Info
- Illustrated by Lian Cho
- Age: 6 – 9 years
- Publisher: Ten Speed Young Readers (June 2, 2026)
- Paperback: 40 pages
- ISBN-10: 0593837991
- ISBN-13: 978-0593837993
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 glow–and conjures the perfect outfit for a fancy party!
But the Prince talks a lot, and the magic wears off at midnight. Can Axolotl-Ella find a way to make her dream come true, or will she be stuck at the murky lake with her annoying stepsisters forever?
Bestselling author Kate Messner has created a funny, empowering retelling of the Cinderella story with a confident heroine who’s way too practical for glass slippers. Complemented with laugh-out-loud illustrations by award-winning illustrator Lian Cho, and filled with amusing axolotl facts, Axolotl-Ella is destined to become a storytime favorite.