The Princess and the Pea [Hardcover]

Alain Vaes (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2001 | Age Level: 4 and up

The prince of Upper Crestalia wants to get married, but his mother doesn't want him to, for selfish reasons. The queen makes up ridiculous tests that no aspiring bride can pass. Then the prince, convinced he is destined to remain single, meets Opal, heir to the throne of Lower Crestalia and the only princess ever known to drive a pickup truck. The prince soon discovers that not only is Opal handy, she is practical, beautiful, and genuinely nice. But can any of those qualities save her from the queen's trickery? You may think you know the story of "The Princess and the Pea," but you have never seen it as amusingly told and wittily illustrated as it is in this rollicking version of the classic tale.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

With droll illustrations and a complicated plot, Va‰s's (Reynard the Fox) retelling features an old-fashioned backdrop for a grease-spattered princess in mechanic's overalls who can fix a broken fan belt and match wits with a cranky queen. Gem-loving Queen Frieda decides to ban all weddings in the kingdom until someone is found to marry Prince Ralph; if people aren't buying engagements rings, she can corner the market in diamonds. The narrative contains some deliciously wicked satire, as when the queen presents the princesses vying for the prince's hand like Miss America contestants. After describing one finalist, Princess Penelope, as "an expert in the field of solar ethnicology," the queen asks her to demonstrate tricks with two yo-yos. A gypsy woman tells the queen that an opal would change her life, but she is not prepared for Princess Opal whose opal necklace keeps her awake as she sleeps on her traditional tower of mattresses to prove her worthiness. Va‰s's waggish illustrations are as playful and funny as the text. The queen's corgies cavort in the dining room, a Charles Laughton butler minces in with a turkey, a pigeon courts his lady love by puffing up his neck while the prince woos Princess Opal in a red sports car. A comical spoof delivered in high style. Ages 6-8.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

reS-Gr 3-Opaline von Highbredde of Lower Crestalia is not your typical princess. She wears grease-stained overalls and drives a tow truck to pass the time until she comes of age and takes the throne. That's how Prince Ralph of Upper Crestalia, out for a drive after all the princesses he had hoped to marry failed his mother's exacting tests, meets her. It's love at first sight, and the two immediately return to his castle so that the princess can take the tests everyone else has failed. Annoyed that Opal is able to do 100 double Dutch jumps on one leg and answer a riddle, the queen insists on one more test: the familiar pea under the stack of mattresses. The boldly colorful illustrations reflect Va's's background as a set designer; he captures the dramatic and broadly comical possibilities in a princess attempting yo-yo tricks, her face screwed up in concentration, or in the anxious looks on Prince Ralph's face as he awaits his mother's verdicts. Though this may not be the most engaging version of the tale available, the humorous twists and illustrations will be appreciated by all.

Kathleen Kelly MacMillan, Carroll County Public Library, Eldersburg, MD

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Little, Brown; 1st edition (September 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316896330
• ISBN-13: 978-0316896337
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 10 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,888,978 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Real Classic, January 30, 2005

By 

D. Wetherhold "Weth" (San Diego, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Princess and the Pea (Favourite Tales) (Hardcover)

Despite the Politically Correct gone amuck reviews of some reviewers, This is a children's classic and our daughter loves the story. It is part of our bedtime storybook rotation.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Real Princess, November 29, 2001

By 

Terrie (Little Chute, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Princess and the Pea (Hardcover)

PLEASE NOTE! This review is for the version that is illustrated by Dorothee Duntze. Everyone knows this Hans Christian Andersen story about the bedraggled princess who shows up looking for shelter on a stormy night. She might be a good match for the prince who's been searching for a "real" princess so the queen mother runs a little test...the rest is the subject of fairy tales! This version is simply told and beautifully illustrated. The pictures, executed in soft pastel colors, have a quirky Art Deco feel to them that I thoroughly enjoyed. The gowns of all the ladies in the book are done in a collage style and are covered in intricate patterns and designs. Lovely...the real thing!

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars an amusing modern twist to an old tale!, November 8, 2001

By 

Rebecca Brown "rebeccasreads" (Clallam Bay, WA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Princess and the Pea (Hardcover)

In the beautiful land of Upper-Crestalia King Adolph, Queen Frieda, & their dear son Prince Ralph live & the queen is quite content until her son one day bursts into her chamber & declares that he wishes to marry.

The queen does not like this idea at all so she hatches a plan to prevent her son marrying & she makes sure that the few princesses who do audition for Prince Ralph's wife all fail.

Mad with grief, Prince Ralph tears off in his expensive car down to Lower-Crestalia & when smoke starts billowing out of his hood, poor Ralph is stranded.

To his great surprise & relief, an auto-mechanic pulls up next to him & a dirty young woman in overalls carrying a tool box, jumps out. They get to talking, & the Prince is smitten! Her name is Opal, & she is the princess of Lower-Crestalia.

On the spot Prince Ralph proposes & when her prince charming confesses that his mother has idiotic tasks in store for her, Opal only becomes more determined.

Opal passes the tests with flying colors & that's when the queen insists there be a third test which is the one from which the title of this hilarious book is taken.

Will Princess Opal pass the final test? Will the queen's crafty plan succeed? Read this enchanting book & find out!