Princess Madison and the Royal Darling Pageant introduces us to a small princess who has dirt under he nails, freckles on her nose, and bangs that won't lie down. She's a royal mess. Her older sister is a perfect princess, pretty in pink, who decides that the scruffy little Madison is probably not a princess at all. So Madison spends the entire book looking for ways to prove to herself and her sister, that she is, indeed, a real princess. Madison is a sympathetic heroine, and I wanted to read on to see how she would best her snotty elder sister.

The opening is a bit slow. The pictures are adorable, and the prose is fine, but the conflict, and Madison's response to the conflict, feels tired and trite. Halfway through the book we get to the actual pageant and once there the writing begins to shine. The judges' remarks when they score the small contestants are delightful, the knights' deeds of derring-do are witty, and the modern amenities add a comical touch to this royal tale.

There were a few places where the story stopped dead. It seems as if this was done purposely. Madison knows what to do to prove she's a princess, but she doesn't tell us. We have to read on to find out. Why? We already know there is a pageant, it's in the title of the book. It's not some surprise. There is a transition in time there and it feels too abrupt coming as it does with the turning of the page. I expected to turn the page and find out how Madison would prove her royal blood and instead I saw the weeks pass with no mention of Madison or her plan.

Farther on something goes wrong when Madison is knighting a young man but we aren't told what's wrong. Why does Madison gasp? We have to read on to find out. Once again when we turn the page we are moved forward in time and I thought it was too much of a jolt. I wonder how many little kids will be able to even understand why Madison gasped. Will they understand why the knight has a funny name and will they figure out that that the blood caused Madison to drop the sword? This could have, and should have, been made clear from the writing or the pictures. One or the other should have shown the sword cutting the ear. Phyllis Hornung, the illustrator, chose to show Madison dropping the sword, which was a boring picture compared to what she should have shown--a knight kneeling with his nicked ear bleeding. But I suspect that someone other than the illustrator thought that the cut ear needed to be a surprise. I'm not sure why. I can see no need for tension and keeping secrets right there where the story is skipping so happily along.

At the very end, we once again have a dead stop. Madison knows what she wants to do, but she doesn't share with the readers. We have to turn the page. These places where the narrative quit flowing bumped me out of the story every time.

The resolution to the story is predictable for adults but probably not for children. It is one children need to learn. It is also a warm and happy ending and it left me with good feelings about this little book.

With the exception of the missing bloody ear picture, the illustrations in this book are wonderful. The colors are rich, the facial expressions are . . . well . . . expressive, and the picture frames add a royal feel. It's, overall, a very attractive book. One that would make a great gift for a young child. An encouraging message, a fun protagonist, some delightful and witty writing, and warm pictures.

---back to reviews Home

Copyright © 2005 Sally Apokedak