During this time when I’ve been working from home instead of in the Children’s Library, I’ve been thinking about one of the collections I look after; the Folk and Fairy Tales. On my days off, I thought I’d catch up on some Disney films, so I’ve watched ‘Aladdin’, ‘Beauty and the Beast’, ‘Tangled’ (based on Rapunzel), ‘Cinderella’, ‘Maleficent’ (based on Sleeping Beauty), ‘The Princess and the Frog’, ‘The Little Mermaid’ and many more! It’s incredible how many of these films are adapted from classic fairy tales, which have been told and retold for generations (they must be good stories!).

You can explore the different continents of the world, go back in time, meet amazing characters and go on adventures through these tales. Not only have Folk and Fairy tales inspired film makers but they’ve also been used by famous authors such as Julia Donaldson. Did you know that The Gruffalo was based on a Chinese folk tale of a fox that borrows the terror of a tiger?

I particularly like the Folk and Fairy tales with a twist. You may think you’ve heard the story before and you know what is going to happen next, but think again!

We have thought of our top 5 made up twisted fairytales:

• Goldilocks and the Three Pears
• The Princess and the Pizza
• Slurping Beauty
• The Three Little Figs
• Cinderelectrician

I’m sure you can imagine some much better ones than us! Or maybe have a look at the real twisted fairy tales, they’re brilliant!

For more information, visit the Summer Reading Challenge website.

Article posted 13 July 2020