The Light Princess by George MacDonald.

Rating: Needs Parent Supervision

Reading Level: Middle School, High School

Much like in the story of Sleeping Beauty, the plot begins when an estranged aunt is offended by missing the cut for the guest list of a princess’s christening. In revenge, the aunt (who is also a witch) curses the princess with lightness (physical lightness as well as lightness of heart). This may seem like a blessing, but it is so extreme: she floats when not tied down or swimming, and her heart is so light that it is grotesquely unfeeling.(E.g. when horrible things happen, she bursts into fits of uncontrollable laughter.)

Along comes a prince, who is captivated by the princess and falls for her. They spend their days swimming together. She is somewhat entertained by him, but she doesn’t share his devotion.

The witch-aunt then uses dark magic to drain the lake that is the source of the princess’s joy. The prince offers himself as a sacrifice to return the lake to its glory and thus save the princess. As he dies, she shows little concern for him (the lightness curse). Then, it seems, once he’s drowned, she snaps out of the spell. She bursts into tears & realizes what he’s done & that he may be gone forever. She rescues him from the water and discovers that she no longer floats. The curse is broken and he teaches her to walk.

Possible Concerns:

• Dark, occult witch. I’m not sure whether the spiritual parallels and lessons are strong enough to redeem the darkness of the villain in this story. I suppose the prince’s sacrificial love for the princess can be a reflection pointing to Christ’s great sacrificial and absurd love for us – even when we, like the princess, are unfeeling.

The story was certainly entertaining, I think my recommendation really just depends on your family’s tolerance for fantasy and the occult: namely, a nasty, revengeful witch who casts spells. The spiritual parallels are not as obvious, so it would be good to have discussions to draw them out.

Discussion questions:

I. The witch lets revenge draw her into dark crimes. Where in the Bible to we see examples and warnings against revenge?

2. The princess is cursed with lightness of body and of spirit. When or how might it be a curse to be happy all the time? Doesn’t the Bible tell us to ‘be joyful always?” (it is also good to mourn with those who mourn; Jesus wept.)

3. In what ways is the prince’s sacrifice similar to Christ’s sacrifice for us on the cross? (He went willingly, the princess didn’t realize the meaning of his sacrifice until after he died, he broke a curse, and he taught her to walk in her new way of life.)