This book was a bit of a disappointment for me. Firstly, I’m not sure what the actual intended audience of this book is. On one hand, the writing style is pretty immature, sadly sometimes even toeing the line of ridiculousness, and on the other hand, the book has some recurring themes that seem suited for older, mature readers. So I’m honestly not sure if this book would be better suited to children or young adults.

Also, there wasn’t much of a plot. The story was all over the place and very often felt more like a bizarre stream of consciousness than a story with an actual plot. I also couldn’t connect with the main character because she came off as very one dimensional to me.

When The Little Queen loses her parents, she becomes The Little Queen. But she's not sure how to be the Little Queen or even if she wants to be. So leaves her palace and goes on an adventure to see what she can learn from other people.

This is the story of how a little girl finds herself, finds love, and grows into a woman. It was highly allegorical, told almost like a fairy tale. Definitely not your typical YA novel. I never felt connected to the thoughts and emotions of the main character; she seemed distant, like watching from a tower rather than walking with someone. It worked for this story, but I prefer to have a stronger connection between myself and the main charater. The language of the book is simple, and the book is short, making it seem more like a middlegrade novel. But I'm not sure that middlegrade readers would be able to understand all the allegorical elements. I'm not even sure I caught every hidden meaning.

Almost the entire story is allegorical. There is a little girl who is a little queen who goes on a literal journey to discover who she is. All the people she meets are not called by their names but by their professions - weird professions like The Book Sniffer and The Dream Writer. Each woman The Little Queen meets has a profession they chose and are passionate about, and The Little Queen learns from each of them and to value each of their interests. She also learns about grief, love, and caring for others. She overcomes her insecurities and finds confidence in herself and her profession. This book was clearly intended to teach readers the same things The Little Queen learns, through story.

It was difficult to figure out the genders of the characters since their names were never mentioned, but I don't remember any male characters except The Little Queen's deceased father. Everyone was female, including the person The Little Queen fell in love with and married. As important as I believe it is for women to interact with and teach other women, I believe there needs to be somewhat of a balance of genders. I did not like that there were no living, active men in this story.

I enjoyed this story somewhat because of the innocence, the positive message, and the simple, fairytale feel. But I did not like how the author's message took over the story, how All the characters were female, and how disconnected I felt from the characters. I doubt I will recommend it to my friends irl.

I received a complementary copy of this book. All opinions are my own, and I did not receive compensation for writing this review.

The Little Queen has lost her parents and left to be Queen. She does not want to be Queen so she goes on a series of journies to find someone to take her place. She meets lots of interesting characters and learns more about the world outside of her walls.

In an Oyster Shell – I didn’t understand the purpose of the book and it was inconsistent in the message.

The Pearls – The Little Queen is lyrical and imaginative. It’s short so can easily be read in one sitting.

The Little Queen is an interesting character. She is curious and inquisitive. She meets lots of interesting people who do interesting things.

There was a little bit of romance in the book. The relationship started out as friendship and ended to be something more. It was a nice progression. It had a really sweet ending.

This was a cute little story about brave strength, love and everything in between.. I would highly recommend it.

This book was not what I expected. I found it in the poetry section and was disappointed to discover that it was not written in verse. However, I was pleasantly surprised by this lyrical fairy tale.

When her mother and father pass away, the little queen must figure out how to be a little queen. And so she begins her adventures, journeying away from her palace and into the world to determine how she should go about going on. The little queen soon encounters numerous folks who teach her a thing or two: the book sniffer, the dream writer, and the architect of silence are just a few. Along the way, the little queen finds friendship, love, and meaning in being a leader in her world. - Goodreads
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I wasn't able to finish this read but it wasn't for the lack of trying. This came off at a poetry book, which normally I wouldn't have an issue with but this wasn't a poetry book and there was redundancy that didn't shake. The tone doesn't change and every 3 lines you see The Little Queen this, The Little Queen that. I understand the author trying to make the book flow like poetry but the read was slow and it came off that the author was trying to hard to teach a lesson.

I stopped midway through the book and then picked it up 3 times before I had to finally put it down. But what I can say is I would love to read a poetry book by this author but this novel wasn't for me.

