Welcome to The Boychick’s Bookshelf! In this series, I review children’s books of interest to those who want to raise children free from and opposed to kyriarchy. These reviews will focus on books which showcase stories and lives beyond the dominant culture of white straight middle-class families, or which contain explicitly anti-kyriarchy messages (anti-racism, anti-ableism, anti-sexism, anti-heterosexism, anti-cissexism, anti-violence, anti-colonialization, and so on).
The Paper Bag Princess
The Story
“Elizabeth was a beautiful princess”, engaged to the snobbily-drawn Ronald — both of whom appear to be prepubescent — when a dragon comes, burns down her castle (and burns off her clothes! — at which illustration the Boychick accurately points out “she has no nipples!”), and whisks away her fiancé. Elizabeth dons the closest thing to a garment she has left — a paper bag — and sets off to find and rescue Ronald. When she tracks down the dragon’s lair (by following the trail of horse bones), she tricks the dragon with fawning praise into using up all his fire and then flying around the world so fast he promptly collapses asleep. The dragon now unarmed and unarousable, she slips past and frees the prince. Rather than being appropriately appreciative, Ronald declares her a mess, and tells her to come back after getting cleaned up when she is once again “a real princess”. Elizabeth retorts that his appearance is that of “a real prince”, but he is “a bum.” The final scene shows her skipping away — happily alone, still clothed in her paper bag – into the sunset, and we learn “They didn’t get married after all.”
Intended Audience
Elizabeth and Ronald are both white, blond, and (obviously) class privileged — at least until Elizabeth’s castle burns down — so the annoyingly usual expected audience of middle class white families applies. More specifically, The Paper Bag Princess seems aimed at white girls who are already familiar with the princess narrative, but I wouldn’t say that’s necessary: while the Boychick hadn’t yet been exposed to that narrative, it didn’t hinder his enjoyment of the book.
Changes in the telling
My main problem with The Paper Bag Princess — apart from the white, blond characters — is when Elizabeth declares Ronald to be “a bum”. Although the meaning of “bum” as “buttocks” predates that of “tramp”/homeless/lazy person (and let’s just pause a moment to marvel and be disgusted at the conflation of “homeless” and “lazy”), and outside the USA the bottom definition reigns supreme (if, thanks to US cultural colonialism, not exclusive), its primary use in the USA is lazy/homeless, particularly in the “you are a” construction. (In fact, the Boychick protests when I use bum for butt — it’s the one Britishism he actively rejects.) And as long as that strong implication of, and conflation of, “lazy hobo” is there, I am not willing to use it as an insult. Thus in our readings, we’ve changed it to any number of other insults, including jerk, butthead, or — my Doctor Who fanatic’s favorite — “giant eyeball“.
My only other concern with the book, which I can’t do anything about, is the way Elizabeth uses flattery to outwit the dragon. I love that she defeats him nonviolently, with only her intelligence and words, but it bothers me a bit that she uses such a stereotypically feminine way of doing it. “Is it true” she asks, that he can burn up ten forests/fly around the world in ten seconds? And then, when he does, she plays every bit of the easily-impressed femme and proclaims it “magnificent”. While I don’t think there’s anything particularly wrong with what she did, I do wish that she could have used her quick wit to out-think the dragon in some other way, if only to show girls that relying (even in such a fabulously subversive manner) on the tropes of femininity isn’t the only way to get what they want.
Right on!
The above caveats aside, I adore the messages of this book: intelligence and character are far more important than appearance, vanity will lose you your lunch (or post-castle-entrée snack), don’t stick around with someone who can’t appreciate you for who you are, girls are entirely capable of doing the rescuing, and the princess doesn’t need to end up with the prince to be happy. It is, essentially, a second wave feminist wet-dream of a kids’ book, and I love it for that, even as I acknowledge its concurrent problems.
But does it appeal? The Boychick’s take
The Boychick really likes The Paper Bag Princess, though I will say that seems to have more to do with the dragon than with the feminist messages. His absolute favorite part is first whispering and then yelling “Hey dragon!” with Elizabeth, as she checks that he’s well and truly out of it before freeing Ronald — I would not read this book with him any time I needed him to be especially quiet! But it seems to be just right for the stage he’s at: enough of a story to be engaging, but not so long and involved he loses track.
