her family, became lost, and knocked on the door of the castle. While attempting to find a princess for their handsome son. Agreeing to keep the young woman overnight, the Queen called the maids and footmen and ordered them to build mattresses high, so high the young woman needed to climb a ladder to get to the top.
The queen placed a small pea between the bottom mattress. When the guest complained of the inability to sleep, it was determined that this was a princess worthy of their son's hand in marriage.
The illustrations are beautiful. The clarity and colors are crisp and clear.
The queen placed a small pea between the bottom mattress. When the guest complained of the inability to sleep, it was determined that this was a princess worthy of their son's hand in marriage.
The illustrations are beautiful. The clarity and colors are crisp and clear.
June 20, 2019
This is a classically retold and illustrated version of The Princess and the Pea and I liked it very much. There is one illustration in the book that shows the legendary castle the princess comes to on the rainy night when she is lost in the forest and it is very magical indeed. It is so beautiful that it made me think the publisher should have paid the illustrator more money so he could have put that much effort into the rest of the illustrations as well as I felt that comparatively they were given short shrift considering his clearly wonderful illustrating ability. To my mind however having that one picture is worth the price of the book.
May 10, 2018
A wonderful retelling of the timeless tale! It has a nice, even prose and beautifully classic illustrations to match.
Ages: 4 - 8
**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: 4 - 8
**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.
January 5, 2023
A good retelling, the artwork is very modest. The story is not very deep, but then again, it never was. The Princess never wears anything remotely like the dress on the cover which seemed odd. I was surprised after I finished the book to see the dress inexplicably pictured on the cover.
April 11, 2018
Read to my children..... trying to teach them the classics. Particularly the HCA classics before visiting Copenhagen next month.
August 27, 2018
So far, the best retold version of this story that we have read. I would add this one to our own library.
October 16, 2024
This was never a fairytale that I enjoyed a lot. The aesthetic of it is nice (like a renaissance Faire vibe) but I think this is boring
March 12, 2026
The Princess And the Pea by John Cech – If your little reader loves a pretty story book, this version of The Princess And The Pea is lovely! Happy Reading!
February 20, 2017
This is a wonderfully simple version of a classic story. I read this to my preschoolers and we acted it out. The children loved it. Its simple enough to read without adaptation to little ones. Great for the classroom or home!
October 25, 2016
My Review:
1. No awards were given for this book.
2. This book is suitable for PreK-2nd grade.
3. The book starts off with a prince trying to find the right princess to marry, however, no one seems to be a match for him. One story night, a young princess comes in asking for a place to say during a storm and the king and queen were nice enough to let her stay. The queen wanted to test the young woman to see if she was actually a princess by putting a pea underneath twenty matresses and seeing if she would feel it. The young woman passed the test and the queen went to tell the prince that she is the one he is to marry, but he already knew that he loved her regardless of the test.
4. I enjoy this version of this story because the storyline of the book holds an important message of loving someone for who they are as a person. I also enjoy the gold borders on the pages because I believe that it adds an element of elegance that fits well with the book's plot. With this, I feel as if it would drive more students to want to read the book just by judging it by the illustrations and presentation.
5. There are many in-class uses for this book. A teacher could ask the students what they would be like if they were a prince or princess, and the students can write about what they will do if they were in that position as well as illustrating a matching picture. Another in-class discussion that can be brought up from this book is the concept of love. A teacher could ask students what they think love is and explain that the prince loved the princess for who she was as a person. The teacher could ask their students if they love anyone, such as their parents/guardians, siblings, friends, etc. and if they feel comfortable they can share with the class and say why.
1. No awards were given for this book.
2. This book is suitable for PreK-2nd grade.
3. The book starts off with a prince trying to find the right princess to marry, however, no one seems to be a match for him. One story night, a young princess comes in asking for a place to say during a storm and the king and queen were nice enough to let her stay. The queen wanted to test the young woman to see if she was actually a princess by putting a pea underneath twenty matresses and seeing if she would feel it. The young woman passed the test and the queen went to tell the prince that she is the one he is to marry, but he already knew that he loved her regardless of the test.
4. I enjoy this version of this story because the storyline of the book holds an important message of loving someone for who they are as a person. I also enjoy the gold borders on the pages because I believe that it adds an element of elegance that fits well with the book's plot. With this, I feel as if it would drive more students to want to read the book just by judging it by the illustrations and presentation.
5. There are many in-class uses for this book. A teacher could ask the students what they would be like if they were a prince or princess, and the students can write about what they will do if they were in that position as well as illustrating a matching picture. Another in-class discussion that can be brought up from this book is the concept of love. A teacher could ask students what they think love is and explain that the prince loved the princess for who she was as a person. The teacher could ask their students if they love anyone, such as their parents/guardians, siblings, friends, etc. and if they feel comfortable they can share with the class and say why.
