The Birthday Ball

As her sixteenth birthday approaches, Princess Patricia Priscilla escapes her boring existence by taking her chambermaid's place at the village school. While the castle is abuzz with preparations for the ball at which three "repulsive rulers" will present themselves as suitors, "Pat" experiences the delights of learning delivered by the new schoolmaster. Elissa Steele's regal voice is a wonderful fit for Lowry's engaging tale. Her enunciation has the clarity of a gemstone, and she trills Lowry's droll alliteration and repetitions with ease. (How many rhyming adjectives are there for Delicious the cat?) Steele's deliberate pacing lets the delights of Lowry's language shine. A.R. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award (c) AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine

February 15, 2010
Lowry uses her knack for cleverly turning familiar stories on their heads (last seen in The Willoughbys
) in this tale about a princess who's utterly bored with privileged palace life. With her 16th birthday and her mandatory choice of a husband fast approaching (at least she gets a choice, unlike most fairy tale princesses in her situation), Princess Patricia Priscilla hatches a plan to pose as a student at the village schoolhouse for a taste of freedom before her big day, when she will be expected to choose a suitor. Readers will quickly see why the top contenders—Prince Percival of Pustula, Duke Desmond of Dyspepsia, and the conjoined Counts of Coagulatia are still “eligible” bachelors—and will have no trouble guessing her best match. Throughout, Feiffer's wiry ink illustrations paint the characters in offhand caricatures, adding to the merriment. Employing elements from the “Prince and the Pauper” as well as ample doses of humor and slapstick, Lowry sets the stage for a rowdy denouement. The emphasis never strays from the predictable or silly, but fans won't mind. Ages 8–12.