Buy it, Consider it, Skip it, or Compost it?
Consider it. (Link goes to Powell’s; or buy through Amazon.) The white leading characters, the use of “bum” as a derogative (again, given that we are USian and it doesn’t really mean arse to the Boychick), and Elizabeth’s use of flattery stop me from offering it my highest rating, but I do still love and recommend it. And, as demonstrated by how involved the Boychick gets, it is simply fun, and as willing as I am to share with him not-so-fun selections, to have one that is so upbeat that also carries excellent messages I find worth the imperfections.
Your Take — and Your Chance!
Have you read The Paper Bag Princess? What do you think, and what do your kids think? What other books with strong female protagonists and subversion of the princess narrative do you know of, and would you recommend them?
AND! Because I was sent a copy by a fabulous reader (thank you!) after buying one myself and before taking it off my wish list, I have an extra — which means one of you gets to have a copy. Simply comment below to the effect of “please enter me!” by 11:59pm Pacific Daylight Time (UTC – 7) Friday the 27th of August 2010, and I will draw a name at random the next day. Winner will be contacted via the email used to comment, and will provide me with shipping information.
Anyone, anywhere in the world is welcome to enter — I only ask you to refrain if you already own a copy.
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Purchases made through the Powell’s and Amazon links offered here support this blog and compensate — quite minimally — my time and work as a blogger. I encourage you to support local, independent booksellers whenever possible, but if you’re to order online anyway, why not support an independent blogger?
Have a book you want me to review? Suggestions are always welcome, and books sent to me via my Wish List receive priority review status and are an excellent way to support and encourage the Boychick’s Bookshelf project.
I really like “The Paper Bag Princess” and would love a copy for my little one!
Enter me please!
At 2 am it’s understandable, but the Powell’s link isn’t active.
I totally missed the missing nipples. Very observant of Boychick. And I kept wondering how a paper bag survived the fire. But I completely agree with your take on the book.
It’s interesting to me that I suspect that I’d have a whole different reaction to the outwitting by flattery thing if the main character were a boy. Then it’d just fall into the “picaresque” category and I’d think no more about it. Just shows how deep into the psyche these cultural tropes penetrate, even for a crabby old independent woman like myself, who has never in my life manipulated anyone through flattery. That I can remember, anyway.
Enter me, please! English-language, feminist kiddie books are about as hard for me to get here in Argentina as maple syrup – thanks for keeping this open to people far away!
I would love to have a copy and I have a great time reading your picks to my 3 kids! They like them, most of the time.
Enter me, please!
Ooh! I would love a copy for my boychick (hee! I love that term) and to possibly review for my blog (with a link to your review as well, I love your reviews!).
Lily, aka Witch Mom
I find it a fabulous book for little girls who have been fed and refed the “proper” princess story. It can undo a lot of that damage. Babette Cole has one about a princess on a motorbike, too, who also prefers to have her own life.
I’ve been reading the Paper Bag Princess since I was prepubescent myself. My 6-year-old rejected it as “doing the story wrong” when she was about 3, but likes it now.
Great review!
We used to have this book. It disappeared – I’d love another copy! So please do enter me.
The flattery/feminine wiles of the book doesn’t set off my irritation-meter, simply because I’ve seen that meme (flattery anyway) with many male protagonists getting out of a bad scenario or tricking a bad guy. Although your point is duly noted.
And for some reason on this last mini-topic I’m reminded of this excellence!
I would love to enter and check it out… I know I have read about this book before, but we have not read it yet!
OooOO Enter me please!
I adore “Paper Bag Princess”. But sadly, my 5-year-old daughter does not. She actually agrees with Ronald, and I can only shake my head in shame. How have I managed to allow my own child to be convinced that princesses must be Disney-fied? Oh, the horrors!
Since I have a dream of re-claiming this story, and my daughter’s view of herself and the world, I will ask to be entered.
