MarytalePrincess bedtime stories
Princess bedtime stories: eleven tales where the princess is the one who decides something — Cinderella, Rapunzel, the twelve dancing princesses and more.
11 stories
A princess story is rarely about a princess being rescued. Cinderella goes to the ball because she asks a tree for help; Rapunzel's hair is the only road in or out; the twelve princesses wear their shoes through every night and tell nobody. The crown is the setting, not the plot.
These are the oldest stories on this site and the most retold, which means every child who hears one has already heard a different version from somebody else. That is not a problem to fix — compare them out loud. Ask which ending your child would have written.
Cinderella8-10 min read · 16 pagesCinderella, the Brothers Grimm tale to read aloud. No fairy godmother here — what helps her grows on her mother's grave.
Elara and the Little Song-Bird5-6 min read · 7 pagesWhen kind Princess Elara rescues a small hurt bird, she has no idea their meeting was ever meant to be.
Rapunzel6-8 min read · 16 pagesRapunzel, the Brothers Grimm tale to read aloud. A tower with no stairs and no door, and a plait of hair long enough to climb.
Rumpelstiltskin7-9 min read · 16 pagesRumpelstiltskin, the Brothers Grimm tale to read aloud. He spins straw into gold three nights running, and the third time he names his price.
Sir Arthur and the Mountain That Grew Cold6-8 min read · 9 pagesHigh in a green kingdom of misty peaks and whispering forests lives Sir Arthur, a knight as gentle as he is brave.
Sleeping Beauty7-9 min read · 16 pagesSleeping Beauty, or Briar Rose, the Brothers Grimm tale to read aloud. Every spindle in the kingdom is burned, and one is missed.
Snow White8-10 min read · 16 pagesSnow White and the seven dwarfs, the Brothers Grimm tale to read aloud. A mirror gives the same answer every day, until one day it does not.
The Frog King7-9 min read · 16 pagesThe frog king, the Brothers Grimm tale to read aloud. He fetches her gold ball out of the well, and she promised him rather a lot for it.
The Knight Who Lost His Sword7-9 min read · 13 pagesSir Cedric is a brave knight with a good and honest heart, and he sets out on a dangerous journey to save a village from a terrible dragon.
The Mirror That Never Lied6-8 min read · 14 pagesPrincess Isabella is loved across the kingdom for her kindness, and one morning she discovers a strange old mirror that shows each person who they truly are.
The Twelve Dancing Princesses7-9 min read · 16 pagesThe twelve dancing princesses, the Brothers Grimm tale to read aloud. Their shoes are worn through every morning, and the doors were locked.
Frequently asked
- Are princess stories only for girls?
- No, and the oldest versions do not read that way. The twelve dancing princesses is solved by a discharged soldier; Rumpelstiltskin turns on a name. What these stories share is a locked situation and somebody working out how to open it.
- What age?
- From about five. Several of them have a real threat in the middle — a wolf, a witch, a king who breaks his word — and a four-year-old will take that home to bed with them.
Want to know where these stories come from? The articles are here
By topic
- Bedtime stories about animals
- Short bedtime stories
- Long bedtime stories
- Classic fairy tales
- 5 minute bedtime stories
- Nursery rhymes
- Calming bedtime stories
- Moral stories
- Brothers Grimm fairy tales
- Aesop's fables
- Bear bedtime stories
- Hans Christian Andersen
- Bedtime stories about cats
- Christmas bedtime stories
- Panchatantra stories
- Jataka tales
- Akbar and Birbal stories
- Dinosaur bedtime stories