Axolotl-Ella: A Sort-of Cinderella Story

by Kate Messner, Lian Cho (Illustrator)

Overview

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.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780593838006
Publisher:	Clarkson Potter/Ten Speed
Publication date:	06/02/2026
Sold by:	Random House
Format:	eBook
Pages:	40
Age Range:	5 - 8 Years

About the Author

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.