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pizzamyheart's review
3.0
Princess of the Wild Swans is loosely based on the tale The Wild Swans by Hans Christen Anderson.
There were some nice original parts to this version, but it also had many problems.
Highlights:
- the princess stays in her kingdom during quest to break the spell and save her brothers/father/people.
- fun cast of characters
- not too long. Good for an afternoon read and fun for kids.
Lowlights:
- The princess is 12 yet some of her thoughts/actions/responses are more in line with an older teenager. It almost felt like she started this for an older audience then was told to take it down a few levels.
- The spell only lasted a few weeks. (in the original tale it took 7 years)
- The princess had help gathering the nettles (again, in the original tale she had to do it all herself)
- The princess could speak telepathically to others (again, cheap cop out.)
- Lots of extra plotlines that were never resolved (more information about faerie would have been nice. And a reuinion with the guard would have been good too).
Overall, it was a cute fun read, but it really missed the mark on the original tale. This book is a fluffier, friendlier version of the original tale. What I loved about the original was the girl's dedication to her brothers. For 7 years she had to stay silent. 7 years of plucking needles, spinning thread, making shirts. And at the end she's nearly burned at the stake. It's such a powerful story of devotion. This story had very little of that. Yes, she loved her brothers, but it just wasn't the same.
There were some nice original parts to this version, but it also had many problems.
Highlights:
- the princess stays in her kingdom during quest to break the spell and save her brothers/father/people.
- fun cast of characters
- not too long. Good for an afternoon read and fun for kids.
Lowlights:
- The princess is 12 yet some of her thoughts/actions/responses are more in line with an older teenager. It almost felt like she started this for an older audience then was told to take it down a few levels.
- The spell only lasted a few weeks. (in the original tale it took 7 years)
- The princess had help gathering the nettles (again, in the original tale she had to do it all herself)
- The princess could speak telepathically to others (again, cheap cop out.)
- Lots of extra plotlines that were never resolved (more information about faerie would have been nice. And a reuinion with the guard would have been good too).
Overall, it was a cute fun read, but it really missed the mark on the original tale. This book is a fluffier, friendlier version of the original tale. What I loved about the original was the girl's dedication to her brothers. For 7 years she had to stay silent. 7 years of plucking needles, spinning thread, making shirts. And at the end she's nearly burned at the stake. It's such a powerful story of devotion. This story had very little of that. Yes, she loved her brothers, but it just wasn't the same.
mariahistryingtoread's review
3.0
If you check my recent review backlog you can see that I've read about half of Diane Zahler's bibliography at this point. And this is the first one that I think is actually decent. This apparently came out at the same time as Sleeping Beauty's Daughters, but I'd say this is way better than that one though it has similar issues as all of her retellings.
Full disclosure, I've never read a Wild Swans retelling before so the feeling of freshness is most likely related to that. I've read tons of different ones for the more common fairytales like Cinderella or, Beauty and the Beast, so they often need to really blow me away for me to love it. I can still enjoy a more basic tale (and I often do as long as it's somewhat well-written) but objectively it won't be the greatest thing ever. Despite only vaguely knowing the Wild Swans story, this book does almost nothing new with the fairytale to the point that I might as well have read the original.
Princess Meriel has five older brothers. When the King returns from a faraway journey he brings his new wife; who turns out to be a witch. Seeking power she turns Meriel's brothers into swans in order to allow her first born son to have claim over the throne. Aided by Riona, a half-witch, and her little brother Liam she has to undertake a horrible task in order to save them before winter comes.
Based on that description alone if you know the story at all you know the entire ins and outs of this book. The only additions are the half-witch and little brother - I'm assuming. Correct me if I'm wrong, but they feel like totally new made-up characters. That's not necessarily a bad thing because I consider it like a more accessible way of engaging with the story. I mean, this is a middle grade novel after all. How many middle schoolers really would want to read the possibly long-winded probably olde english original? On the other side of the coin, though, it lacks a lot of creativity so I can't in good conscience say this is actually a *good* book. There's nothing particularly innovative about this.
It's written well enough, though lacking in prose and depth. Meriel is the best protagonist of all Zahler's books that I've read. She starts off bratty, but has an arc which is just the fundamental requirement of any character. The romance was cute, though shallow. Another thing I didn't like though was like the Thirteenth Princess the brothers in this barely have any personality. I found it hard to care about them or identify with Meriel's fears because of how bland they were.
So I'd recommend this if you wanted a refresher for a class or if you don't mind a very straightforward, simple read.
Full disclosure, I've never read a Wild Swans retelling before so the feeling of freshness is most likely related to that. I've read tons of different ones for the more common fairytales like Cinderella or, Beauty and the Beast, so they often need to really blow me away for me to love it. I can still enjoy a more basic tale (and I often do as long as it's somewhat well-written) but objectively it won't be the greatest thing ever. Despite only vaguely knowing the Wild Swans story, this book does almost nothing new with the fairytale to the point that I might as well have read the original.
Princess Meriel has five older brothers. When the King returns from a faraway journey he brings his new wife; who turns out to be a witch. Seeking power she turns Meriel's brothers into swans in order to allow her first born son to have claim over the throne. Aided by Riona, a half-witch, and her little brother Liam she has to undertake a horrible task in order to save them before winter comes.
Based on that description alone if you know the story at all you know the entire ins and outs of this book. The only additions are the half-witch and little brother - I'm assuming. Correct me if I'm wrong, but they feel like totally new made-up characters. That's not necessarily a bad thing because I consider it like a more accessible way of engaging with the story. I mean, this is a middle grade novel after all. How many middle schoolers really would want to read the possibly long-winded probably olde english original? On the other side of the coin, though, it lacks a lot of creativity so I can't in good conscience say this is actually a *good* book. There's nothing particularly innovative about this.
