In a day when princesses have been boiled down to beautiful ball gowns comes a new kind of fairy tale.

Fall under the spell of a "Once upon a time . . ." where beauty is bigger than a reflection, where wisdom makes girls extraordinary, and where curses are broken through the strength and character of unlikely heroines.

A magnificent collection of short stories written in fairy tale prose, The Ravenous Gown captures the essence of a stronger, smarter princess the kind that actually lives happily ever after.

The Ravenous Gown and 14 More Tales About Real Beauty

The Ravenous Gown and 14 More Tales About Real Beauty is a collection of short stories masterfully told by novice author, but veteran storyteller, Steffani Raff. While these fairy-tale-like stories feature princesses, dragons, knights, castles, and many other things you'd expect in a fairy tale, Raff weaves in something of more substance and intrinsic value--all wrapped up in the package of a captivating story. She allows courage, bravery, wisdom, virtue, and finding inner beauty to be the defining characteristics of her main characters, who are mostly princesses. This is a refreshing change from the stereotypical mold of entitled, outwardly beautiful and inwardly somewhat shallow princesses that seem to be the norm.

The other wonderful thing about this collection of tales is that each one is short enough to make a convenient bedtime story, that each one stands on its own, and that included are some questions at the end to get the reader thinking. The collection is certainly appropriate for much younger ages and parents will find this a delightful addition to the bedtime story routine.  All while teaching some important life lessons in the guise of a captivating tale.

Profanity/Language:  None

Violence/Gore:  Mythical creature attacks a group of people and burns their carriage; character cuts off part of her foot to make it fit in a shoe, with passing mention of blood (non-detailed); mythical creature says he is going to eat someone; animal steps on character's arm and breaks it; character slips on rocks and receives a cut on leg.

Sex/Nudity:  Male character kisses the hand of a female character; 2 characters of opposite sex kiss (3 accounts); 2 characters of opposite sex hug.

Death of parents and other family members.

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