Axolotl-Ella by Kate Messner - ISBN: 9780593837993
Hardcover
Amphibious Cinderella dreams big, but magic and a chatty prince make it tricky.
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Axolotl-Ella

A Sort-of Cinderella Story

$30.15

  • Hardcover

    40 pages

  • Release Date

    25 August 2026

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Summary

Cinderella has never been so adorable–or amphibious!–as in this fractured fairytale picture book by New York Times bestselling author Kate Messner, with art by award-winning illustrator Lian Cho.

Axolotl-Ella is a quick and clever salamander with a daring, deliciously ambitious dream. All she needs to do to make her dream a reality is to meet the Prince at the King’s Festival. So with a little bit of magic from the lake of the night, Ella makes her skin gleam and her gills gl…

Book Details

ISBN-13:9780593837993
ISBN-10:0593837991
Author:Kate Messner, Lian Cho
Publisher:Random House USA Inc
Imprint:Random House Inc
Format:Hardcover
Number of Pages:40
Release Date:25 August 2026
Weight:567g
Dimensions:279mm x 216mm
What They're Saying

Critics Review

“Messner turns the well-known fairy tale on its feathery, gilled head in this appealing, science-informed remix… . This inventive ‘Cinderella’ retelling proves that, in the right hands, an old tale can still offer surprising delights.”—The Horn Book, starred review

“A cheeky inverted fairy tale with a scientific bent and a feminist heart.”Kirkus Reviews

“With an irreverent, chart-your-own-course spirit, it’s a slippery, smart, and subversive story that wriggles free of most fairy tale expectations.”Publishers Weekly

About The Author

Kate Messner

Kate Messner is passionately curious and has written more than seventy books for kids who wonder, too. Her titles include award-winning picture books like Over and Under the Snow and The Scariest Kitten in the World as well as bestselling novels for older readers like The Trouble with Heroes and Breakout. Kate also writes the popular History Smashers graphic nonfiction series and leads the multi-author team behind The Kids in Mrs. Z’s Class chapter books. She splits her time between Lake Champlain and South Florida.

Lian Cho is the author-illustrator of picture books including Oh, Olive! and the Society of Illustrators Silver Medal-winning Pig Town Party and Don’t Eat Eustace. She is also the illustrator of bestselling picture books such as Oh No, the Aunts are Here by Adam Rex and 100 Mighty Dragons All Named Broccoli by David LaRochelle. Over the years, Lian has lived in Taiwan, New Zealand, and New York. She now spends her time between Baltimore and Taiwan. In her spare time, Lian likes to draw funny comics about her life.

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