The Princess Night

The Princess Night
Funk, Cornelia
Meyer, Kristin
fantasy
Scholastic Inc. (2005)
K-3

The Princess Night is an enchanting book about a princess named Violetta that was raised by her father the king after her mother died. Violetta that three brothers who were taught how to ride, joust, and give orders like all good princes should. Violetta’s father decided to teach Violetta all of the tasks and lessons he taught his sons because those were the lessons he was taught. Violetta’s brothers made fun of her riding and jousting abilities because she was small and a girl. They called her “Itsy-Bitsy Little Vi.” Violetta quickly tiered of being teased and decided to take the matter into her own hands. She snuck out at night and practiced tirelessly until she had mastered the skills. All was well until the King informed Violetta that he was holding a jousting competition and the prize would be Violetta’s hand in marriage. Violetta was only sixteen and she did not want to be forced to marry someone not of her choice. Once again Violetta took the matter into her own hands and dressed up as a man and one the competition herself. Violetta proclaimed that she would not marry until she found a man that could beat her in jousting. From that moment on she had her father and brother’s respect.

This is a very high quality book that I enjoyed. You can always count on Funk to portray young girls positively. The character Violetta was able to do what ever men do and she was in control of her own destiny. This is a great message for young girls. Another teaching point that this book could help with is that of past traditions such as pre-determined marriages. Our society for the most part does not continue this practice so many students might not understand why such a young girl would be forced to marry.

Meyer’s illustrations were quite pleasing as always. The single and double spread illustrations appear to be done in water color. The colors are vibrant and ad to the mystical fairytale vibe of the book. The only negative thing I can say about this book is that the text layout at the beginning could be confusing to a beginning reader confusing. The first paragraph is located on the second page and the second paragraph is on the first page and the third paragraph jumps back to the third page. Despite this, I feel that this is a good book to incorporate into the classroom.