Princess Lessons FROM OUR EDITORS
The Barnes & Noble Review
Princess Mia, Grandmﾽre, and other priceless characters are giving sound advice on being a royal in this hilarious Princess Diaries book from Meg Cabot.
Wondering how to prevent your tiara from falling off? What about keeping your skin squeaky clean? And those nasty military threats from neighboring principalities -- what a hassle! These problems and more are answered in many sidesplitting sections introduced by Princess Mia, from Chez Paolo's Paolo on beauty tips to Tina Hakim Baba's take on "The Mysterious World of Guys" to Prince Renﾽ's advice on being a sport. Other guest entries include wisdom about etiquette, fashion, and education, and Princess Mia winds up the guide with heartening final opinions on the true qualities of a real princess ("Being a princess is more of an attitude, really, than a way of life.")
With Cabot's Princess Lessons in hand, any girl will be talking the regal talk and walking the royal walk in no time. Princess Mia's sage words will speak to any aristocratic wannabe, while Chesley McLaren's splendidly simple illustrations are the perfect match. A how-to handbook that's most certainly as grand as the crown jewels themselves. Shana Taylor
ANNOTATION
Princess Mia from "The Princess Diaries" offers advice on inner and outer beauty, character development, etiquette, and dating.
FROM THE PUBLISHER
Yes! Finally! Just what you've been waiting for! This book has it all: Preventing your tiara from slipping off. Keeping your pores squeaky clean. Winning the heart of the boy of your dreams (or, at the very least, the cute guy you sit next to in language lab). Avoiding a military incursion by a neighboring principality. And much, much more!
FROM THE CRITICS
Publishers Weekly
Fans of the Princess Diaries will not want to miss Meg Cabot's Princess Lessons: A Princess Diaries Book, illus. by Chesley McLaren, delivered with the series' signature wicked humor (between the paper-over-board covers in a princessiest of pink volume). From Paolo's "Pretty Princess" beauty tips ("I, Paolo, am the one who turned the Principessa Amelia from Ugly Duckling into Swan") to the Dowager Princess of Genovia's strict rules of etiquette ("Princesses always keep their knees close together when sitting. This is so that the populace gathered before you... does not catch a glimpse of your unmentionables!") to tips on fashion from Her Royal Highness Princess Mia herself, this masterguide to monarchy will have princesses sprouting up nationwide. McLaren's chic drawings combine fashion flair with fun asides (such as Mia thrusting a booted leg skyward for her grandmother's "knees together" pointer). Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.
Children's Literature
Packaged in diary size and bound in the brightest royal pink, this etiquette manual is partly spoof and partly sensible advice (as far as it goes) for aspiring princesses. With an introduction by Her Royal Highness Princess Mia Thermopolis (heir to the throne of Genovia while remaining a freshman at New York's Albert Einstein High), the guide goes on to explain what Mia has been learning during her princess lessons from royal Grandmﾽre, staying at the Plaza. Teens who have read Meg Cabot's other bestselling Princess Diaries will recognize makeup expert Paolo of Chez Paolo, Mia's friend Tina Hakim Baba, and all the others who share secrets of beauty, manners, fashion, education, character, and BOYS. Standards for a princess are extremely elevated, but when they soar too high, the pomposity is neatly popped by a barbed comment from Mia, printed in pink. Chesley McLaren (illustrator of Zat Cat! and You Forgot Your Skirt, Amelia Bloomer!) contributes her chic, tongue-in-cheek illustrations, capturing in pink and black the essence of Princess Mia, especially when she's wearing combat boots. While devouring these fascinating and amusing guidelines for life, Princess fans will do well to heed the royal advice: "Princesses, like people, come in all different shapes and sizes...Being a princess is more of an attitude, really, than a way of life." This latest addition to the popular "Princess Diaries" series is served up, sharp and cool as raspberry sorbet at the Plaza, by Cabot and McLaren, both residents of New York. 2003, HarperCollins, Talcroft
VOYA - Julie Roberts
Cabot charmed readers with her Princess Diaries series, which stars Mia Thermopolis as an average (read: awkward) teenage girl from New York who discovers that she is actually the heir to the throne of Genovia, a small European country. To prepare her for her duties, Mia's grandmother tutors the somewhat reluctant Mia through what she calls "Princess Lessons." In this book, Mia shares her newfound knowledge with her readers: "All you need to know to be a princess-or just live like one." Essentially a guidebook for teenage girls, it includes practical advice on health, beauty, fashion, and manners, but the book is made entertaining by such familiar characters as Paolo, Tina Hakim Baba, Sebastiano, and of course, Mia herself. Some of the advice is very specific to princesses-such as proper tiara maintenance-but much of it is quite useful for those without blue blood. Without even noticing, teenage girls will learn the importance of good posture, proper e-mail etiquette, and five easy ways to save the planet. The emphasis is always on being oneself and liking yourself, and the moral of the story is that it never hurts to act like a princess, even if you are not one-and young girls cannot get enough of these sorts of positive messages. This cute book is made even cuter by the delightful illustrations. It is a quick, fun read and will be enjoyed by fans of the series. Illus. VOYA Codes: 4Q 4P M J S (Better than most, marred only by occasional lapses; Broad general YA appeal; Middle School, defined as grades 6 to 8; Junior High, defined as grades 7 to 9; Senior High, defined as grades 10 to 12). 2003, HarperCollins, 144p,
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