The Princess Test [Paperback]

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

Product Details

• Paperback: 91 pages
• Publisher: Scholastic, Inc. (2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 043917595X
• ISBN-13: 978-0439175951
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 3.9 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,938,119 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

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A short or small book with an amazing or astounding story., June 18, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Princess Test (Princess Tales) (Hardcover)

Superficially, one could point out that this book has only 100 or so pages and has double-spaced print. But that's silly. Because this book is so amazing! It tells the story of Lorilei, a girl who is extremly sensitive to everything. I mean, she can only sleep on satin sheets and the only chore she can perform without getting hurt is embrodery. When Lorilei falls in love with a prince, she finds out that his parents only want him to marry a true princess. There are having a series of tests to find a real princess. The tests are things like finding a fleck of raw noodle in a salad or finding the missing stitch in a tapestry . . . or feeling a pea through a mattress! Lorilei is up for this challange, as it's her "talent" . . . but will she pass the tests? The prince Nicolas, by the way, is a simple character but is NOT one-dimensinal like most fairy-tale princes are. And a great character was the king or father of the prince. He has the habit of using symolies or words that mean the same thing in a sentence. I hope you understand or comprehend what I mean about the king or monarch. He was one of my favorite or most-liked characters. Anyway, Lorilei is delightful, Trudy is hilarious, and this book shows that love is more important than blood . . . and that our "faults" can sometimes be our alleys. Read or look at the words of this story!

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A absolutely awesome book!, July 2, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: The Princess Test (Princess Tales) (Hardcover)

This book was a classic fairy-tale story about an ordinary girl who is beautiful and kind, but when she offers to clean the dishes, she'll get a rash from the soapy water. Her father is a very busy widower whom hires a housekeeper to help around the house since his fragile daughter can't do anything except embroider and say if her bandage is too tight or too loose-- perfection is everything for her. Meanwhile, Prince Nicholas has to find a "true princess" Thus, any princess hoping to be queen shall take the princess test. The two stories collide when Prince Nicholas rides by Lorelei, the main characterand finds her "Looked pretty in the distance. As he got closer, she was still pretty. Not a raving pretty, but definitley pretty." He suddenly likes her in a loving way just by her beauty. When he comes home to his castle, his mother and father, the King and Queen tell him about the princess test and he wonders if Lorelei could pass the test. Will she even find out?

Read this book for a adveture through love, worrries, and a splurge of fary-tale fun!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars (daughter) BEST BOOK IN THE WORLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!, September 21, 2006

A Kid's Review

This review is from: The Princess Test (Princess Tales) (Hardcover)

This is a wonderful book. When a blacksmith's wife dies, he needs to go away so he hires a maid to take care of his daughter, Lorelei. The maid does not like her at all, so she finds a way to get rid of Lorelei. The maid says that they are going on a picnic and leaves her. It starts to rain, so Lorelei needs to find a place to stay. She finds a castle and discovers that there's a princess test going on. Read the book to find out what happens. This book is great! I think everyone should read it!!!