Review: Sleeping Handsome and the Princess Engineer by Kay Woodward

SUMMARY FROM NETGALLEY.COM:

Jack is the most handsome prince in all the land, and he’s also fast asleep. But Princess Anya does not wait for curses to lift themselves – she wants her fairy tale ending RIGHT NOW. But will she get it?
From the Fairy Tales Today series. For ages 5-6. Published by Curious Fox in the UK.

MY TAKE:
I love fairy-tale re-tellings, and this one didn't disappoint.

In Sleeping Handsome and the Princess Engineer, it's a handsome boy that falls asleep after being poked by a pointy object and it's a young girl who comes to his rescue.

I enjoyed the story a lot. There weren't outright jokes, but I still found myself laughing and smiling. It was definitely a joy to read. All the familiar elements were there, but tweaked so that there's also something new about it. For example, instead of the three fairies, there's just one magician.

Princess Anya was a pretty cool character. She had gadgets and the know-how to get into the hidden castle. Plus, she took a Princess Elsa stance on marriage, which I like. If you've seen the movie, which you most likely have, then you'll know what I mean.

As for the illustrations, at first I wasn't really into the style although I really liked the coloring. However, as the story progressed, the style grew on me. It gave me a sort of quirky, vintage vibe that was unexpected given the story, but overall, the effect worked for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and Curious Fox for the e-ARC.

THE GOOD:

1. It's a fun, new take on Sleeping Beauty.
2. The prose was unexpectedly funny.
3. The characters were likable.

THE BAD:

1. I wish there had been more emphasis on the Engineer part of Princess Anya's personality. 

READ IT IF:

1. You have a young child who loves fairy tales.
2. You like fairy tale re-tellings.
3. You like cute stories that don't try too hard to be funny, but are still entertaining.

RATING:


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