Princess Sonora and the Long Sleep (Princess Tales) [Hardcover]

Gail Carson Levine (Author), Mark Elliott (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 7 and up | Grade Level: 4 and up | Series: Princess Tales

A spiteful fairy. A beautiful princess. An outstretched finger. A spindle. A hundred-year snooze. A charming prince. A kiss. All the familiar ingredients.

But wait! Where did that extra prince come from? And those fairy gifts that were never there before? And what does a flock of balding sheep have to do with anything?

Gail Carson Levine has waved her magic wand over the old standby of "Sleeping Beauty" and presto! It reappears, transformed, sparkling and hilarious. Chuckles and giggles are guaranteed.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 3-6-This installment in the series features Princess Sonora as Sleeping Beauty. The fairies in this fractured tale endow the princess with a few too many gifts at her naming ceremony; not only is she "the smartest human in the world," but she is also "ten times as smart as any human in the world." As a result, Sonora crawls only in perfectly straight lines and perfectly round circles, reminds the Royal Nursemaids to wash behind her ears, and diagnoses her own illnesses. She also refuses to sleep, preferring to spend her evenings reading, or thinking up questions and then answering them-she knows she'll get plenty of sleep during the 100 years promised by the spiteful fairy Belladonna. The more-than-a-little precocious princess decides that she will choose the most opportune moment to prick her finger, thereby putting the castle grounds to sleep. However, things don't go exactly as planned. Levine's witty takeoff is clever and humorous, but without the depth or thorough character development that so distinguished Ella Enchanted (HarperCollins, 1997). This amusing, light read will stir children's imaginations and encourage them to explore further the richness of fairy tales.
Robin L. Gibson, Muskingum County Library System, Zanesville, OH
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Gail Carson Levine thinks she can write poetry. Forgive her; the doctors say she’ll be sane again soon. She was born in New York City and shares a birthday with William Carlos Williams. Her first book for children, Ella Enchanted, won a Newbery Honor. Gail’s other books include A Tale of Two Castles; the New York Times bestsellers Ever and Fairest; Dave at Night, an ALA Notable Book and Best Book for Young Adults; The Wish; The Two Princesses of Bamarre; and the six Princess Tales books. She is also the author of the nonfiction book Writing Magic: Creating Stories That Fly and the picture books Betsy Who Cried Wolf! and Betsy Red Hoodie, both illustrated by Scott Nash. Gail and her husband, David, live in the Hudson Valley of New York State.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 7 and up
  
• Hardcover: 112 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins; 1st edition (September 8, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060280646
• ISBN-13: 978-0060280642
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 4.6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #979,306 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Gail Carson Levine grew up in New York City and has been writing all her life. Her first book for children, Ella Enchanted, was a 1998 Newbery Honor Book. Levine's other books include Dave At Night, an ALA Notable Book and Best Book for Young Adults; The Wish; The Two Princesses of Bamarre; and her Princess Tales books: The Princess Test, The Fairy's Mistake, Princess Sonora and the Long Sleep, Cinderellis and the Glass Hill, For Biddle's Sake and The Fairy's Return. She is also the author of the picture book Betsy Who Cried Wolf, illustrated by Scott Nash. Gail, her husband, David, and their Airedale, Baxter, live in a two-hundred-year-old farmhouse in the Hudson River Valley.

In Her Own Words..."I grew up in New York City. In elementary school I was a charter member of the Scribble Scrabble Club, and in high school my poems were published in an anthology of student poetry. I didn't want to be a writer. First I wanted to act and then I wanted to be a painter like my big sister. In college, I was a Philosophy major, and my prose style was very dry and dull! My interest in the theater led me to my first writing experience as an adult. My husband David wrote the music and lyrics and I wrote the book for a children's musical, Spacenapped that was produced by a neighborhood theater in Brooklyn.

"And my painting brought me to writing for children in earnest. I took a class in writing and illustrating children's books and found that I was much more interested in the writing than in the illustrating.

"Most of my job life has had to do with welfare, first helping people find work and then as an administrator. The earlier experience was more direct and satisfying, and I enjoy thinking that a bunch of people somewhere are doing better today than they might have done if not for me."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Levine's not slacking off since Ella Enchanted..., December 27, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Princess Sonora and the Long Sleep (Princess Tales) (Library Binding)

Some authors let their books go after the first successful one - but not Gail Carson Levine. This retelling of Sleeping Beauty is priceless. The original details are still there, but some more are added on, and they don't make it worse at all.

They way she puts things is light and funny, but the only quarrel I have with this book is that it's too short. All of the Princess Tales are, but I wish she'd made it a little longer; I finished it in half an hour, and I'm not a speed reader.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Intelligent "Beauty", August 8, 2002

By 

Little Willow (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Princess Sonora and the Long Sleep (Princess Tales) (Hardcover)

Of all of the "The Princess Tales" novellas, "Princess Sonora and the Long Sleep" was the first I read, and most likely my favorite. "Sleeping Beauty" has never been so amusing. I liked the original story but never truly loved it. I found this book to be a delightful presentation, putting it in a whole new light for me. Now I do love the story. Here, the token Sleeping Beauty is intelligent from the get-go. As a baby, she is granted her gifts by various fairies who attempt to out-do each other, each fairy trying to bestow a better trait than the fairy before her. The parents fumble, the prince is a dud, and the princess rocks the house. Read it now. May it breathe new life into an old tale for you as it did for me.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Princess Sonora and the Long Sleep isn't a bit tiring, October 23, 2001

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Princess Sonora and the Long Sleep (Princess Tales) (Hardcover)

I loved Ella Enchanted so I was glad to find Princess Sonora and the Long Sleep. I really like the twists Gail Carson Levine puts on the traditional fairy tales. The book is interesting because it explains Princess Sonora's life before she falls asleep. She's like a real person even though it is a fairy tale. She doesn't just sit around and let things happen to her. She takes charge of her life so she can live happily ever after on her own terms. I haven't read the other Princess Tales but after reading this book I will be sure to.