It's written well enough, though lacking in prose and depth. Meriel is the best protagonist of all Zahler's books that I've read. She starts off bratty, but has an arc which is just the fundamental requirement of any character. The romance was cute, though shallow. Another thing I didn't like though was like the Thirteenth Princess the brothers in this barely have any personality. I found it hard to care about them or identify with Meriel's fears because of how bland they were.
So I'd recommend this if you wanted a refresher for a class or if you don't mind a very straightforward, simple read.
lobeliaparides's review
5.0
I loved it! It was a very sweet little book, and even though I knew one brother was going to have a swan wing, it still sadned me when he did not fully transform back.
katya_anya04's review
adventurous
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
2.75
carina_shephard's review against another edition
5.0
Actual Rating: 4.5 Stars (seriously, when will they start doing half-stars?)
A fun middle-grade retelling of... *drumroll* The Wild Swans!
The MC, Meriel, is your typical twelve-year-old princess: spoiled, used to getting her own way, and overall a pretty annoying little sister. However, over the course of the book she realizes that the world doesn’t revolve entirely around her, and learns to put others ahead of herself. So if you dislike her at the beginning... she gets better.
Overall, this was pretty great. I loved this fairytale as a kid, but this was the first time I’ve read a retelling of it. Some parts were completely different from the original fairytale (for example, being burned at the stake never comes up), but the basic elements are still there: the swans, the nettles, the courageous little sister, and the evil stepmother. One minor bit- the swan wing- also comes up in here, which I really enjoyed. I also liked the addition of the various monsters that popped in.
If this was specifically for a YA audience, I might complain about the characters being underdeveloped, but as it is I think it works out rather well.
One issue I had with this that was never resolved: Meriel speaks before she breaks the curse. It was made clear before that happened that each word would basically cost her brothers their lives, yet... nothing happened as a result of that??
Recommend for: tweens/younger teens and people who just want a light, rainy day kind of read.
A fun middle-grade retelling of... *drumroll* The Wild Swans!
The MC, Meriel, is your typical twelve-year-old princess: spoiled, used to getting her own way, and overall a pretty annoying little sister. However, over the course of the book she realizes that the world doesn’t revolve entirely around her, and learns to put others ahead of herself. So if you dislike her at the beginning... she gets better.
Overall, this was pretty great. I loved this fairytale as a kid, but this was the first time I’ve read a retelling of it. Some parts were completely different from the original fairytale (for example, being burned at the stake never comes up), but the basic elements are still there: the swans, the nettles, the courageous little sister, and the evil stepmother. One minor bit- the swan wing- also comes up in here, which I really enjoyed. I also liked the addition of the various monsters that popped in.
If this was specifically for a YA audience, I might complain about the characters being underdeveloped, but as it is I think it works out rather well.
One issue I had with this that was never resolved: Meriel speaks before she breaks the curse. It was made clear before that happened that each word would basically cost her brothers their lives, yet... nothing happened as a result of that??
Recommend for: tweens/younger teens and people who just want a light, rainy day kind of read.
evamaria7's review
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
malaynachang's review against another edition
5.0
Probably my favorite Diane Zahler book. Honestly, I think I have read this book seven or eight times. It was so good and I love the romance, the jealousy, and the determination of this book and its characters. Definitely one of my favorites.
buuboobaby's review against another edition
4.0
Another great fairy tale retelling from Diane Zahler. Even though I have never been too fond of the fairy tale this book is based on, I did enjoy this version of it quite a bit. It was hard to put down, and the supporting cast of characters, once again, were likeable.
Full review soon at www.mangamaniaccafe.com
Full review soon at www.mangamaniaccafe.com
operasara's review against another edition
5.0
Princess of the Wild Swans by Diane Zahler is a retelling of the Six Swans. The story follows Meriel the only daughter in the kings household. She adores her brothers and when her father comes home with a new wife who seems to resent their existence Meriel becomes worried. After the new Queen sends her brothers to school Meriel is suspicious. When she finds a new group of swans on the lake that seem like her brothers she knows that something is wrong. She soon finds out that they've been enchanted and she must make them shirts out of stinging nettles and remain silent until the task is done.
This is a wonderful retelling. Zahler does a fantastic job with these retellings in a way that makes them perfect for the middle grade readers who love princesses but have no desire to read a romantic story. This book is full of magic, suspense and girl power. I finished the book quickly and had a huge smile on my face when it was over.
Appropriateness: This is a fantastic middle grade book that is also great for younger advanced readers. The story is fun and interesting full of evil queens and princesses without the usual romance that you would find in fairytale retellings. There is some nice vocabulary the lexile is 819. I would recommend this book to readers 9-13 with the book being short and interesting enough for a read aloud.
This is a wonderful retelling. Zahler does a fantastic job with these retellings in a way that makes them perfect for the middle grade readers who love princesses but have no desire to read a romantic story. This book is full of magic, suspense and girl power. I finished the book quickly and had a huge smile on my face when it was over.
Appropriateness: This is a fantastic middle grade book that is also great for younger advanced readers. The story is fun and interesting full of evil queens and princesses without the usual romance that you would find in fairytale retellings. There is some nice vocabulary the lexile is 819. I would recommend this book to readers 9-13 with the book being short and interesting enough for a read aloud.
skundrik87's review
4.0
This is a very skillful rewrite, with the princess being younger than in the original, so the story is based around her family, instead of having the later plot of her marrying a king and being accused of witchcraft.