Princess Stories

"Every little girl is a princess, and there would be no need to say anything about it, except that she is always in danger of forgetting her rank, and behaving as if she had grown out of the mud. I have seen little princesses behave like children of thieves and lying beggars, and that is why they need to be told they are princesses."
George MacDonaldThe Princess and the Goblin

The ideal of the "princess" has been romanticized throughout literary history, sometimes to the point of absurdity. In popular culture, this has manifested itself primarily in two (harmful) trends. One portrays a princess as a stunningly beautiful woman whose life only begins when all her problems are solved by the appearance of Prince Charming and the other tries to overturn that trend by portraying an equally beautiful woman who gets everything she wants when she rebels against her parents or societal norms.

These are obviously not the kind of stories you want your daughters to be reading, but that's not to say you should throw out princess stories altogether. Princesses exemplify femininity in a way that is appealing to (and good for) girls of all ages, and there are books out there that accurately portray this.

Take the story of Cinderella, for example. She did all of the cooking, cleaning, washing, and sewing for an entire household—without a word of complaint. Sara Crewe gave to the poor even when she was the poorest she'd ever been. Princess Irene was brave in the face of great danger. Addie faced her worst fears to save her sister.

And you can't neglect stories about real princesses (and queens) alongside the fictional ones. Women like Pocahontas, Ka'iulani, or Elizabeth may not have stories as magical as those of Cinderella, Rapunzel, and Sleeping Beauty, but they also exhibit the kindness and fearlessness of a true princess.

Because, ultimately, a true princess should be defined by behavior, not by birth. Stories about brave and selfless women who care about others and are willing to do the right thing, no matter the cost, are the kinds of princesses worth reading about—and hopefully the kind that girls will grow up to be.

Review by Lauren Shearer
Lauren Shearer writes words for fun and profit. She also makes films, but everyone knows you can't make a profit doing that. Her other hobby is consistently volunteering way too much of her time.
You can read more of her reviews here.

 

