Reviews with content warning for Child abuse - A Little Princess

Reviews tagging 'Child abuse'

A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett

45 reviews

reader_crystal's review against another edition

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dark hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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tlaynejones's review against another edition

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Strong character development? No
Diverse cast of characters? No

This was my favourite book when I was 8 or 9, I read and reread it so many times. I loved this story so much.
It’s been over 40 years since I’ve even looked at it, and I thought it had mostly faded away from my mind. Yet once I started it this time, it all came back so clearly I almost felt like I had it memorised. I began this read with a sense of trepidation; I remembered enough to know that I would find racism and a deeply colonial pov, but I didn’t remember enough to know any details or to guess how this reading would leave me feeling.
What I found was a book that encapsulates the hypocrisy and neglect of white supremacy and christian ‘benevolence’. Some will say, oh it’s ok, it’s a book of its time, so the racism and classism, and all the other isms in this story, can be excused. But why? The child that I was, that desperately needed a fairy tale about being rescued, deserved to also have books that allowed a more complex world to exist. That didn’t create paradigms that center her potential for rescue based on her whiteness, her class, her politeness, her stoic ness, or her feminine ‘goodness’. A book that didn’t reinforce class amongst white people, and completely devalue and dehumanise all people of colour. Children deserve to have magical fairytales to escape in to, without the burden of white supremacist messaging. There are so many wonderful children’s and middle grade novels available now. For me, this one is best left in memory for what it was then.

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katie0528's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

A classic children's story I never read but wanted to give a go now after listening to excerpts on the Calm app. It's a cute story about positivity and imagination in the face of adversity, but some of the language and portrayals of minorty characters could be considered offensive to a modern reader.

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jstar1's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective relaxing sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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dichap's review

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adventurous emotional hopeful lighthearted sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

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mousecat's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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lauren_shilling's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

I adore this book. Technically this is a reread, but I'm not counting it as such since it's probably been around ten years since I read it and I'd forgotten all about it until I saw it in a bookstore one day and decided to buy it. I am so glad that I did, because I absolutely loved this book. It was so heartfelt and sweet and beautiful, and I loved everything about it. I loved the characters, I loved the story, and I loved the writing. Sara was such an adorable kid, and her passion and talent for imagination is so admirable, and in some ways relatable. As someone who has often used imagination to get through rough patches, the way Sara relied on her ability to pretend things, such as being a princess, was familiar to me, and it was kinda validating to see that presented as a coping mechanism that not only works, but can be encouraged. Sara was also very resilient, which I also really loved. She was so strong and was always caring and kind, even when she was shown so little kindness herself. I really loved this book, and I would high recommend it to readers of all ages who love to read about the joys and power of imagination!

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