Not Your Typical Princess Story: New Book Tells Real Stories About Women Who Helped Change the World

   By SheSpeaksTeam  May 12, 2016
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Many parents have grown tired of the traditional fairytale: painting the same picture of a princess who needs to be saved by a handsome prince and live happily ever, yada yada yada. The negative message this sends to young girls about gender stereotypes doesn’t quite fit in with today’s thoughts about men and women. But a new set of bedtime stories called Goodnight Stories for Rebel Girls offers a completely different take on fairytales.

Huffington Post reports about the book created by partners Elena Favilli and Francesca Cavallo that aims to send a stronger and more positive message than your typical fairytale. The book itself includes 100 stories about real women who have helped to shape history in some way. Some of the women included in the stories are the Bronte sisters, Elizabeth I, Serena Williams, Freda Kahlo, and U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Different women from all over the world helped to illustrate the stories.

The idea for the book came after Favilli wrote an article in the Guardian about the abuse she faced online from being a working woman in the male-dominated silicon valley. Favilli says, “I decided that my next project would be something designed to empower young women.” She adds, “Gender stereotypes permeate every aspect of our culture. We constantly urge ourselves to ‘lean in’ and books on female empowerment proliferate on our shelves... but they come far too late.” The hope is that if young girls receive these strong messages from an early age they will grow up with both the drive and confidence needed to succeed.

What do you think about the book, Goodnight Stories for Rebel Girls?

Does this sound like something you would like to add to your child’s library?

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