I enjoy collecting different versions of popular children’s stories. Granted, there are probably hundreds of these books out there, and I have collected only a handful. In today’s post, I’ll share some of the books I’ve collected that retell an old story, sometimes with a fun twist.
Note: I’m including “Check It Out” sections with titles linked to Amazon--these are books I don’t have but would love to check out (and possibly buy)!
1. Goldilocks and the Three Bears—I’m hoping to acquire more of these. So far, I have only two versions. The first one, a Little Golden Book, is the traditional story. The second is an African-American retelling.
The Three Bears (Mabel Watts)—This Little Golden Book tells the traditional version of the story. It belonged to my grandma, and I remember her reading it to me when I was little. I acquired the book after she died, so it is very special to me.
Leola and the Honeybears: An African-American Retelling of Goldilocks and the Three Bears (Melodye Benson Rosales)—I like this version because it addresses the fact that Goldilocks (or Leola, in this case) needs to learn some manners! Leola does learn her lesson, and she also learns to listen to her grandmother.
Check It Out
Dusty Locks and the Three Bears (Susan Lowell)—A Western retelling
The Three Snow Bears (Jan Brett)—This one is set in the Arctic and is inspired by the Inuit culture.
Goldilocks and the Three Bears (Jim Aylesworth)—I really like the illustrations in this one.
Goldie and the Three Bears (Diane Stanley)—This is a modern retelling about a little girl looking for a friend to love.
Goldilocks and the Three Bears (Jan Brett)—I would like to buy this version just because Jan Brett retold and illustrated it!
2. The Three Little Pigs—This is my largest collection of retellings of the same story.
The Three Little Pigs (Eileen Grace, illus.)—This is the plain, traditional story. In this version, the first 2 pigs get eaten by the wolf, who later gets eaten by the third pig.
Three Little Pigs (retold by Heather Amery)—This is Usborne’s retelling of the traditional story. The little yellow ducky, as in many Usborne books, is hiding on every page, making this version especially fun for little ones. In this story, all 3 pigs survive, but the wolf still gets made into stew.
Walt Disney’s Story of the Three Little Pigs—This retelling is based on the Disney movie of the traditional story. It also includes the pigs singing, “Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf.” No one gets eaten in this version.
Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig (Eugene Trivizas)—This is a long-time favorite of ours. My daughter included it in her top 10 favorite picture books. I bought this book years ago when I was teaching 2nd grade, and my students loved it, too! You can tell the twist by the title. This one ends more happily than most.
The True Story of the Three Little Pigs, by A. Wolf (Jon Scieszka)—In this twist, the story is told from the wolf’s point of view. The first 2 pigs are eaten, and the wolf ends up in jail.
The Three Javelinas—Javelinas, also called peccaries, are related to the pig family (same suborder) and are commonly found in southwestern USA, Central and South America. This retelling takes place in the Sonoran Desert. Instead of a wolf, we have a coyote. The 3 houses are made of tumbleweeds, saguaro ribs, and adobe bricks. No one gets eaten in this tale. The author did a fabulous job mixing the traditional tale with some of southwestern culture and fables.
The Three Little Pigs, A Faith Tale: Building Your House Upon the Rock (retold by Beverly Capps Burgess)—This is a Christian retelling. It’s very evangelistic and teaches children about faith. The wolf is symbolic of the devil, out to steal, kill and destroy. Each page has a scripture verse. No one gets eaten, and by the end, they’re all happily serving the Lord.
Check It Out
The 3 Little Dassies (Jan Brett)—This is an African retelling by my favorite author!
The Three Pigs (David Wiesner)—This version won the Caldecott Medal.
Three Little Cajun Pigs (Mike Artell)—In this retelling, there’s a gator instead of a wolf!
Alaska’s Three Pigs (Arlene Laverde)—Alaskan style!
3. Cinderella—I particularly enjoy this tale told in different cultural settings.
Cinderella or The Little Glass Slipper (Charles Perrault, translated and illustrated by Marcia Brown)—This is a translation of the original French version of Cinderella. Brown won the Caldecott Medal for this book.
