Book Review of A Story Unwritten
The Children’s Book Review
Written by Jennifer Sneed
Ages: 8-12 | 254 Pages
Publisher: Road Bend Books (2024) | ISBN-13: 9781585554974
What to Expect: Fairy tale retellings, family bonds, identity, Oklahoma history, magic, humor, and resilience.
Whimsical and heartfelt, A Story Unwritten casts new magic on Hans Christian Andersen’s The Wild Swans in a retelling set against the wide skies and dusty roads of 1925 Oklahoma. With clever prose and a headstrong heroine, Jennifer Sneed weaves an old tale with fresh stitching—complete with oil barons, shape-shifting brothers, and a villainess in a bewitching green dress.
Cora Frances Burns Noland is no ordinary oilman’s daughter—she’d rather gallop through the prairie with her horse than become a “fine young lady” at Boston Academy for Admirable Young Ladies. But her life is upended when her scheming new stepmother transforms Cora’s six brothers into hawks and threatens to unravel everything Cora loves. Trading her voice to a prairie fairy, Cora must craft enchanted shirts to break the curse—all before the rare Blue Moon rises. It’s a race against time, silence, and self-doubt.
Sneed’s storytelling strikes an excellent balance between wit and warmth. The characters leap off the page, especially Cora, whose voice is plucky, passionate, and full of grit. Her relationship with her younger brother, Robbie, provides both comic relief and emotional depth, and their sibling bond is a highlight of the book. The villain, Madame Marguerite (aka “the woman in green”), is deliciously sinister—more con artist than a classic witch—making her an especially memorable antagonist.
The Oklahoma prairie setting is vividly drawn and refreshingly original for a fairy tale retelling. Sneed incorporates regional flair—from flapper haircuts to Model T Fords—while keeping the magical elements engaging and inventive. The use of secret tunnels, enchanted textiles, and cryptic fairy bargains is reminiscent of classic tales but given a Dust Bowl-era twist that feels both grounded and otherworldly.
A Story Unwritten excels at what it sets out to do: offer a new lens on a classic through the eyes of a girl learning not just how to break a spell but how to write her own story—literally and figuratively. With themes of independence, sacrifice, and choosing your own path, this is a tale sure to enchant readers who love folklore, fierce heroines, and historical fantasy.
A Story Unwritten is a rich, magical adventure perfect for readers who dream of rewiring fairy tales—and their own destinies.
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About the Author
Jennifer Sneed is a former elementary school teacher and legal assistant. Always a reader, one day she decided to write down the stories in her head. It’s the best decision she ever made. Her articles and short stories have been published in Cricket and Ask magazines and she’s won a few awards for her writing. She is a leader of the SCBWI OK/AR region. Born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and a graduate of the University of Tulsa with a history degree, somewhere along the way she fell in love with the city and decided to stay. A Story Unwritten, a middle grade fairy tale retelling, is her debut novel.
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