Although a chapter book, this story was an easy read even for my not-usually-able-to-sit-through-a-chapter-book 4 yr old princess.  I enjoyed it too! Some considerations:

  • There are monsters- hungry dangerous ones, but the illustrations portray fuzzy muppet-like monsters that aren’t too scary. (See image below).
  • There are a lot of references to how princesses don’t do this & princesses don’t do that. These are all to set up the main character for breaking the mold, but they still might make stereotypical Fairytale impressions on little minds.
  • The premise is that the princess has a secret, so if secrets are an issue in your family, you might stay away from this one.
  • If you get hooked, please be aware that some families may not like the cross-dressing that happens in Book 8, The Prince in Pink, when the prince wears a tiarra and there seems to be an agenda of gender fluidity.

Reasons why I like it:

  • The princess is a warrior
  • A snoopy gossipy duchess is portrayed as an antagonist
  • The princess wins by roping up a monster (not hurting him)
  • The monster goes back home when she asks with a “please.”
  • The princess inspires others to find their inner warrior.

I’m not sure if other books in the series will be good enough for my bookshelf, but this one has some great messages.

I have reviewed many other books in this series. For example, here are links to my reviews of Book 3 and Book 4.