Read
October 18, 2015This is a classic fairytale about a kingdom searching for a princess for their son to marry. Their attempts of getting their son married to a Princess are unsuccessful until a stranger arrives at their castle and tells them she is a Princess from a Kingdom and has gotten lost. To determine if she is truly a princess, they devise a plan to place a pea under layers of mattresses. Personally this story plays on the stereotype that women of privilege are docile, helpless creatures who are constantly in a state of distress and need to be saved. Must this princess be so sensitive and soft that she becomes uncomfortable due to a pea placed under layers of mattresses?
The most reasonable person in this story is the prince who delivers the most powerful statement towards the end of the story. He politely thanks his Queen mother for the efforts she has gone through to see if the stranger was a princess but he says: "Mother I didn't need a pea to tell me she was a real princess", he goes on to say he saw the gentleness in her eyes and the softness of her voice, and felt the kindness in her heart. Based off his thorough and deep observations, he decides to marry her. So the Prince did not need a shallow experiment of a pea to win his heart. In his eyes she was a princess based on her character. The story concludes with the question of "what happened to the Pea". It's a wonderful story for children to read as it teaches a lesson of character values and understanding.
The most reasonable person in this story is the prince who delivers the most powerful statement towards the end of the story. He politely thanks his Queen mother for the efforts she has gone through to see if the stranger was a princess but he says: "Mother I didn't need a pea to tell me she was a real princess", he goes on to say he saw the gentleness in her eyes and the softness of her voice, and felt the kindness in her heart. Based off his thorough and deep observations, he decides to marry her. So the Prince did not need a shallow experiment of a pea to win his heart. In his eyes she was a princess based on her character. The story concludes with the question of "what happened to the Pea". It's a wonderful story for children to read as it teaches a lesson of character values and understanding.
April 28, 2013
The Princess and the Pea is the story of a young Prince whom is searching for a wife. One stormy night the King is greeted by a young Princess at the castle door. The King offers shelter and the Princess accepts. The Queen, unsure as to whether she is a real Princess, has a pea placed under a tower of mattresses in which the Princess slept upon. The Queen, knowing that a true Princess would feel the pea, was happy to find that the Princess had a terrible night's sleep as a result of the uncomfortable pea. The Prince and Princess marry and live happily ever after.
This is a fairy tale that most children know and enjoy. I used this within a lower KS2 literacy scheme of work which looked at the retelling of the story but also changing key aspects of it.
This would be a good book to read during free reading or at the end of the day for EYFS and KS1. As suggested this would also be a good book to use within literacy across KS1 and KS2.
This is a fairy tale that most children know and enjoy. I used this within a lower KS2 literacy scheme of work which looked at the retelling of the story but also changing key aspects of it.
This would be a good book to read during free reading or at the end of the day for EYFS and KS1. As suggested this would also be a good book to use within literacy across KS1 and KS2.
September 11, 2012
A retelling of a classic can only be one of the most difficult things to do, but John Cech does an amazing job doing so with one of Hans Christian Andersen's classic stories of a prince in search of the "perfect bride". When a young women that does not seem to look like much of a princess shows up at his door ends up proving them wrong. If you notice a pea underneath twenty mattresses, then she is infact a princess. I love the lesson this story teaches of first impressions and how they aren't always right, especially if you judge them by their looks.
September 11, 2012
John Cech does a wonderful job retelling one of Hans Christian Andersen's classic stories of a prince in search of the perfect bride. When a young woman shows up on his door step, by first glance no one would think she was a princess. However, if she can notice a pea underneath twenty mattresses then indeed she is. I love this story because of the lesson it teaches to its young readers. It reminds me to look beyond first impressions, not all can be told by a person's appearance.
April 19, 2012
Personally, I love reading fairy tales/folk tales. As a child I read this book and back then I enjoyed it. I read this book again a few months ago, and I thought to myself, "this is ridiculous".
I recommend this book for anyone who likes the classic fairy tales. This book can be used to think critically about the stereotypes that are present in this book.
I recommend this book for anyone who likes the classic fairy tales. This book can be used to think critically about the stereotypes that are present in this book.
October 27, 2015
The poor overpartied prince at the beginning was fantastic.
January 16, 2009
All I have to say is bad writting. Ick. Ages 5+
July 9, 2009
Detailed illustrations highlight this re-telling of the classic Andersen fairy tale. Easy to read. Older preschool audience may enjoy.
July 12, 2009
True to the story but lacking pizzazz.
April 26, 2012
Really love this version of the story--because the prince knew the girl was a princess by the kindness of her heart--before his mother even told him about the pea.
June 14, 2012
To read my review go to my blog at:
http://maryslibrary.typepad.com/my_we...
July 4, 2012
Notes:
best version of this tale at our library
not too cartoony
sticks to the original tale
best version of this tale at our library
not too cartoony
sticks to the original tale
January 16, 2016
A re-telling of the classic Hans Christian Andersen tale. Okay, nothing special.
Nice illustrations.
Nice illustrations.
Want to Read
August 17, 2016CURRICULUM: RR/Classics
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews