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A Little Princess (Turtleback School & Library Binding Edition) Review

I didn't discover "A Little Princess" until I was a teenager, mostly because my earlier attempt to read "The Secret Garden" by the same author had not gone well. With "The Secret Garden", even Tasha Tudor's beautiful illustrations could not salvage the fact that there wasn't much of a story going on once you got past the initial excitement of the heroine's parents dying suddenly in an epidemic in India and she being shipped off to the foreign country of England. Thankfully, "A Little Princess" does NOT have any problems of lacking in plot. It is, essentially, a Cinderella fairy tale with a realistic setting, that of late Victorian England. It has a heroine (the "Little Princess" herself), villains (Miss Minchin, the evil proprietress of the boarding school, and Lavinia, a girl at the school who is less than nice), companions to help the heroine fight the villains (Sara's friends Becky, Ermengarde and Lottie) and finally a knight in shining armor (the man next door and his valet) who rescue the Little Princess from her impoverished attic cell, to much rejoicing.

Sara, a wealthy little girl who also has good manners, is kind and empathetic to others less fortunate than herself, and generally doesn't put on airs. Her widower father puts her in a boarding school run by Miss Minchin, who behaves very kindly towards Sara at first. But when her father dies after having lost all of Sara's fortune in an ill-advised investment, leaving Sara a pauper, Miss Minchin's true evil nature emerges as she starves Sara and forces her to wear rags and perform household drudgery to pay for her keep. Little does she know that a friend of Sara's father is searching the world to find her...

One might say that you can pretty much see where this story is heading from the get-go, and that no little child could be as perfect as Sara. Actually, she isn't that perfect; she does lose her temper a few times or feel rather unkindly towards others, but she manages to stifle it most of the time. And anyway, this is a fairy tale, with Sara as princess. The lesson of how some people will behave nicely to others only in proportion to the material gains that they think they can get, while others will behave nicely to everyone, all the time, is nicely put across - not as heavy-handed and morality-driven as it could have been. I wouldn't recommend the book for very young readers as they're unlikely to understand all the details of Victoriana within, but anyone from about age 9 and up who likes a good story should enjoy Sara's story.

I wouldn't dream of reading this book without Tasha Tudor's marvelous and detailed illustrations. Indeed, I can't imagine any other illustrations accompanying this book any more than I can picture Peter Rabbit not drawn by Beatrix Potter. If you can get the book in hardback with its lovely dust jacket showing the schoolgirls out for a walk in Sara's neighborhood (not the same picture shown on the paperback edition), so much the better.

A Little Princess (Turtleback School & Library Binding Edition) Overview

FOR USE IN SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES ONLY.

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Customer Reviews

and tomorrow, we'll be seeing a trusts and estates attorney - Cleo - USA
I wouldn't give this story to my kids without first drawing up a trust and showing them a copy to let them know their financial childhood and college education has been secured. Sara's dad is really bad with money and I don't know what a "princess" is supposed to be but this one sounds like a Filipino Maid in Hong Kong. Sucking it up is one thing but being sweet about it is for the birds. The Birds!

A classic story with enduring lessons! - Deborah Haynes Swider - Washington, DC
A childhood favorite, this is the story of Sara, a young girl who faces adversity with courage, grace and a giving spirit. She arrives at a select London boarding school a "Princess" but becomes a charity case upon her father's death. Throughout Sara remembers her father's words that she would always be his princess and endeavors to fulfill that promise. Sara's princess is not spoiled and demanding, but kind, gracious and giving.

In a time where girls are constantly questioning themselves, these are words we all need to hear: "I am a princess. All girls are. Even if they live in tiny old attics. Even if they dress in rags, even if they aren't pretty, or smart, or young. They're still princesses. All of us. Didn't your father ever tell you that? Didn't he?"

I also highly recommend the version with Tasha Tudor illustrations. They are lovely and Tasha certainly studied her fair share of period clothing to know exactly the right way to illustrate this story.

Read, this is Important, some of the facts in these reviews are NOT true - -
I've been reading the reviews and there is nothing really left to say except...

Yes, it is sad that Sara's father is never reunited with her but the joy that is expressed when Sara meets her father's old friend makes up for that.
But, no, Sara does not leave behind Becky; Becky actually becomes her new maid. Read the book thoroughly and you will see that no body gets left behind.

That is all I have to say.

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Aug 23, 2010 21:34:04

Children's Books

Monday, August 23, 2010