Customer Reviews
Historical novel that proves: girls have always rocked! 
2008-06-22
All parents of girls need to buy/read this book to their daughters. This novel was the epitome of girl power and one of the best retold fairy tales I've ever read. Catherine Gilbert Murdock, known for her "strong girls" fiction, once again hits a homerun with this poignant fantasy. I hope that she continues to gift the world with her writing for many years to come!
It was all about her weight! 
2008-06-16
My friend asked me if I wanted it because she didn't finish it and so I asked her why she was offering because she usually is very possessive of her books. She said she only read a little bit and got bored. So I took the book and I started reading it and eventually finished the book. It wasn't necessarily boring; it was just repetitive. Like, throughout the book she talked about her weight and how much she loved to eat. I mean, it's a little over the top--she talked about it in every chapter. Over all, not a very satisfying book. I usually love these kind of books like Fairest and Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine. This was a let-down. :( On the bright side, I never actually bought it!
Add this to your collection 2008-06-07
If you've enjoyed books by Gail Carson Levine (e.g. "Ella Enchanted", "Fairest"), Shannon Hale's "The Goose Girl" and its sequels, and Mercedes Lackey's 500 Kingdoms series, you'll be glad to add this to your collection. I'm looking forward to reading more from Catherine Murdock.
Princess Ben is human -- meaning she makes mistakes, she isn't always very nice (though never cruel), she has vices and she isn't a perfect little adult age 15. Such a relief! I'm a "grown-up" (supposedly) graduate student, and I'm not (usually) embarrassed to admit my lesiure reading isn't exactly scholarly. Many similar stories make me sad that if I'm not already perfect, I must really be the evil step-sister instead.
Must Read! 2008-06-03
Princess Ben is absolutely wonderful! Exceptionally well written, with good character development, smart plot twists, and very engaging story line. Thoroughly enjoyed all the tie-ins to traditional fairy tale plot lines - very cleverly done!
Good book for young girls 2008-05-29
This book was recommended in BookPage through my library. It states, "...Ben learns that 'whatever you radiate comes right back at you'-something that's central to the positive changes in her relationship with Queen Sophia, and her ultimate ability to solve problems for herself and the kingdom." Isn't this what we are looking for in our own children? I think this was a good addition to our home library. I highly recommend this book for young girls in their tween years.
Ella Enchanted Still Reigns 2008-07-20
In the author's attempt at eloquence, she uses such unnecessary flowery words, which painted no pictures or brought to mind no feelings. It was simply wordy for the sake of wordiness, and felt like the author had turned to her thesaurus at every sentence to see what extravagant turn of phrase she could create next.
Because it is a coming of age tale, at the beginning the main character is not likable in the least. But by the end, she is not lovable, either.
With a constant focus on food and her large weight, she suddenly has the relization that she's been eating for comfort, and not for sustenance. She instantly changes her ways, and food isn't mentioned again. Ridiculous. Eating disorders are never so easily conquered, and are perhaps too complicated a subject to be dissected in a book so short.
The love story element was under-developed, and I felt that I cared little for either Ben or her Prince.
The cute things I did appreciate, though, were the references made to fairy tales. The girl trades some "magic beans" for a cow, loses her shoe after a ball (by throwing it angrily at the prince), is stuck in a tall tower, and is laid under a spell to sleep.
If the author had used fewer words trying to sound intelligent, and more words fleshing out her characters, I might have loved this book. As it was, I didn't hate it. But I barely liked it.
Rated G. No parental guidence necessary for this one.
Absolutely fabulous read! Could not put down! Well needed today.. 2008-07-18
First off, I must share my favorite line(s) from this book that sent me into fits of giggles:
With that, I hurled the slipper at him, not caring if I caused his decapitation. (I did not.) Marshaling what little dignity I yet possessed, I stomped down the corridor -- challenging indeed with one shoe -- and around the corner. I lay awake for hours. The prince had no right, not one, to indict me so, and if I had held the slightest hope of the book's assistance, I would have climbed at once to my wizard room for a spell with which to punish him. Death, perhaps, or humiliation. A croaking frog would be nice, particularly a frog that retained Florian's dark eyes. I should keep it in a box and poke it occasionally with a stick; that would be satisfying indeed.
Princess Ben is one of the most well thought-out and intellectually relevant books that I have ever read in today's time! Princess Benevolent has quite a year and must learn how to live up to her name. I earnestly can see where a reader can grow along with Ben, learning some difficult lessons that we especially today wish to ignore. Through this book I can see many a young, teenager, or older girl grow more into herself and what she will someday be. I feel like I learned somethings about myself through this book. All around a fabulous story, with twisting plots and turns I did not expect. The first section was a little droll, and I was waiting for excitement. Well the excitement came! and that build-up had been proper and necessary. I strongly encourage anyone to read this book. Buy it for your tween and teenage gals and let them go on the adventure. Goodness me, go on it yourself!
Fantastic Fantasy 2008-07-14
I was first captivated by this book when searching for new reading material for my young son. My eye was immediately drawn to the lovely cover, so I picked it up and started skimming the first page. I couldn't put it down! I bought it that day.
Princess Ben is a wonderful fantasy story set in a ficticious kingdom with rumors of dragons. When Ben loses her beloved parents, it sets into motion a string of fantastic adventures and events for her. From prisoner of war to princess of court, she emerges and transformers herself from misfit to royalty. I loved this book from page one.
It's a must read for those who love a good fantasy with romantic and magical elements. I highly recommend it!
Chubby reviewer 
2008-07-09
This is a story of a over-weight princess with a small authority problem. Some young girls mature late, and Princess Ben seems to be a late bloomer. When she fimally learns her lesson, love comes through.
This story is propelled by strong characters. My favorite stories are when a strong femail takes her life into her own hands, but I learned that circumstances can seem different when looking at them through a new perspective.
A Fantastic Fairytale!! 2008-06-25
Plump Princess Benevolence, sole heir to the throne of Montagne after the sudden death of the sovereign, her uncle, and her parents from unknown assassins, is not enjoying her new situation. Her cruel aunt, the Queen Sophia, is subjecting her to a strict education consisting of all the skills necessary for Ben to achieve to become the proper princess including comportment, dance, penmanship, and needlework, among others. But Ben only wants to mourn her parents' deaths and comfort herself with food; her refusal to cooperates causes her to get locked up in a high tower. While in this cell, Ben accidentally stumbles upon a hidden room with a spell book, and so she teaches herself magic. But, tensions with a neighboring country, Drachensbett, escalate the need for an alliance between the two countries, which Ben becomes caught up in, resulting in a disastrous ball, mountainous escapades, and unforeseen romance, and this amazing story.
I was immediately drawn into Ben's story about how she matured and saved her country. She is amusing and clever although sometimes single-minded. Ben's adventures were very fun to read about, especially the ones involving magic. It was interesting to watch how Ben came to terms with that some of the people she thought were bad, such as Queen Sophia, actually had good intentions. What I found a little strange though were references to world history, such as the building of the Great Wall of China, because the magical aspect of the story made it seem as if the location of Montagne and Drachensbett should not be on Earth. I would've preferred anonymity as to the exact location like in many other fairytales, but I don't really mind because this story was so fantastic.
Catherine Gilbert Murdock is a superb storyteller, and while I have not read her other novels Dairy Queen and The Off Season, I do plan to do so. I was very impressed with Murdock's writing style and unique ideas, and I absolutely loved this story. Princess Ben is definitely high on my favorites list, and I highly recommend it to all readers, and not just only fans of fantasy and fairytales.
