Princess Ben

by Catherine Gilbert Murdock

This third novel by Murdock is a departure from her first two modern day works for young adults. Princess Ben is more of a fairy tale complete with magic mirrors, a flying broom, and somewhat wicked queen. Ben, short for Benevolent, is a princess of a imaginary mountainous kingdom. Since her father is brother to the king, and her mother dislikes the confinement of life at court, Ben has been allowed to grow up with a great deal of freedom--she plays with village children, she wears what she wants, runs where she will, and most of all, eats as much as she wants. Consequently, Ben is rather pudgy. Ben's carefree life comes to a crashing halt when the king and both her parents are murdered while on a short ceremonial journey. The queen takes Ben in hand, forces her to live in the palace, wear beautiful but uncomfortable clothes, take dancing lessons, and eat very little. She is being prepared to become the ruler of her small country and the bride of the prince of a stronger neighboring kingdom. When Ben rebels, the queen moves her into a tower room connected to the queen's own chambers. She is locked in at night and watched every minute of the day. But Ben soon discovers that her cold tower room connects to a magic room. There she learns a number of helpful spells which get her into more trouble than she bargained for. But, this is a fairy tale, and eventually, Ben lives happily ever after! This is a fun read with witty allusions to a number of familiar fairy tales.

Reviewed by Mrs. Sams