Selected for the 2025 Bologna Ragazzi Award's Amazing Bookshelf“Charming, clever, inspired. A whimsical spin on all things fairy tale.” Kirkus Reviews“Friends of fairy tales will enjoy reading this book aloud and exploring a familiar but somewhat modernized fairyland.” School Library JournalJoin Doctor Fairytale and her sidekick Nurse Pup as they visit poorly fairytale patients who need their help!My name is Doctor Fairytale, I'm always super busy. My list of patients is so long, it sometimes makes me dizzy!In a magical land full of familiar faces, Doctor Fairytale and her dog, Nurse Pup, travel far and wide to help the injured and poorly!Rapunzel's head is hurting from her mother climbing her long locks, Goldilocks has splinters in her bottom from the Bears' broken chairs, and Cinderella has blistered toes from walking home without a shoe!But no matter the bump or bruise – and no matter how mischievous the patient! – kind and capable Doctor Fairytale is ready with her doctor's bag to lend a helping hand.
Carmela's older sister, Franca, has stopped playing with her. Feeling left out and left behind by her big sister, Carmella walks until she can't walk anymore and then … she walks a little further. Somehow, she ends up at a tower she’s never noticed before and she knows right away that she's met a witch; a witch who has, in fact … been waiting for her.
MEET THE WITCH... The Witch welcomes Carmela into a magical world far beyond the limits of her imagination – a place filled with cauldrons, spells, potions, flying toads and frogs. Carmela visits libraries teeming with ancient books; rooms where worms and spiders weave intricate dresses; a spectacular dome of crystal prisms and, finally, at the very top of the tower – Carmela gets her very own broomstick.
She takes flight – her worries shrinking, her mind expanding and Carmela discovers a power within herself – to see beyond the hurt and pain of growing up, to find her own place in the world. "The result is singular, not merely a modern classic but one for the ages. Utterly spellbinding." – Kirkus Reviews"A wild rumpus of sorts and a love letter to the outcasts, 'the lonely, the lost, and the different ones' – and that is a beautiful, empowering thing." – Booklist (starred review) Praise for The Queen in the Cave: "supremely exciting [...] An unforgettable story that will leave readers with their eyes wide open." – Booklist (Starred review)