Eight Princesses and a Magic Mirror

One of my favorite reads of the year so far! Eight princesses nests nine stories within each other, creating a multicultural tapestry of princesses that defy the passive ribbons-and-curls assumptions about the role. The eARC was black and white so I wasn't able to fully enjoy what I suspect will be gorgeous illustrations. I will be buying a copy of this for both myself, my library, and several young people who I hold close to my heart.

I was drawn to this book's appealing cover and its promise of interesting tales inside.  Indeed, readers will enjoy eight stories about modern, bold young princesses along with beautiful illustrations.  Plus, there is a magic mirror; all in all a fun read and a Guardian book of 2019.

The author draws readers in in the first short chapter of the book that is written in a familiar fairy tale style.  In it, an enchantress is asked to be a godmother and realizes that she needs to figure out the best attributes for a princess.  The answers she receives do not seem adequate so, with the help of a magic mirror, she goes on a quest to learn more and the stories begin...


In the first, a princess's sister is ill.  Though the palace is filled with knights, none are willing or brave enough to seek the witch who might provide a cure.  So instead, a princess who needs to tie her glasses on with string, is the one to go on a quest.  What will happen?  Feminist adults will enjoy what does and the encouragement that is given to a girl to be strong and to believe.  So it goes from there for the rest of the tales until the final one in which a building project is successfully scuppered in order to save a garden. Throughout all of the stories the mirror is a constant as the reader learns about the qualities that a princess requires.


Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this fun and empowering take on the fairly tale in exchange for an honest review.

This is not so much a retelling of tired old princess stories, though it does take on the Fairy Tale mantle. The stories are told in the fairy tale style, but these are princesses we have never met before.

The framing of these stories of eight princesses through the ages, is that an Enchantress wants to know what gifts to give to her goddaughter, and the best way to do it, is to find out about other princesses and what makes the they way they are.

So, she takes her magic mirror, makes it into a compact one, and sends it out into the world to be with these princesses.

Sometimes they are Changlings. Sometimes they are displaced Russian princesses running from the Russian revolution and hiding in Paris. Sometimes they are simply girls named Princess living in a block of flats.

It is a charming way to see what makes a good leader, what makes an interesting human being. And so, we learn lessons from each story.

It isn’t too heavy handed, though at times you expect to learn a lesson.

Interesting take on what makes a princesses.

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

It's hard to fight bias, because when I first heard about this book in review journals -- I knew I would love it. When I first read the title, I was hooked. When I first read a description, I was hooked. When I saw the cover, I was hooked. This is all before I realized this book is filled with GORGEOUS full color illustrations. What I'm saying is, it would have taken a lot to get me to dislike this book.

This is the story of eight princesses and a magical compact mirror - enmagicked by an enchantress who is trying to figure out the essential qualities that make a princess. As the mirror travels around the world, being passed from princess to princess through the generations, readers realize that princesses can come in a lot of shapes, sizes, and colors. I found the pacing of this book to be just right - which does not always happen with stories told in vignette - and the mirror is an effective device to connect all of the stories.

This is, of course, to say nothing of the illustrations which I would like to have framed prints made of.

This was such a lovely book!! An enchantress is asked to be the godmother of a newborn princess and asks the mirror on the wall for help. The mirror travels through time and location to eventually return to the enchantress and offer up direction for the enchantress’s role as godmother to this princess.

I have two girls and am always looking for good role models for them to learn about. with my younger daughter’s obsession with princesses, that hunt for strong role models tends to be a struggle. Well, not anymore. This book offers 8 different princesses to admire, respect, and emulate. With varied ethnicity, race, religion, location, and feel, each of the princesses in this book is unique. Yet they all share the same qualities we hope for our daughters: strong, resilient, moral. I am really exited for this book to be published—I’ll be buying a copy to share with my girls.

This offers a nice twist on the classic fairy tale. The eight stories in this book follow a magic compact mirror as it travels across time and to different lands in the hands of different princesses (some classic royalty, some symbolic). There's a lot of productive diversity in this book; the stories are set everywhere. It begins with the classic medieval story, but the rest take place everywhere, from Ireland, Africa, the Middle East, Russia, and a contemporary urban setting. The illustrations are both dreamy and vibrant and help with the transition between stories. I also appreciate that the stories don't have romantic elements or depict women being overly reliant on men; there's a strong feminist element. Overall, I think this is a great collection for any middle-grade (or adult) reader.

Eight Princesses and Magic Mirror is a delightful and diverse book about what it takes to be a princess. An enchantress is chosen to be a baby princess' godmother. She promises to help her new godchild be an excellent princess, but then she realizes she doesn't know exactly what that means, so she send her magic mirror on a journey to discover what makes a princess excellent because:

"Pretty, tidy, and kind to animals.
It wasn't enough."

The mirror's journey takes it to many different places, and we meet eight very different princesses. They don't fit the mold of traditional princess stories. One wants to sail the seas. Another keeps a crocodile as a pet. Another braves a witch to save her sister's life when her sister's suitors fail.

This is a really lovely book. The stories are charming and show girls that there are many different ways they can live (princess or not). It's an important and powerful message for young girls. The princesses in these stories are all individuals who go against stereotypes and blaze their own trails. The illustrations are gorgeous and add a lot to the stories.