ISBN: 978006029210-2
New York: Harper Collins, 2000
Plot - Mia Thermopolis is a freshman at Albert Einstein School in Manhattan. She and her best friend, Lilly Moskovitz, far outside the popular kids' group, or any other group for that matter, have a good friendship and share great times videoing Lilly's TV show around the streets of Manhattan. Out of nowhere, though, Mia's father, who lives in Europe where Mia spends her summers, calls her mother very upset over the fact that he is unable to have any more children. The next thing she knows, her father has arrived in New York City, told her that he's the Prince of Genovia and that as his only heir, she is a princess and must assume the role immediately. Mia is distraught and refuses, but later agrees on the condition that she is allowed to finish high school in New York, where she is sure she will be able to keep her Princesshood a secret, even from Lilly. Mia's overbearing grandmother travels from France and sets up residence in New York in order to give Mia Princess Lessons, and suddenly the press knows who she is, where she goes to school, and is everywhere she is. Princess :Lessons include some changes that Lilly is not happy to see, though, and the friendship takes a real hit as Mia won't let on why she suddenly looks so fashionable. Mia must face tough decisions and her own mistakes in the midst of what every other girl would love to happen, including a date with the most popular boy in school, and through the hard times she begins to grow into the person she really wants to be.
Critical Evaluation - Meg Cabot presents a teenage first person narrator who, while being unreliable in a literary sense, is utterly believable. She creates a delightfully flawed and lovealbe main character in whose life the reader will gladly suspend disbelief. Coming-of-age themes run throughout--learning to stand up for what one believes, telling the truth and finding strength in it, nice guys are a better bet than the gorgeous, hard-partying jock. The only unfortunate piece is just how neatly and quickly all is resolved in the end, but that does not take away from the book's being a delightful read.
Reader's annotation - Dreams are coming true for Mia--she's suddenly a real live Princess worth over $300 million, her grandmother takes her for makeovers and fashion consulting at Chanel, and private spas, and the best looking boy in school is asking her out; only problem is, they're not her dreams.
Information about the author - Meg Cabot, who used to write under the pen names, Patricia Cabot and Jenny Carroll, did not like high school, much like her Princess Diaries protagonist, Mia. She has a degree in Art, and ended up marrying the guy who told her to do that in college instead of Creative Writing so she wouldn't get burned out on what she truly loved. Before her first book, Where Roses Grow Wild, was published, she had to spend three years sending out query letters every day just to get an agent, and then the agent presented her book for a full year before a publisher agreed to take it on. Ms. Cabot was born in Indiana, but now lives in Key West with her beloved cats and her husband whom she refers to in her blog as He Who Shall Not Be Named.
Genre - Chick Lit
Curriculum Ties - Excellent possibility for English classes' reluctant readers during free choice genre reading
Booktalk ideas -
- Describe briefly the dream-come-true scenario that Mia experiences. Ask potential readers if they would like this to happen to them. Highlight the ones who would not, asking them why not. End with a 30-second reading from the book where Mia's father offers to donate $100 per day during her Princess Lessons to her favorite cause, Greenpeace (p. 106).
- Tell readers that Mia's best friend, Lilly, feels abandoned and jealous because of the mysterious changes Mia's going through, and she makes fun of Mia. Would you tell Mia to tell Lilly the truth? How would you convince her to?
Challenge issues - No immediate challenge issues exist.
If a challenge were to occur, the librarian should become familiar with the book, share both professional and local teen reviews of the book, and refer to the library's Collection Development Policy.
Why I included this book - It's practically a classic in the Chick Lit genre and it deserves to be. It's light, hilarious, and actually meaningful to those of us who made mistakes and got to try again, even if we don't have $300 million behind us.
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