5 fairy tale updates.

Princesses, toads, wands, and fairies. Is there any greater cure-all for the winter blues?

Such a Prince By Dan Bar-el. $16. This fractured tale centers on a fumbling peasant who must jump through hoops in order to marry the lovely Princess Vera, but the real star is the narrator, a tabloid-reading fairy with more than a dose of cheek-pinching, grandmotherly wisdom. Perfect for launching your own fairy tale writing unit. Grades 1-3.

What the Dickens By Gregory Maguire. $15.99. The author of Wicked turns in his first children's book, the story of "a rogue tooth fairy" who encounters 10-year-old Dinah, a gradual convert to the idea that a fantasy world lurks within our own. Smart humor and fast-paced adventure will hook readers. Grades 4 and up.

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Waking Beauty By Leah Wilcox. $16.99. Everyone keeps telling Prince Charming that he has to kiss the girl to wake her up, but he has other ideas. A laugh-out-loud story from the author of the equally hilarious Falling for Rapunzel. Grades 1-3.

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The Race of the Century By Barry Downard. $15.99. Downard reimagines the saga of the tortoise and the hare as a teeth-gnashing, no-holds-barred fight to the finish--and the result is hilarious. For example? Your kids will cackle at Harry Hare "preparing" for the race by donning a Saturday Night Fever-era suit and going dancing. Grades K-3.

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A Curse Dark as Gold By Elizabeth C. Bunce. $17.99. Bunce's retelling of the Rumpelstiltskin story will keep middle schoolers turning pages long past the bell, with its feisty heroine, Charlotte Miller, and her quest to save her family's mill. Grades 6 and up.

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