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The Wide-Awake Princess
In this amusing, eloquently told story, created by Katherine Paterson specifically for artist Vladimir Vagin to illustrate with his beautifully detailed watercolors, there was born a wise little princess who was different from everyone else. Miranda had been granted the gift of being wide awake all her waking hours. Thus, unlike those before her, she was able to see that the peasants of the kingdom were overworked and starving while the nobles lived in selfish luxury. Miranda, with confidence and determination, forms an innovative plan to help her people overcome their oppression, and in the process reveals the power of words to vanquish ignorance and bring about change.
47 pages, Hardcover
First published March 20, 2000
127 people want to read
About the author
Katherine Paterson
164 books2,384 followersKatherine Womeldorf Paterson is an American writer best known for children's novels, including Bridge to Terabithia. For four different books published 1975–1980, she won two Newbery Medals and two National Book Awards. She is one of four people to win the two major international awards; for "lasting contribution to children's literature" she won the biennial Hans Christian Andersen Award for Writing in 1998 and for her career contribution to "children's and young adult literature in the broadest sense" she won the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award from the Swedish Arts Council in 2006, the biggest monetary prize in children's literature. Also for her body of work she was awarded the NSK Neustadt Prize for Children's Literature in 2007 and the Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal from the American Library Association in 2013. She was the second US National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, serving 2010 and 2011.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
February 4, 2011
I guess I just don't get the whole Katherine Paterson is a wonderful author thing.
I found this story to have some promise, but it also felt very disjointed in some places. I found some holes in the logic (at least to my logic). When Princess Miranda's parents (who spent her entire life ignoring her) died she mourned them because she felt they never took the time to know her. Seems like a child as alert to the world around her would have either made sure her parents participated in her life or figured out they were not worth the trouble.
Miranda later meets an old man who plays the flute and lulls her to sleep when she'd rather watch her surroundings. Really? She has a fairy's gift to always be wide awake all her waking hours. Wouldn't that include a time where she wants to stay awake?
A woman who is likely in her mid to late 30's (judging by the age of her young children) is weaving a tapestry to remind the people of how much better life used to be in the kingdom. Really? Wouldn't most of the other peasants be at least her age and remember anyway?
I won't even mention how odd and abrupt the endng was.
I did read it aloud to all of the library classes as part of a district wide reading challenge because it was fairly short, but so not a favorite.
I found this story to have some promise, but it also felt very disjointed in some places. I found some holes in the logic (at least to my logic). When Princess Miranda's parents (who spent her entire life ignoring her) died she mourned them because she felt they never took the time to know her. Seems like a child as alert to the world around her would have either made sure her parents participated in her life or figured out they were not worth the trouble.
Miranda later meets an old man who plays the flute and lulls her to sleep when she'd rather watch her surroundings. Really? She has a fairy's gift to always be wide awake all her waking hours. Wouldn't that include a time where she wants to stay awake?
A woman who is likely in her mid to late 30's (judging by the age of her young children) is weaving a tapestry to remind the people of how much better life used to be in the kingdom. Really? Wouldn't most of the other peasants be at least her age and remember anyway?
I won't even mention how odd and abrupt the endng was.
I did read it aloud to all of the library classes as part of a district wide reading challenge because it was fairly short, but so not a favorite.
June 20, 2010
Ah perhaps it is message heavy but what this boils down to is a very engaging fairy tale. The story is well written and enjoyable. The messages of learning by listening and leading by empowering others are terrific. This reminds me just a little of other stories but it is sufficiently unique in the way it evolves. I liked Miranda a lot, especially how her friends are a few special animals. I appreciated her mindfulness (although I do wish it wasn’t gifted to her, as for me it makes it less special) and her compassion, and her humility, and her intelligence.
This has a long story, with a lot of text, compared to the average picture book, but it’s easy enough to read to a child/children in one sitting. I found it to be a very satisfying tale.
I think that the illustrations were very well done. Some of my favorites were of Miranda and the hound, goat, and horse. I like the humorous ones too, and the ones showing the outdoors/the land, most of them really, even though I wouldn’t call this art style my favorite if it showed up in another book/context.
This has a long story, with a lot of text, compared to the average picture book, but it’s easy enough to read to a child/children in one sitting. I found it to be a very satisfying tale.
I think that the illustrations were very well done. Some of my favorites were of Miranda and the hound, goat, and horse. I like the humorous ones too, and the ones showing the outdoors/the land, most of them really, even though I wouldn’t call this art style my favorite if it showed up in another book/context.
March 3, 2009
My son and I enjoyed reading this, and talking afterwards about the many lessons, including mindfulness and leading by listening. Great read.
November 17, 2016
Although an original story, it is told in the style of a folklore. Great story and pictures.
February 24, 2020
The same team who did "The King's Equal" wrote other books together? How did I not know about these before? Certainly, this couldn't be as good as one of my favorite childhood classics. Well, I'm so pleased that Paterson and Vagin proved me wrong. "The Wide-Awake Princess" is now one of my new favorite children's books, and I couldn't be happier that I've discovered it at last. Beautiful illustrations matched with a lovely story that carries a good message - this is one for the whole family, and a definite keeper!