I actually already have a copy somewhere, signed by the author back a million years ago when I was a kid and got to see him read it. I was pretty fond of that story, and always did appreciate that it presented an alternative to the standard princess narrative (with which I was entirely familiar).
I would love a copy – please enter me! And meanwhile I will add it to my list, so if I don’t win I won’t forget to pick it up. It sounds like a decent antidote to the “standard” princess tale.
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I was going to say that I’d love a copy – but macondo mama can have my entry. I can trot right down to Borders (no small book stores in the quasi-rural/suburbia where I live) to buy one anytime.
Have you read “This Rabbit Belongs to Emily Brown”? My girl & I love reading it. While the main character & antagonist are both white (the queen is white with rose cheeks and blonde hair to boot) what I really enjoy are all of the adventures that Emily Brown invents for her and her rabbit, Stanley. They motorbike across the Sahara, deep sea dive at the Great Barrier Reef, explore the Galaxy, etc. Certainly not typical ‘girl’ adventures. Emily Brown also doesn’t put up with any crap when she realizes that the queen took Stanley from her. While reclaiming Stanley, Emily Brown also displays empathy for the queen and gives her advice to help her create her own Stanley.
Oh – have you read “On the Day You were Born”? Such a great message that all things in this world are connected. My girls doesn’t quite get it yet (she’s 2yo), but the book always strikes a chord with me.
CrazyCatMadame — I haven’t heard of This Rabbit… I’ll check it out, thanks. :)
I do have On the Day You Were Born (two copies, actually), and while I really like aspects of it, it has its downsides. Biggest is that it is *so very* northern-hemisphere centric. If nothing else, I wish there were a version for the southern hemisphere!
Have you read ‘Princess Smartypants’ by Babette Cole? It’s been around since the mid-eighties I think, and has a delightful line about how she ‘enjoys being a Ms’. I’ve not come across the Paper Bag version before but will definitely check it out soon. I have this notion that if I bombard my daughter with enough ‘alternative’ princesses, she’ll somehow miss out on the Disney princess obsession that seems obligatory these days. Might be kidding myself, but one can dream!
My wife got a copy of the paper bag princess from someone when she was maybe a teenager, so we’ve always had it around. I obviously like the story much more than ordinary princess stories. We haven’t read it in a while, so we should really dig it out again.
Our daughter at 4 is somewhat into princesses, but not overly so. She loves that princesses are beautiful (and because she is 4, something is “beautiful” if it has sparkles, flowers, and bright colors). She’s not so obsessed that it drives me crazy, and I’m happy if she wants to dress up and enjoy “beautiful” things, provided that she has room in her life for lots of things, not just the “beautiful” ones. For that reason, I’m thinking paper bag princess might be a good choice for us — a reminder within that princess narrative that it’s not all of the pretty things that are really important, but who you are as a person.
I would love a copy of this book. It’s one I keep my eye out for at garage sales, as we already do a lot of borrowing from the library to keep costs down. So far, though, I haven’t found a copy anyone want to part with, however!
I don’t at all need to be entered into the contest –I grew up with this and many other of Robert Munsch’s books around the house. (A fair number of which, from my shakey remembrance, have anti-kyriarahic themes, such as the story of the little girl who finds a baby in a sandbox, and trades it to a truck driver for his truck (he has always wanted a baby))
But yes, happy to read your review, and I like your site!
Please enter me! I read the review and got to the end, deciding to get it from the library when the little one is a little less little (right now she likes to chew books more than have them read to her). I’d love to add it to our bookshelf!
Please enter me!
My almost-4 boychick has begun asking very pointed questions about what he sees and hears around him (particularly in our diverse neighborhood with many women wearing hijab), and your posts always remind me to question and think carefully about what I’m telling him. Thanks, as always, for your care and effort in sharing your writing with us.
Please enter me! Sounds like a book my daughter would enjoy.
I’m not entering the giveaway because I already own it.
However, I did want to say that what I like so much about this book is that my daughter constantly wants to read princess books. With a book like this, I feel like I can oblige without feeling all “Ugh” about it.
We’d love to win this book!