This is a very odd novella. It starts out with beautiful wording about a princess who loses her parents and becomes the little queen.
It's hard to understand or get to know the little queen and she goes on odd "adventures" meeting a book sniffer, wall sawyer, leaf gluer, seasons painter, fish talker, dream writer, Dream counter, window builder, the lotioner, plant whisperer, perfumer, sleep soother, poop encourager among others.
There isn't much depth given to the main character and she tries to pass off her title to anyone before deciding she doesn't want to. Then she gets married as a very young child.
I truly didn't see this as poetry or a children's book and I didn't enjoy it.

Govern free copy by NetGalley and publisher for a fair & honest review.

I hadn’t previously heard much about The Little Queen, but I stumbled across it during one of my Netgalley requesting sprees recently (come on, you know you’ve gone on those) and saw that many of my friends had read it. I discovered an adorable, fluffy novella that also wove in some deeper themes. Head up, this is probably going to be a short review, because 1.) it’s a short book (~100 pages), and 2.) this book is whimsical to the point that it makes it almost impossible to describe.

Netgalley classifies The Little Queen as poetry, which I…. don’t understand. While the prose is incredibly lyrical and lovely, it’s decidedly still prose. Also, I’m having a crisis trying to classify the age range of this book. I believe both Goodreads and Netgalley list it as YA, but it reads in the style of a children’s fairytale and contains the whimsy of a middle grade novel. Regardless, I think it does have some crossover appeal for YA readers who don’t normally pick up middle grade books, and vice versa.

The story follows the titular character, the little queen, immediately following the death of her parents (it wouldn’t be a fairytale without dead parents. sigh.). She sets out to see the world, get to know people who live differently than she does, and hopefully find her purpose in the process. She meets a fascinating array of characters throughout her journey, each of whom teaches her something she takes back to her kingdom with her. She also finds love along the way– The Little Queen features an adorable, innocent f/f romance, which, as you can imagine, warmed my lil queer heart. Though on a surface level this book reads like a children’s story, it deals with some heavier topics like processing grief, becoming your own person, and the way that the people we meet throughout our lives shape us irrevocably as people. These themes were subtly woven into the narrative. Overall, I think this was a cleverly written book.

Another thing I enjoyed: in addition to the f/f romance, all of the characters the little queen meets are women! Literally, every single one of them (except the little queen’s father, who is only briefly mentioned). I also loved the illustrations, done by Sara Zieve Miller– the writing conjures vivid imagery, so I enjoyed seeing these images on the page in illustration form.

Ultimately, though I found The Little Queen enjoyable, I think it just didn’t explore the deeper themes that were touched on thoroughly enough. It felt pretty frivolous at times. I also don’t do well with ultra-whimsical books like this one, which is not this book’s fault. Just a personal preference.

Overall, though, I’d recommend this novella to anyone looking for a quick, fairytale-like read that incorporates lots of diversity!

Have you read The Little Queen? If so, what are your thoughts? If not, do you plan to read it?

This was a cute story that read as a fairytale. I loved how it was narrated and that it was a trip of self discovery but it felt too bizarre at points. The fact that it had such a sweer f/f romance was a welcome surprise as well!

This book was so precious.

Growing up, I listened to the same fairy tales as everyone else - Cinderella and Aladdin and The Sleeping Beauty - but they were never my favorites. My favorite was The Light Princess, a Scottish story about a princess who was cursed to be unaffected by gravity.

For some reason, this book brought me back - way back - to my childhood days, and The Little Queen had the same sort of nostalgia and sparkling innocence that fairy tales typically have. But it did feel more than that.

Something about this book also reminded me a bit of The Little Prince (and I'm sure it's not just the title). But both stories had a main character who looked at the world with a wondrous curiosity, and as a reader it was impossible to not feel the same warmth.

The writing was lyrical and beautiful, and the sketches in the book definitely added to the cozy atmosphere. This is definitely a book I think people of all ages could enjoy. I'll remember to read it to my own children fifteen years from now - and maybe it'll become their favorite.

The Little Queen was a lovely, unique bit of lyrical prose. The plot was simplistic but powerful–it was reminiscent of a childhood fairy tale in the best possible way. Although it was almost too adorable to handle at times, the theme of self-discovery was quite mature and thought-provoking. I thoroughly enjoyed the Little Queen’s journey and the cast of diverse characters she interacted with along the way.