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Baba Yaga and Vasilisa the Brave
by written by Marianna Mayer, Illustrated by K. Y. Craft
First Edition from HarperCollins
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$17.99
Ballet Shoes
by Noel Streatfeild
from Yearling
Realistic Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
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Ballet Shoes
by Noel Streatfeild
2018 Hardcover from Random House Books for Young Readers
Realistic Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
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Beauty and the Beast
by M. Charlotte Craft, K. Y. Craft
from HarperCollins
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$19.99
Captive Princess
Daughters of the Faith
by Wendy G. Lawton
New Edition from Moody Press
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$7.99
Cinderella
by Marcia Brown (translator)
from Aladdin Paperbacks
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for Kindergarten-3rd grade
1955 Caldecott Medal winner
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Cinderella
Everyman's Library Children's Classics
by C. S. Evans, illustrated by Arthur Rackham
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$15.95
Cinderella
by K. Y. Craft
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Cinderella
by Charles Perrault, illustrated by Michael Hague
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$9.50 (1 in stock)
Cinderella
Everyman's Library Children's Classics
by C. S. Evans, illustrated by Arthur Rackham
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$9.00 (1 in stock)
Cleopatra
by Diane Stanley & Peter Vennema
from William Morrow & Company
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
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Egyptian Cinderella
by Shirley Climo & Ruth Heller
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Ella Enchanted
by Gail Carson Levine
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$9.99
Ella Enchanted - Special Read-Aloud Edition
by Gail Carson Levine
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$9.00 (1 in stock)
Fairy Tale Set #1
by K. Y. Craft, Illustrator
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Fairy's Return and Other Princess Tales
by Gail Carson Levine
from HarperCollins
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$7.99
Fantasy Stories of George Macdonald - 4 Book Set
by George MacDonald, illustrated by Craig Yoe
from Eerdmans
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Good Queen Bess
by Diane Stanley & Peter Vennema
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Biography for 3rd-6th grade
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Grain of Rice
by Helena Clare Pittman
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Grimms' Fairy Tales
by Jacob & Wilhelm Grimm, illustrated by Don Daily
from Applesauce Press
for 1st-5th grade
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$18.95
Grimms' Fairy Tales
by Jacob & Wilhelm Grimm, illustrated by Louis Rhead
from SeaWolf Press
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King's Equal
by Katherine Paterson
from HarperCollins
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 1st-3rd grade
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King's Equal
by Katherine Paterson
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Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 1st-3rd grade
$6.99
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by Shirley Climo & Ruth Heller
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$8.99
Light Princess
by George MacDonald, illustrated by Maurice Sendak
from Sunburst Book
Fantasy for 2nd-5th grade
$9.99
Light Princess
by George MacDonald, illustrated by Dorothy P. Lathrop
from Macmillan
Fantasy for 2nd-5th grade
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Light Princess
by George MacDonald, illustrated by Ned Bustard
from Rabbit Room Press
Fantasy for 2nd-5th grade
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Light Princess
by George MacDonald, illustrated by Craig Yoe
from William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company
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Light Princess
by George MacDonald, illustrated by Arthur Hughes
from Barefoot Books
Fantasy for 2nd-5th grade
Light Princess
by George MacDonald, illustrated by William Pene du Bois
from Thomas Y. Crowell & Co.
Fantasy for 2nd-5th grade
Light Princess
by George MacDonald, illustrated by Maud Humphrey
from G.P. Putnam's Sons
Fantasy for 2nd-5th grade
Light Princess (adapted)
by George MacDonald, adapted by Robin McKinley and illustrated by Katie Thamer Treherne
from Harcourt Children's Books
Fantasy for Kindergarten-3rd grade
Little Princess
by Frances Hodgson Burnett, illustrated by Graham Rust
from David R. Godine
Realistic Fiction for 3rd-8th grade
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Little Princess
Puffin Classics
by Frances Hodgson Burnett
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$7.99
Little Princess
by Frances Hodgson Burnett, Illustrated by Ethel Franklin Betts
Illustrated Fir from SeaWolf Press
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$8.45
Little Princess
Puffin Classics
by Frances Hodgson Burnett
from Puffin Books
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Little Princess
by Frances Hodgson Burnett, illustrated by Tasha Tudor
from J.B. Lippincott Co.
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Lost Princess of Oz
Books of Wonder Wizard of Oz #11
by L. Frank Baum (illustrated by John R. Neill)
from HarperCollins
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Many Moons
by James Thurber
2nd edition from Harcourt
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 1st-3rd grade
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$8.00
Many Moons
by James Thurber & Louis Slobodkin
from Harcourt
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 1st-3rd grade
1944 Caldecott medal winner
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Ordinary Princess
by M. M. Kaye
from Puffin Books
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 2nd-6th grade
$7.99
Paper Bag Princess
by Robert Munsch
39th Printing, December 2000 from Annick Press
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Persian Cinderella
by Shirley Climo & Robert Florczak
Reprint from HarperCollins
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Pocahontas
by Edgar & Ingri D'Aulaire
from Beautiful Feet Books
Picture Book Biography for 3rd-6th grade
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$17.95
Pocahontas and the Strangers
by Clyde Robert Bulla
from Scholastic Inc.
Biographies for 3rd-5th grade
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Pocahontas: Young Peacemaker
Childhood of Famous Americans
by Leslie Gourse
from Aladdin Paperbacks
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$7.99
Princess and the Kiss
by Jennie Bishop
from Warner Press
Allegories and Moral Stories for 2nd-5th grade
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$12.99
Princess and the Kiss with Audio CD
by Jennie Bishop, Illustrated by Preston McDaniels
from Warner Press
Allegories and Moral Stories for 2nd-5th grade
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Princess Stories
A Classic Illustrated Ed, from Chronicle Books
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
Racketty-Packetty House
by Frances Hodgson Burnett, illustrated by Wendy Anderson Halperin
100th Anniversary Edition from Simon and Schuster
for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$21.99
Racketty-Packetty House
by Frances Hodgson Burnett, illustrated by Harrison Cady
from Dodd, Mead & Co.
for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Rapunzel
by Paul Zelinsky
from Puffin Books
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 1st-4th grade
1998 Caldecott Medal winner
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$9.99
Rapunzel
by Alix Berenzy
from Henry Holt and Company
for 1st-4th grade
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Rose & the Ring
by William Makepeace Thackeray
from Heritage Press
for 3rd-6th grade
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Sleeping Beauty & Cinderella
by C. S. Evans, illustrated by Arthur Rackham
100th Anniversary from SeaWolf Press
for 1st-4th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$7.95
Snow Princess
by Ruth Sanderson
from Crocodile Books
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.95
Snow White
by Jacob & Wilhelm Grimm, illustrated by Charles Santore
from Sterling Publishing Co.
for Kindergarten-4th grade
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$16.95
Snow White
by Jacob & Wilhelm Grimm, illustrated by Charles Santore
from Random House
for Kindergarten-4th grade
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Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
by Jacob & Wilhelm Grimm, illustrated by Bess Livings
from Laughing Elephant
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
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Snow-White and the Seven Dwarfs: A Tale from the Brothers Grimm
by Brothers Grimm, translated by Randall Jarrell and illustrated by Nancy Ekholm Burkert
Sunburst Edition, 1987 from Square Fish Publishing
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
1973 Caldecott Honor Book
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$9.99
Tale of Despereaux
by Kate DiCamillo
from Candlewick Press
for 3rd-6th grade
2004 Newbery Medal winner
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.99
True Story of Pocahontas
A Step into Reading Book Level 3
by Lucille Recht Penner
from Random House
for 1st-3rd grade
in Step into Reading (Location: EAR-STEP)
$5.99
Tuesdays at the Castle
Tuesdays at the Tower #1
by Jessica Day George
Reprint from Bloomsbury Publishing
for 2nd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.99
Twelve Dancing Princesses
by Marianna Mayer
from William Morrow & Company
for 1st-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99