Jessica's Reviews > The Paper Bag Princess
The Paper Bag Princess
by
by
I thought I reviewed this one already. This is an instructive fairytale for young children about not putting up with a bunch of crap. The paper bag princess is engaged to marry Prince Ronald, this handsome, uptight tennis-playing eighties-yuppie-style monarch, until she has to battle a fire-breathing dragon using only her wits. Elizabeth the princess outsmarts the dragon, but not before his fire breath blows away all of her clothes and she's left to conceal her nakedness by wearing a paper bag. When she emerges triumphant from battling the dragon, like a spunky, young lady Beowulf, Ronald is totally grossed out by her appearance and tells her not to come near him until she showers and changes and fixes her hair and looks like a beautiful princess again.
To this, the paper bag princess replies (I'm paraphrasing): "Ronald, you are very handsome in your fancy clothes, and you may look like a prince, but you are a BUM!" Then she kicks him to the curb and goes dancing off into the sunset, exuberant and free in her singed paper bag outfit.
While obviously there's a feminist tone to this story, its more important message transcends gender: this book teaches kids the important lesson that they do not need someone else around who doesn't value them for their finer qualities. Counter to most messages those kids will receive in coming years about the importance of relationships to self worth, The Paper Bag Princess says that nobody needs a Prince who is really a Bum, and that independent dragon-slayers like Elizabeth are better off alone than with some snotty jerk like Ronald.... This book is about not hanging around people who don't treat you right!
Plus it's really funny, not annoying like my review of it.
To this, the paper bag princess replies (I'm paraphrasing): "Ronald, you are very handsome in your fancy clothes, and you may look like a prince, but you are a BUM!" Then she kicks him to the curb and goes dancing off into the sunset, exuberant and free in her singed paper bag outfit.
While obviously there's a feminist tone to this story, its more important message transcends gender: this book teaches kids the important lesson that they do not need someone else around who doesn't value them for their finer qualities. Counter to most messages those kids will receive in coming years about the importance of relationships to self worth, The Paper Bag Princess says that nobody needs a Prince who is really a Bum, and that independent dragon-slayers like Elizabeth are better off alone than with some snotty jerk like Ronald.... This book is about not hanging around people who don't treat you right!
Plus it's really funny, not annoying like my review of it.
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Reading Progress
Started Reading
January 1, 1985
–
Finished Reading
November 18, 2007
– Shelved
November 26, 2007
– Shelved as:
wee-ones-and-bored-teenagers
November 28, 2007
– Shelved as:
chicklits
Because of this, I was shocked to see that this text was published in the '80s; it does have such a positively feminist undertone, but the rest of the tone with forever be able to be neutral to gender and help to support children who may feel that they are in a harmful friendship.