Despite being obviously written for a younger audience, this is a beautiful collection of 3 classic stories, retold with Muslim protagonists. A wonderful collection, perfect for all ages.

This is a collection of three interconnected stories, titled Rumaysa, Cinderayla, and Sleeping Sara. Each reworked a renowned fairytale with a Muslim protagonist, a feminist angle, and a unique dash of magic. Despite aimed at a far younger target audience, I admired and adored the contents. I also appreciated the representation provided. A quote from this anthology accurately describes just why books like this are so important:

"It was the only book Rumaysa owned where the characters had similar names to her and shared her skin colour."

More little readers deserve to find themselves within more books like this one.

I thank #netgalley, Radiya Hafiza and the publishers for an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.

Rumaysa: A Fairytale tale sets us up with the promise of being a take on the fairytales of our youth. The book retells and interweaves the original stories of Rapunzel, Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty. At first, this novella sticks rigidly to the tale of Rapunzel. There are no surprises. When she pops up in the retelling of Cinderella, things get exciting. Trailed by frenemy, Suleiman, the pair appear to have a joint cause. The climax peters out quite quickly though. Like a firework that doesn't quite take-off. The story ends far too quick with an unsatisfactory thud. I would have built on the girl power vibe and interwoven a few more fairytales where these princesses do more for each other.

This book would suit a young pre-teen girl with little need for stimulation. It gives an average retelling of some popular tales with subtle hints that the heroines are Muslim. There was nothing remarkable about it by the end.

‘Rumaysa couldn’t go. She wouldn’t! She had to leave. She had four days before Cordelia would return, and a whole load of extra straw. She had everything she needed to complete the scarf.’

Initially, I was drawn to Rumaysa (from debut middle grade author Radiya Hafiza) as Rapunzel is one of my daughter’s favourite fairy tales and I was intrigued to read this updated version. It was an excellent, funny read, cleverly interweaving three classic fairy tales into a new adventure.

‘Rumaysa’ tells the story of Rumaysa, a young Muslim girl, who lets her hijab down from a tall tower in order to escape from the witch who has imprisoned her. After making her escape, Rumaysa explores a new world and must help Cinderayla and Sleeping Sara as she searches for her parents.

What I loved about is this story is the original perspective that Radiya adds to these classic stories. Mixing these stories together into a brand new adventure is such a genius idea and it’s a story which is crucial for 2021 in a world where people have felt trapped and yearn to get out and explore. The relationship between Rumaysa, Ayla and Sleeping Sara also shows how female characters have changed since these fairy tales were written – strong, independent and keen to break free of stereotypes. I mean, would you agree to marry someone you’ve only met once?

I will be keen to share this with children at my school when it’s released as it shows that anyone is capable of being a hero and you must believe in yourself. The illustrations by Rhaida El Touny are also visually stunning. From the way the story ends, I’m crossing my fingers that there’s more stories to tell and interweave into Rumaysa’s world. Thank you to Sophie Anderson for signposting me to this wonderful story!

Radiya’s work was slow to start for me, but overall I enjoyed it. I was fully engaged by the halfway point and found the last third of the book to be quite funny and exciting. It is reminiscent of the spirit of ‘The Paperbag Princess’ by Robert Munsch; however, the differences lie in the age of the intended target audience (7-10 years), the elements of injected Persian and South Asian ethnic and religious cultures and in how Radiya Hafiza skilfully remixes three fairy tales into one narrative.

I thoroughly appreciated the age-appropriate positive messaging encouraging female independence, a focus on education and the rejection of child marriage. I also enjoyed the elements of Persian and South Asian culture. I felt like I could relate to those bits, but also felt they didn’t overpower the narrative. My favourite story was Cinderayla, because the villains are multi-faceted which provides for more than just black and white motivations for evilness. I feel like that complexity is really important to instil in children from a young age.

The only part that really threw me for a loop was how Rumaysa knew her own name, even though she was kidnapped as a baby and the Witch kept mispronouncing her name. I actually searched the whole book for justification. I'm not sure if the target audience will notice that detail or even care about it.

Overall, it's a good piece of work that reflects positive representation on so many levels. Thus, it would be something I would look to gift to friends' children.

The world needs more books like this: #ownvoices fairytale retellings with diverse representation. A lovely debut about three intertwining stories that step away from the traditional and has some rather delightful and empowering twists.
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this book! So funny, smart and magical. It’s the kind of book I would love to read aloud.
An utterly charming revisionist take on classic fairy tales, I really hope Rumaysa will return for more adventures.

Overall I really enjoyed this book. Despite its marketing, I think a lot of the older end of middle grade would - the 10-13yos - who often enjoy fresh takes on the fairytales they read when they were younger. My one gripe is that the author took a while to find her voice. The first story, Rumaysa's, seemed to be leaning much more heavily onto the 'funny fairytale' genre like Kay Umansky while not quite meeting that mark. Once the lens shifted, however, it felt much more like a fairytale adventure with witty moments sprinkled in, which is where the storytelling really flourished. I'm not sure this would irk a younger read as much and overall I definitely enjoyed and would recommend it. Lots of young people seem particularly interested in the genre right now as they grew up as the Frozen generation, and having a more diverse range of children be able to see themselves in these books is fantastic.

I really enjoyed reading this book having familiar fairytales but with a twist. I liked that the characters were multicultural and the setting of the book was reflecting this.

Rumaysa was the main character throughout the book and met different fairytales characters who she had to help. The stories the book reference were Rapunzel, Cinderella, and Sleeping Beauty however the endings of these stories was not the traditional one.

The book showed that the happy ending is what you make it and is not dependant on anyone else.

The only bit I really wanted to know at the end is if Rumaysa did find her parents, but this question does leave it open for another book.

This is a fabulous book that challenges stereotypes wonderfully. Traditional fairy tales have been rewritten making the heroines more ethnically diverse and, more importantly, the girls are not the helpless type from the original stories. I was slightly disappointed in the end but I’m hoping it is because it is leading to a sequel.

A fantastic feminist retelling that intertwines 3 fairytales seamlessly. Such brilliant representation and a really fun and empowering read.

Instead of watching *that*, I finished a book on #NetGalley. So many things on my tbr but I got sucked into one that isn't out until April! Rumasya by @radiyawrites is such fun, really looking forward to seeing finished illustrations (by Rhaida El Touny). Thanks @MacmillanKidsUK!...As well as being fun, it includes girls rescuing themselves, stupid princes, & brilliant friends...& hijabs & Eid parties! A great take on 3 classic fairytales @MacmillanKidsUK