The Real Princess by Hans Christian Andersen

Also known as The Princess and the Pea, this story tells of a young woman who claims to be a true princess. To test her, the queen places a pea beneath twenty mattresses and twenty feather beds. In the morning, the girl complains of a sleepless night due to something hard in the bed, proving her royal sensitivity. The plot is short and simple but full of fairy-tale logic. Andersen playfully critiques the standards of nobility and delicacy.