Dragon Dreams

August 6, 2012
Princesses and dragons—perennial favorites—coexist with some discord in this first installment of the Royal Princess Academy series from literary agent and author Rennert (Buying, Training, and Caring for Your Dinosaur). Despite Emma’s royal lineage (Snow White was her great-great-grandmother), she maintains that she’s “the most un-princess-y princess in the world!” Hardly a model student at the academy, she sets off a chain of mishaps when she sneezes during Royal Table Manners class, makes a cake that erupts like a volcano, and prefers to read books rather than balance them on her head in Princess Posture class. Emma is much more interested in owning a pet dragon and joining the Royal Dragon Guard. The pace slows as Emma embarks on a somewhat convoluted mission to discover why the kingdom’s dragons are sickly. Florian’s (A Day with Mommy) halftone art underscores Emma’s feistiness and puts a humorous spin on her princess gaffes. Though Emma is an unconventional princess, her adventures are rather ordinary; still, readers who share her rough-and-tumble nature should find her a winning role model. Ages 6–8.

August 15, 2012
Princess Emma doesn't like pink and would rather kick a soccer ball than dance, and so beginneth the lessons. She's in her first year at the Royal Princess Academy, where her best friend is Rapunzel. Emma fears for her team in the All-School Princess Contest, which does start badly for her: Her chocolate volcano cake, while delicious, explodes all over everyone, and she doesn't feel the rocks under her mattress. But Emma saves the day single-handedly when she is tasked to "create a happy ending" and rescues Rapunzel, Alex and Moriah from their various difficulties (Rapunzel, her hair newly cut, is trapped in a tower). What Emma really wants is to study dragons, which have been forbidden freedom of the kingdom because it is thought that they are dangerous for the environment. But when her class finally gets to visit the dragon caverns, she has another adventure and convinces the kingdom that letting the dragons roam free is better for both forest and waters. After a birthday surprise, Emma writes a letter to the princesses who will follow, reminding them that they can write "our OWN stories." It's all very affirming, and the illustrations are squiggly and cute, but it is awfully preachy. As this begins a series, readers can be sure that Princess Emma, her cousin, Prince Ben, and the gnomes who train dragons and riders will be seen again. (Fantasy. 6-9)

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January 1, 2013

Gr 2-3-Emma is no ordinary princess. She may be a member of her family's royal court, but she'd rather be riding dragons than looking pretty or learning how to have perfect posture. She even wants to talk her parents into letting her have a dragon as a pet for her birthday. Emma's unprincesslike maneuvers and knowledge of dragons might come in handy, though. All of the dragons in the kingdom are getting sick, and no one knows why. Can Emma figure out a way to save them? The characters are likable and entertaining, the humorous plot moves quickly and holds readers' interest, and the appealing cartoon illustrations add another dimension. Princess fans will not be disappointed by this early chapter book.-Kira Moody, Whitmore Library, Murray, UT

Copyright 2013 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2013
Atypical princess Emma attends the Royal Princess Academy, except she isn't cut out for Princess Posture class, Royal Table Manners class, and the like. Still, she manages to help her class win the All-School Princess Contest, and also solves a mystery about dragons. Emma is a charming, spunky protagonist, and Florian's black-and-white illustrations add even more personality to the pages.

(Copyright 2013 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)