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4.19 AVERAGE
4.19 AVERAGE
I read this aloud to my 12-year-old daughter after we finished The Secret Garden by the same author. She enjoyed this book, though slightly less than the previous. She had unfortunately already seen a movie version of this book, which has the father alive at the end. The book is clear that he died. I think she was disappointed by this. Although I much prefer the book over the movie. We occasionally had to pause to look up a meaning of a word, but I consider this a good thing. I think it’s important to build a child’s vocabulary and too often books meant for children are dumbed down. Burnett does not make this mistake. But it is not a difficult book to read, and it was easily comprehended by my daughter.
A Little Princess is the story of Sara Crew, a young girl who grew up in India, but is sent to live at a girl's boarding school while her father is away. She lives in the life of luxury, and is given anything her heart desires. Suddenly, she receives some dreadful news and her entire world turns upside down.
Despite the hardships, Sara never looses her kind nature, nor her imagination. She tells stories to the other girls at the school, and shares her meals when she has hardly any. She is a very inspiring little girl.
Prior to reading this, I had seen the 1995 film adaptation of the book. I loved the original film. The wonder, the imagination, and even the plot. The original story was equally as enjoyable. It is truly a classic that has withstood the test of time and deserves to stay a classic.
For anyone interested, the reasons Sara's father leaves her are different between the book at the movie. As such, the endings are also different. I loved both endings equally, and think they are perfect endings for their formats.
Despite the hardships, Sara never looses her kind nature, nor her imagination. She tells stories to the other girls at the school, and shares her meals when she has hardly any. She is a very inspiring little girl.
Prior to reading this, I had seen the 1995 film adaptation of the book. I loved the original film. The wonder, the imagination, and even the plot. The original story was equally as enjoyable. It is truly a classic that has withstood the test of time and deserves to stay a classic.
For anyone interested, the reasons Sara's father leaves her are different between the book at the movie. As such, the endings are also different. I loved both endings equally, and think they are perfect endings for their formats.
I loved to watch the anime series of this when I was younger. I didn't even realize it was based on a classic tale until much later.
The story is quite simple yet enjoyable. I'm not too sure what to think of Sara though. Her imagination was great, she loves to read and play-pretend, especially when things go downhill. I do like that she is such a good person and always tries to help other people but on the other hand her character traits didn't feel very real. It seems like wishful thinking that a young girl could always be so willing to make sacrifices for other people. She's always polite and helpful, even when she gets angry she tries not get caught up in it. It does add up to a nice moral though: if you always help others who are less fortunate than you are, life will pay you back someday.
The story is quite simple yet enjoyable. I'm not too sure what to think of Sara though. Her imagination was great, she loves to read and play-pretend, especially when things go downhill. I do like that she is such a good person and always tries to help other people but on the other hand her character traits didn't feel very real. It seems like wishful thinking that a young girl could always be so willing to make sacrifices for other people. She's always polite and helpful, even when she gets angry she tries not get caught up in it. It does add up to a nice moral though: if you always help others who are less fortunate than you are, life will pay you back someday.
Spoiler
It surprised me that her father wasn't mentioned again at the end. Everything turns out fine for Sara, she's rich again and can help other people but she is still a young child who has lost her beloved father. It could've bothered her a little bit more.
I used to absolutely LOVE the film of this when I was young. This is my first time reading the book and is it me or is the ending different? I know I said I used to love the film, but it has been years and years since I've seen it. I did really enjoy this though. Frances Hodgson Burnett really has (had) a talent for writing beautiful characters and stories.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
sad
tense
medium-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:
Yes
Since I wasn't wasn't a huge fan of The secret garden I didn't have huge expectations when it came to this story. It intrigued me and it's one of the classics I planned to read eventually but I am glad that I finally read it. I enjoyed it a lot. I loved the characters, I loved the story because I love a good underdog story wheere you root for a character that is unlikely to win but they get everything whilst somone who is evil loses everything. The bad guys are dislikeable, the good guys are loveable and you cannot help but root for them, the story is simple but beautiful - It reminds me on Cinderella a little bit and I loved every single moment of this one. I think that it's a good book for kids to read and see how people that were poor used to live.
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
'A Little Princess' is a new adaptation of Cinderella, but it is heartwrenching and inspiring. Reading the struggles of a little girl in finding happiness in the small things is so impactful. Between magic and imagination and hope, this novel has all the right ingredients to pass on the secret to a peaceful mind.
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-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:
No
I adored this book! It is such a great book. This will be added to my favorite book list.