November 5, 2019
I had a little downtime between classes and I didn't find The Yellow House Mystery so I read this. I thought that the princess would be cursed with never being able to go to sleep. But no, she was blessed with the ability to always be wide awake and alert and perceptive. Not exactly intriguing like "The Light Princess" by George MacDonald.
January 1, 2018
Favorite quote: "One morning she woke up and realized that however sad she felt, there was work to be done. She was queen now whether she liked it or not." (page 24)
February 16, 2018
Dad read to Jacob and Ellie...krb 2/14/18
December 18, 2018
"If you know that being wide awake in a sleeping world is a gift and not a curse, you are even wiser than I had hoped."
—The Wide-awake Princess, P. 28
I would give this book two and a half stars.
I think that all kids, especially, will be able to easily identify with the beginning plight of Princess Miranda, who is looked down on by the three nefarious usurpers of her crown title as being too young, too short, and too...other things, as well, to be able to run the kingdom as queen following the untimely death of her royal parents.
Miranda, though, has something that these nobles (and her parents too, for that matter) do not have: Fresh, untainted eyes by which to see the sufferings of her potential subjects and sympathize, not just to the point of feeling bad for them, but to where the prick of her conscience is strong enough to lead to a proactive response.
Miranda's reaction to being rebuffed by the three unsavory nobles who take over her father's crown is to spend time in the world of the king's subjects, to find out what it means to be a commoner, and ultimately, perhaps, to help bring about a better kingdom.
A book that is elegantly written by the extraordinary Katherine Paterson, I believe that readers who take the short time necessary to read "The Wide-awake Princess" will find it to be a satisfying and rewarding experience. It is a book that will teach and entertain, and from which more insight can be gained each new time that it is read.
After all, what more does it mean to be young than to be "wide awake in a sleeping world"?
"She rarely spoke, because she had learned that when you listen you learn a great deal more than when you speak."
—The Wide-awake Princess, P. 32
—The Wide-awake Princess, P. 28
I would give this book two and a half stars.
I think that all kids, especially, will be able to easily identify with the beginning plight of Princess Miranda, who is looked down on by the three nefarious usurpers of her crown title as being too young, too short, and too...other things, as well, to be able to run the kingdom as queen following the untimely death of her royal parents.
Miranda, though, has something that these nobles (and her parents too, for that matter) do not have: Fresh, untainted eyes by which to see the sufferings of her potential subjects and sympathize, not just to the point of feeling bad for them, but to where the prick of her conscience is strong enough to lead to a proactive response.
Miranda's reaction to being rebuffed by the three unsavory nobles who take over her father's crown is to spend time in the world of the king's subjects, to find out what it means to be a commoner, and ultimately, perhaps, to help bring about a better kingdom.
A book that is elegantly written by the extraordinary Katherine Paterson, I believe that readers who take the short time necessary to read "The Wide-awake Princess" will find it to be a satisfying and rewarding experience. It is a book that will teach and entertain, and from which more insight can be gained each new time that it is read.
After all, what more does it mean to be young than to be "wide awake in a sleeping world"?
"She rarely spoke, because she had learned that when you listen you learn a great deal more than when you speak."
—The Wide-awake Princess, P. 32
May 24, 2012
I recently reread this book after many years and noticed things that totally flew over my head the first time. I remembered the vibrant illustrations and the idea that "The Wide-Awake Princess" was supposedly the opposite of "Sleeping Beauty". What I didn't notice before, however, was what 'wide awake' really meant. Ms. Paterson wasn't just referring to being wide awake physically, but also being wide awake spiritually. In other words, her princess Miranda isn't blind to the sufferings and injustice in the world. And she actually fights to bring change to her kingdom. This seperates Miranda not just from Sleeping Beauty, but almost all fairy tale princesses. I'm not sure if other young children would like it - since its themes are more sophisticated than the average picture book - but it's a nice read for people who enjoy more complex children's stories/fairy tales.
December 13, 2011
Such an incredibly charming and wonderful book!!! How is it that I've never stumbled across it before??? My daughters and I were all immediately pulled into the story. The princess is born, but everyone is so bored that they don't bother to celebrate; only her fair godmother visits her, and gifts her with being wide awake during all her waking hours. The princess grows up energetic and curious, thoughtful and fair and always eager to learn. Her parents are selfish and thoughtless and the kingdom is falling apart because the peasants are over-taxed, but the wide-awake princess figures out how to empower the people and bring change to the land.
May 14, 2014
Although I didn't think the book was fantastic, it is a great fairy tale about a smart and witty girl, that is AWARE. Like the message, yes cliche, but a good book to read when you like fairytales and need a dose of reality.
April 16, 2009
this book has been sitting on my bookshelf since i was a kid, supposedly. but i had never read it until this year. it was rather good.
April 5, 2013
Very charming and clever twist on many different fairy tales. A quick read....
May 12, 2014
Interesting take on a combination of tales. I am really not sure about this book.
August 3, 2016
Good read aloud for age 8 or 9, I think
June 12, 2017
Strong princess who is awake and willing to make changes.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews