Thursday, March 17, 2011

Princess Academy

The village on Mount Eskel is a poor place. Life is difficult for the families up there who all work in the quarry extracting linder, a beautiful and rare stone something like marble. Meet Miri, the daughter of a quarry man. She is not allowed in the quarry because her father forbids it and thus she feels useless and unwanted. But soon enough, Miri will learn that she is marvelously talented and a true girl of Mount Eskel.

The Princess Academy is a wonderful young adult book about mountain girls who must go to an academy to make them princess ready for the prince. It has been told that the next princess will be from Mount Eskel, so the girls who are of age must be taught how to behave, read, curtsy, and dance. Out of this academy and story emerges the hero, Miri. She's a girl who is unsure of herself, yet is confident and ready to strike when needed. She has a great sense of justice and is an adorable literary figure.

I enjoyed reading this book. It was sweet, somewhat predictable, but it had its twists and turns as well. You'll learn to love this Miri and cheer for the changes that she makes in her life and the lives of those around her. This is a great book for a young girl. It has a little love story, adventure, and the angst of youth. What else could a pre-teen want? Although I do have more favored YA books, this one was cute and worth a read.

2 comments:

  1. Just like Sandra Bullock said about romantic comedies: predictable is just fine so long as it's done well. I think "done well" can be summed up in character development. If you love (either in a "love to love" or "love to hate" way) and feel invested in the characters, the story usually takes care of itself. So, how does Miri (and the other princesses / characters) stack up compared to some of the best developed characters from other young adult books you've read?

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  2. Hmmm...good question. She is very sweet and caring. However, she may be a little too good. I love Anne because she is wonderful, but she has her flaws and it makes her more relatable. Miri is relatable in the she is unsure of her place in the world and wants so badly to be liked and accepted, something people of any age can connect with.

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