The Princess in Black Takes a Vacation

My daughters love this series! I bought the book for my advanced 1st grader and she's able to easily read most of the book independently. My 3rd grader also loves the book, but it's not advanced enough for her. The full color pictures are a very nice addition.

My daughter adores this book series. She will sit on the couch and digest and the entire book in one sitting if she can. I think they are cute (illustrations and concept) but find them to be just ok. It's fairly predicable and the fact that this is the 4th book and princess magnolia hasn't been honest with her friends about her important work of saving everyone from monsters or asked any of them for help annoys me. That said if there is a 5th book I will buy it for my daughter because the pro's far outweigh the cons of this series.

My girls are big fans of The Princess in Black series by Shannon and Dean Hale (with illustrations by LeUyen Pham), so I was very excited about the opportunity to read The Princess in Black Takes a Vacation.

This is the fourth book in the series, so that means that Princess Magnolia has been fighting monsters for quite awhile. Of course, real princesses don’t fight monsters (big wink), so she transforms into The Princess in Black when the going gets tough. All of this sneaking and costume changes and subterfuge have been quite exhausting, and Princess Magnolia decides to take a seaside vacation. Will she be able to enjoy some quiet time on the beach- or will a monster ruin her plans for rest and relaxation?

The Princess in Black Takes a Vacation is an adorable book. The writing is very witty, and it’s wonderful to see a book with a strong female lead. It’s also surprisingly realistic; fighting monsters is pure fantasy, but it’s easy to empathize with being exhausted from too much work.

The illustrations are adorable. There are illustrations on almost every page, which enhance the narrative and help readers maintain their concentration. These illustrations are full of little details, and it was very funny seeing Princess Magnolia’s reaction to the monster on the beach. We also enjoyed seeing Princess Magnolia’s friend The Goat Avenger trying to maintain law and order back at the palace.

This book is perfect for children who are confident readers, but not quite ready for full-length chapter books on their own. The book is longer than a picture book, and it is broken up into chapters. However, the font is larger than regular paperback, and there are not as many lines on each page. This book could read in one sitting, but the chapters make it easy to break up into multiple reading sessions.

I would recommend The Princess in Black Take a Vacation. This book functions well as a standalone, so you don’t have to read the other books in the series first. My girls are 7 and 9 years old, and they both liked this book. My “big kid” reads middle grade novels, but she said that this was a funny book. Likewise, my seven-year-old twins enjoyed reading this book too. We are looking forward to reading more books from Shannon Hale!

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley/the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

After fighting fifteen monsters this week, the Princess in Black is exhausted, so when a new monster-fighter, the Goat Avenger, suggests that she take a vacation while he watches out for monsters, the princess heads for the beach to rest and relax. When a sea monster threatens the people at the beach, though, Princess Magnolioa must transform into the Princess in Black once more.

The Princess in Black books are so much fun. The illustrations are awesome; they are cute and fun, and the fact that they are on nearly every page helps make the book extremely readable. The text is funny and simple but not baby-ish, making this a great choice for readers who ready to move beyond easy readers into short chapter books. Totally adorable and tons of fun!

I read a copy through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

My 6 yr old really enjoys this series - it is fun and easy for her to read. The story has a nice blend of girly and tough for little girls that like their princesses to be heros too.

The Princess in Black Takes a Vacation is another delightful installment of this terrific super hero series. After constant battling with goat-eating monsters from the monster world, The Princess in Black (aka Princess Magnolia) is exhausted. The Goat Avenger (aka Duff the Goat Boy) convinces her to take a vacation. He'll manage the monsters while she's gone. Princess Magnolia does just that, and she runs into Princess Sneezewort while she's relaxing at the beach. Only her enjoyment doesn't last long. A giant sea monster comes along and disturbs everyone. The Princess in Black saves the day again, while the Goat Avenger is left with little action back at home.

As always the chapters are short, the story is engaging, and the illustrations add to the fun. My son and I enjoyed reading this book together. We alternated chapters a little bit, so he could do some reading, although in the interest of time (because we always want to read these books in one sitting), I read the majority of the book. As the mother of a boy, I was happy to see Duff featured a little more in this book, but as always the Princess in Black in the true hero. It's a great feminist story for both boys and girls to read and love.

My daughter just loves this series. She's a new 2nd grader and loves to read these. Looking forward to the next one we've ordered.

My 7 year old daughter read this in one sitting ... this is her favorite series ever !!

These books are great for keeping my kindergarten intrigued and engaged with the storyline.

My great-granddaughters love each and every story. I read each new copy before passing them on.
The stories hold our interest right up to the last page. Hooray for fabulous authors and illustrators.