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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 MacDonald, The 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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At Her Majesty's Request
by Walter Dean Myers
from Scholastic Inc.
Biography for 5th-8th grade
2000 NCTE Orbis Pictus Honor Book
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
Baba Yaga and Vasilisa the Brave
by written by Marianna Mayer, Illustrated by K. Y. Craft
First Edition from HarperCollins
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Beauty and the Beast
by M. Charlotte Craft, K. Y. Craft
from HarperCollins
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$19.99
Blue Sword
by Robin McKinley
from Greenwillow Books
for 8th-10th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Cinderella
by K. Y. Craft
from Chronicle Books
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Cinderella
by David Delamare
from Simon and Schuster
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Cinderella
by Paul Galdone
Reprint from HMH Books for Young Readers
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Cinderella
Calla Editions
by C. S. Evans, illustrated by Arthur Rackham
from Dover Publications
for 4th-8th grade
Cinderella
by Charles Perrault, illustrated by Michael Hague
from Henry Holt and Company
for 3rd-8th grade
$9.50 (1 in stock)
Cleopatra VII
Royal Diaries
by Kristiana Gregory
from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
in Royal Diaries (Location: SER-ROYAL)
Elizabeth I
Royal Diaries
by Kathryn Lasky
from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
in Royal Diaries (Location: SER-ROYAL)
Ella Enchanted - Special Read-Aloud Edition
by Gail Carson Levine
from HarperCollins
for 3rd-7th grade
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Good Queen Bess
by Diane Stanley & Peter Vennema
from HarperCollins
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$18.99
Grimms' Fairy Tales
by Jacob & Wilhelm Grimm, illustrated by Don Daily
from Applesauce Press
for 1st-5th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$18.95
King Midas and the Golden Touch
by Charlotte Craft, Illustrated by K. Y. Craft
from William Morrow & Company
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Light Princess
by George MacDonald, illustrated by Dorothy P. Lathrop
from Macmillan
Fantasy for 2nd-5th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
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
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$18.95 $13.00 (1 in stock)
Little Princess
by Frances Hodgson Burnett, illustrated by Scott McKowen
Unabridged from Sterling Publishing Co.
for 4th-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Little Princess
by Frances Hodgson Burnett, illustrated by Tasha Tudor
from HarperCollins
for 4th-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$17.99
Little Princess
by Frances Hodgson Burnett, illustrated by Ethel Franklin Betts
from Charles Scribner's Sons
for 4th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Little Princess
Puffin Classics
by Frances Hodgson Burnett
from Puffin Books
for 3rd-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Little Princess
by Frances Hodgson Burnett, illustrated by Tasha Tudor
from J.B. Lippincott Co.
for 3rd-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Lost Princess of Oz
Books of Wonder Wizard of Oz #11
by L. Frank Baum (illustrated by John R. Neill)
from HarperCollins
for 3rd-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
May I Bring a Friend?
by Beatrice Schenk de Regniers
from Atheneum
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Nzingha
Royal Diaries
by Patricia McKissack
from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
in Royal Diaries (Location: SER-ROYAL)
Princess Adelina
by Julie Sutter
from Vision Forum
Historical fiction / Irish missions for 7th-10th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Princess and the Goblin
Everyman Library
by George MacDonald
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Fantasy for 5th-8th grade
$18.00
Princess and the Kiss
by Jennie Bishop
from Warner Press
Allegories and Moral Stories for 2nd-5th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$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
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Princess Bride
by William Goldman
from Harcourt
Humorous Adult Fairy Tale for 8th-12th grade
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$30.00
Princess Stories
A Classic Illustrated Ed, from Chronicle Books
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
Queen Victoria
by G. A. Henty
from Robinson Curriculum
for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
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)
Rose & the Ring
by William Makepeace Thackeray
from Heritage Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Sleeping Beauty
by K. Y. Craft
from Chronicle Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Sleeping Beauty
Calla Editions
by Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch
from Dover Publications
for 4th-8th grade
Sleeping Beauty
by Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch, illustrated by Edmund Dulac
from Hodder & Stoughton
for 4th-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
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
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$16.95
Snow White
by Jacob & Wilhelm Grimm, illustrated by Charles Santore
from Random House
for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs
by Wanda Gag
from University of Minnesota
for Preschool-2nd grade
1939 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs
by Wanda Gag
from Smithmark Publishers
for Preschool-2nd grade
1939 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Thirteen Clocks
by James Thurber
from New York Review of Books
for 4th-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Thirteen Clocks
by James Thurber
from Penguin Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$15.00
Twelve Dancing Princesses
Calla Editions
by Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch
from Dover Publications
for 4th-9th grade
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