The reason I give this four instead of five stars is that even though the book was short and sweet and simple, there were parts that seemed meandering and unnecessary, or where the prose fell short. I would have liked to see a bit more consistency in the eloquence of the novel. Other than the few lapses, though, the writing style was gorgeous. Some of my favorite lines included:

“The little queen had the frighteningly ecstatic realization that she was there for herself”
“The rain fell against the tent in a rough rhythm that made her heart feel like resting”

I would compare this to the game to Monument Valley (if you haven’t played it, go check it out and you’ll see what I mean)–it is minimalist, elegant, and, for lack of a better word, aesthetic. I’d definitely recommend The Little Queen for those looking for a light, nostalgic, and heart-warming read.

What a wonderful story I was lucky to read early. That is a book that I wish I could gift to a ton of people, the kind of book that could make almost everybody smile.

It was first brought to my attention thanks to the tweet linked below. I thought I should give credit where it’s due since I would never have been aware of this lovely tale without it.

The Little Queen almost feels like a reaction to The Little Prince, because in here there are only female characters, contrary to The Little Prince (still a very nice book) crowded with men, and talking animals/plants/objects, but no women. To people who deeply love The Little Prince, (I know there are a lot of you 😉 ), I would very much recommend to give The Little Queen a chance. It is not the same thing, but I think the nice fuzzy feelings you might have felt reading one might resemble the ones you’ll feel reading the other.

Our little queen goes around her world and meets a lot of different people, all of them using “she” pronouns. They have all imaginative jobs description like book sniffer, plant lotioner, etc. This journey starts on a sad note, since the little queen just lost her parents and tries to find someone to take her place, since she doesn’t feel up to what awaits her. But it quickly becomes a wonderful sweet tale. I wouldn’t call it a fable because it doesn’t really try to teach lessons to the reader with a heavy hand. There are indeed advices and life lessons to be learned here, but it is done subtly.

This is a tale both about self-discovery and discovery of one’s home, one’s kingdom in this case.

It is poetic, lyrical. In a way that even subjects like poop and fart are talked about in a super cute and clever way. It seems weird told like that but it really is! This novella also deals with grief and love. I found myself highlighting and bookmarking way too much, almost one every two pages. It is a warm story, a story to cuddle up with, to read alone or with someone, a relative or a friend. While I’m often uncomfortable around children, I really felt the need to read or gift this book to a child.

From friendship, to love, to understanding and learning new things and meeting new different people, this little book manages to accomplish a lot of things in a short number of pages, alongside some super sweet illustrations.

I loved everything about this adorable and charming novella, and since it is suitable for every age I would recommend it to everyone.

This was a quick and absolutely delightful read. We follow the adventures of a little queen who just lost her parents and don't know how to be a little queen.
This is a story about self-discovery, friendship, grief, love, and everything that makes us human. The poetic writing kind of reminded me of The Little Prince, stating deep thoughts about humans, relationship, life etc through simple sentences. The writing was absolutely amazing.
This is the kind of book that sets you in a good and philosophical mood.
Also I was greatly surprised to find an f/f romance! It is finally time that we include queer relationships in children books.
I highly recommend this book.

A really unusual and charming book, this feels older than it is if that makes sense, very classic and with lots of meaning and messages throughout. It's a hard one to put into words, but a definite must read. A really beautiful book!

DNF at 44%.

Once upon a time there was a little princess who became a little queen when both her parents died unexpectedly. Grieving, lost, and confused, the little queen decides to embark upon a great adventure, traveling the world to learn more about her subjects – and perhaps persuade one of them to take her place. She is not quite sure what a queen does, but whatever it is, she does not think it for her. And so she comes to meet the book sniffer, the dream writer, the sawyer, and the foreshadowing artist, and … well, I’m not sure what happens next, because I gave up right around this point.

It’s not that The Little Queen is a bad book. The writing is lyrical and whimsical and has a dreamlike quality to it. I like the idea of a little queen getting out there and doing her thing, and I love that all the people she meets – from architects to librarians to artists – are women. And the various occupations are pretty darned creative. But.

I had a hard time determining the intended audience for this book. The style of writing makes it feel like a kids’ fairy tale, yet there are a fair number of Jeopardy words sprinkled throughout. It feels quite young, until it doesn’t.