Cindy Ellen: A Wild Western Cinderella (Susan Lowell)—This western retelling is quite humorous. You have to love lines like this: “Cindy’s stepsisters puffed up like two turkey gobblers” and “Magic is plumb worthless without gumption. What you need first, gal, is some gravel in your gizzard.”
The Egyptian Cinderella (Shirley Climo)—In this version, our Cinderella is called Rhodopis, a Greek slave girl. According to the author’s note, this version is one of the world’s oldest Cinderella stories, based on both fact and fable!
Adelita: A Mexican Cinderella Story (Tomie dePaola)—In this lovely Mexican version of Cinderella, there is no fairy godmother or glass slippers. With the help of an old, beloved friend, Adelita attends a fiesta in her mother’s beautiful clothes, and she wins the heart of the rancher’s son.
Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters (John Steptoe)—This version, set in Zimbabwe, has two beautiful sisters, one kind and one bad-tempered. This book won a Caldecott Honor and the Coretta Scott King Award.
Check It Out
Cinderella (K.Y. Craft)—This one apparently has beautifully detailed illustrations and is based on older retellings of the fairy tale.
Yeh-Shen: A Cinderella Story from China (Ai-Ling Louie)—This version is reportedly based on the oldest known version of Cinderella.
The Korean Cinderella (Shirley Climo)
Smokey Mountain Rose: An Appalachian Cinderella (Alan Schroeder)
The Golden Sandal: A Middle Eastern Cinderella Story (Rebecca Hickox)
Cendrillon: A Caribbean Cinderella (Robert D. San Souci)
The Persian Cinderella (Shirley Climo)
There are SO many more versions of this tale (probably hundreds or thousands), I can’t possibly list even all the ones that look really good. I found several different versions of Korean and Mexican Cinderellas, not to mention just about every other culture there is—Native American, African, Asian, Alaskan, Irish, old-fashioned, modern…you name it.
4. Little Red Riding Hood—I have at least 5 versions of this story. Two are traditional, and I don’t have them with me in England. The other three are retellings. 
Little Red Riding Hood: A Newfangled Prairie Tale (Lisa Campbell Ernst)—In this version. Little Red Riding Hood rides a bicycle, and her grandma is a farmer. The wolf is out to get Grandma’s secret muffin recipe. The twists in this story are really funny.
Lon Po Po: A Red-Riding Hood Story From China (Ed Young)—In this version, three sisters outwit the wolf who has come to their house pretending to be their Po Po (grandmother). This book won a Caldecott Medal.
Pretty Salma: A Little Red Riding Hood Story from Africa (Niki Daly)—I just found this book at a library sale. I was so excited! This retelling is set in Ghana.
Check It Out
Little Red Riding Hood (Jerry Pinkney)—Tradition tale with lovely illustrations.
Little Red Riding Hood (Gennady Spirin)—The illustrations in this book are inspired by 17th Century Dutch art.
Little Red Riding Hood (Andrea Wisnewski)—This retelling is set in early 19th-century rural New England.
5. The Little Red Hen—I have two versions of this classic story, one old and one new.
Little Red Hen (Beth Wilson, illustrator)—I’ve had this Whitman Tell-a-Tale book since I was a child, and it’s actually falling apart! This version is the traditional story.
The Little Red Hen (Makes a Pizza) (Philemon Sturges)—As you can see from the title, the twist is that the hen makes a pizza. In the end, she kindly offers to share it with the animals who had refused to help. As a result, the animals change their lazy attitudes and cheerfully agree to do the dishes.
Check It Out
The Little Red Hen (Jerry Pinkney)—Another classic tales with Pinkney’s wonderful illustrations.
The Little Red Hen and the Passover Matzah (Leslie Kimmelman)—This Yiddish retelling also has the animals repenting and doing the dishes in the end.
The Little Red Hen: An Old Fable (Heather Forest)—This one looks interesting, as the animals are different.
MORE?
I do have different versions of The Gingerbread Man and I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly (and possibly some others). Maybe I’ll save those for a future post.
What are your favorite tales retold?
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Kid Lit Blog Hop" at Mother Daughter Book Reviews.