I have a 6 month old that I am starting a “library” for and would love to have this book!
Please enter me! I bet my daughter will love it.
I want to enter this.
I have yet to read the book but I think this is one my daughters would enjoy.
I have a huge adversity towards Princesses. My family actually threw me an Anti-Princess Baby Shower equipped with a princess pinata to whack with a golf iron (a little overboard, but that’s what made it fun and silly). This is the only book in my house that includes a princess. I’ve always had a problem with 1. princesses needing to be rescued by princes 2. a princess not being complete until she was married to a prince and 3. the heterosexist nature of only portraying the traditional male-female romantic relationships. In that sense, I LOVE this book.
I really appreciate the posts, especially about how Elizabeth uses flattery to outwit the dragon. I never thought of that! I do however take some issue with Elizabeth not being a bit more green. 150 forests get burnt down just to try to save that ungrateful prince? What a waste! Just think about the impact on the ecosystem! Personally, I don’t think Ronald was worth it.
PS My daughter decided she wanted to be the Paper Bag Princess for Halloween. I am very proud.
Love the Blog. Also would love another copy of the book. Mine a bit beaten up.
I want a copy but I think I’m too late and too far away to win said copy. I’ll buy one eventually, though. :)
Apparently the author has written a whole bunch of other non traditional type of kids’ books, too. I keep meaning to find some of them and have a look.
Kareena — There are still days left to enter (I figured I’d give everyone a week), and when I said “anywhere in the world”, I didn’t mean “…except where Kareena is”. ;)
And yes, definitely get it (if you don’t win it). And I’ll be looking at Munsch’s other books, too.
“…except where Kareena is” is always implied, though. This is because “where Kareena is” is the ass end of the world. ;)
Honestly, though, there are more deserving ppl who want it. I bet it’s some ridiculously cheap price on Book Depository or something. I just need to get off my arse and do some kid book shopping.
Kareena — ass end of the word explicitly included. :-P But it IS a cheap book. US$6.95 brand new.
Please enter me :)
We already own and ADORE this book. Yes, the main characters are two white blond kids, but it was originally published in 1980 when everyone in America was white… oh wait. Scratch that.
Regardless, I would like to put forth the argument that I have always seen Elizabeth as being clever vs. using her ‘feminine wiles,’ that even if she is “Pink does not mean weak,” that the dragon reminds us that “Pride comes before the fall,” and that switching the word ‘bum’ to ‘giant eyeball’ is a brilliant conclusion. Huzzah.
The “defeat by flattery” reminds me of “Puss in Boots,” where the cat has the ogre/giant/whatever change into a bunch of different sized shapes and then asks him to change into a mouse and catches and kills/eats him. There’s a tradition of flattery as treachery, y’know?
It’s way too young for your boychick, but my 17 month old LOVES “Please Baby Please” by Spike Lee and Tanya Lewis Lee. I’m actively looking for books that DON’T just feature white males as the protags, and this fits the bill while also being just plain awesome.
I was just thinking about this book the other day! (In the context of being very annoyed by the range of princess-ey books in the Works, all stereotypically pink and frilly) I could have sworn that the insult in the version I had was ‘toad’ rather than ‘bum’, so maybe it gets changed stateside…
Please enter me.
This would complement our book collection well.
oh please enter me! i would love to add this book to my son’s bookshelf :-)
Please enter me! :)
My little one likes dragons and princesses and will just think a bum is an arse. Not that he’d say arse it’s a bit rude.
Enter me! My daughter is young still, but we’re trying to instill a love of literature and a hearty desire to subvert the norm.
Its hard to find princess books where the women aren’t helpless. I would love to have this book in my daughters library. Thanks for doing the review!
Please enter me!! I so miss this book from my childhood.
And the winner, by random.org draw, is… Kate! I’ll be contacting you and asking for your mailing address. :)
If you’ve the means, those who didn’t win can order it via Powell’s or Amazon, and help support the work of this blog.
We have this book at my preschool, and i personally find the book oddly hilarious, although i tend to personally shun any stories about princesses as a general rule.
Have you read Princess Bubble? That is my
favorite!