Perhaps more importantly, I simply couldn’t get invested in the story. There isn’t much plot to speak of, and the little queen as a character is one-dimensional. I just didn’t care about her much, one way or the other.

That said, I notice that several reviewers have marked this as a f/f fairy tale, so perhaps it’s worth a second look.

I completely adored this precious and beautifully written fairytale! I saw it recommended on various diverse Twitter accounts and thought it sounded like something that I would enjoy reading. And it was, it really was! I honestly wish I had the words to do it justice and truly describe how gorgeous it is. The writing was lyrical and had a magical quality to it that just brought everything to life. Plus, it featured cute illustrations that further added to the fairytale feeling. The mixture of the story and illustrations reminded me of the books I read in my childhood. It definitely made me heart happy!

The story is about a little queen who is unsure if she can properly rule her kingdom. So, she sets off on an adventure to explore her kingdom. Along the way she meets new people, makes friends and falls in love. I loved how the characters she met were women of various walks of life that show and teach her so much. I also really liked how this story featured a f/f love story. It’s so simple and pure…they were just so perfect together!

Another reason why I just can’t stop gushing about this book is its message of acceptance. The book and its characters embrace differences and never judges people for the way that they are. It promotes self-acceptance and choice. This is such a beautiful and important message for people of all walks of life, but especially young adults who will hopefully read this book.

Entirely charming, The Little Queen, is how I would imagine a rewritten The Little Prince to be. It is quirky, populated by imaginative characters, and such a sweet fairy tale novella.

Prompted by the death of her parents, the little Queen searches for someone to help her become a great Queen. Her journey leads her into the paths of many people – the book sniffer, the dream collector – and many more who all teach her a little bit more about life. Along the way, the little Queen in her search to be a Queen, discovers things about herself, the person she wants to be, as well as falling in love.

The writing in this book is absolutely delightful. It is succinct and lyrical, while still managing to convey some interesting ideas about what a good Queen would be like. You can’t help but see similarities, even to the lovely drawings, to The Little Prince. But this, in no way, detracts from the charm of the story. The little Queen is entirely sweet and she goes on a journey that, in simplified form, all of us struggle with: the quest to find ourselves. (Also I love when I read about libraries in books!)

This novella is absolutely precious and I would love to see many more drawings within. It would be a wonderful contemporary upgrade from The Little Prince. Beautiful with words and ideas alike, this whimsical novella inspires us to follow our dreams, embody ourselves, and the journey to find ourselves.

I was so excited to receive this book. It is described as young adult fairy tale. It is a very short book and can more accurately be described as a long, short story. I was intrigued despite it being outside my usual genre. The book is very well written and addresses very complex coming of age issues. The Little Queen has to grow up quickly when her parents die. Although they have tried to prepare her for the world, their passing leaves her at a loss. She embarks on a journey literally and figuratively where she discovers the kind of woman she wants to be. The story has a clear message that is so important for girls these days.
The writing ,while extremely poetic, is not my style and I had a very hard time following the rhythm and cadence at times. Some of the sentences were unclear to me and it left me re-reading. I think this book would be very difficult for many readers. In addition, I wish the book had a different title. I could not help thinking of the book The Little Prince. The Little Prince is a classic book that is on a level of its own. Therefore, thinking about it while reading another book is not a fair comparison. These books seem to be in a genre all their own. Perhaps they are young adult, or perhaps, the main character just happen to be a young adult
Overall, I had a difficult time becoming engaged with this book despite the likable characters and the journey they go on. I like the message and the tone of this book and I can recognize that this book is an artistic endeavor. However, personally, it did not resonate with me.

The Little Queen is a cute story, and beautifully illustrated, but unfortunately this was not the book for me. I wouldn’t go as far to say that I disliked it. In fact, I feel fairly neutral about it, and for that reason this IS a book I would be willing to recommend to certain people. My main complaint is that I felt unsure about what this book was trying to be. On Netgalley it was marked as poetry, and on Goodreads it is marked under young adult. Frankly, I’m not sure if either label fits, but I don’t know of an alternative that would better describe this book. Even though this wasn’t a personal favorite of mine, I think someone who is more familiar with Geddes’ writing style would find this story highly enjoyable.
Rating: ★★★