The Invisible Princess

by Faith Ringgold

A stunning and original African American fairy tale set during slavery, from Caldecott Honor artist Faith Ringgold.

When Mama and Papa Love realize they are to have a child, they're astonished to learn she will be a princess who will one day bring freedom to her parents and all the slaves on the plantation. They pray she'll be kept safe from Captain Pepper, the cruel plantation owner. And indeed, at the moment of her birth, a miracle does the Powers of Nature make her invisible, and the Prince of Night whisks her from her mother's arms to safety.

Years later it is Patience, Captain Pepper's blind daughter, who discovers the Invisible Princess. Together, Patience, Mama and Papa Love, and the Powers of Nature help the Invisible Princess realize her destiny of peace, freedom, and love.

Genres: Picture Books, Fiction, Childrens, Historical Fiction, Family, Cultural

32 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

Reviews

[Mariah Roze · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to one of my Goodreads friends, I was suggested the author Faith Ringgold. My class will be reading all her picture books that my library has because they are great for our Black History Month unit.

This book had a really cool theme and was very educational. It talked about slavery and the fear of having children because they would be born into slavery.
The ending talked about forgiveness and change. It explained how someone as evil as the slave owner could turn into a better person.

I really liked the messages and information this book shared. It gave me a lot to talk about with my students.

This book is a higher level picture book. I would say at least upper elementary age.

[Matthew · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is more about folklore dealing about slavery in the south. It deals about this girl who is born among slave parents who becomes the Invisible Princess who the mother seeks protection for fear that the owner will take her away.

No one can see her except those who are pure at heart such as the slave owner's daughter who is blind and yet can still see her. I enjoyed this book which dealt about suffering and forgiveness which isn't easy when discussing about slaves and them being tortured.

As usual I love the artwork and the richness with the drawings, colors, and how the paintings make an impact for me. I feel like for a child who does not know about slavery, this will definitely not help them since its a folklore tale.

[Esther Soberanis]

Text-to-Teaching Connection
The Invisible Princess by Faith Ringgold is a Folk Tale and Myths text that can be used in the classroom for reading developing. During reading time students will be in small groups to read the text. After reading, students will then discuss the main idea and related details. Students will also model how to differentiate important details from not-so-important details. We will then have a class discussion about the book.

[Elizabeth]

I quite liked this book.

It starts off not fucking around: "Long ago, in the tiny Village of Visible, way down in the deep Deep South, there lived two slaves called Mama and Papa Love. They were called that because of the great love they had for children, though they never had any of their own for fear that Captain Pepper, the mean old slave master, would sell their child and destroy their loving family."

I also liked the first crowd scene of white people, they all have faces as white as their clothes, with just eyes on their faces no other features, so they look like inhuman ghosts or something.

I was a little uncomfortable with the depiction of The Giant of the Trees as obviously Native American coded, because I don't know if this depiction is based on an actual indigenous tradition in the Deep South or is just using stereotypical images to invoke "Native American." (The other Great Powers of Nature are simply brown or white skinned -- mostly brown -- with varying garb, some indicating royalty, but none that struck me as particularly stereotypical.)

One reviewer says that "No one can see her except those who are pure at heart," but the text merely says, "the Great Lady of Peace asked the Prince of Night to conceal the beautiful princess in his great cloak of darkness and keep her forever safe from human eyes" -- THAT's the loophole that allows the slave master's blind daughter to see the Invisible Princess. I appreciated that I never had the impression reading the story that the (white) blind daughter was the salvific figure for this (black) slave community.

The slave master's change of heart at the end is a bit abrupt, but actually makes a fair amount of sense given the narrative.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful fairy tale about a princess born to a slave family who is whisked away by the Prince of Night who makes her invisible because otherwise it is feared that she will be sold by the evil slave owner. The slave daughter's blind daughter can see the beautiful invisible princess and tells her father who vows to find her and threatens any slaves who try to hide the girl. The slave owner's daughter warns all the slaves of her father's evil plan. The daughter & slaves together with the Great Powers of Nature (The Giant of Trees, the Dream Queen, The Sun Goddess, The Sea Queen, The Great Lady of Peace, the Queen of Bees and the Prince of Night) make everyone invisible. The slave owner finds everyone missing, including his daughter and cries in grief and repentence for the cruelty and pain he has brought the slaves. The Great Lady of Peace hears the slave owner's cries and agrees to take him to the invisible land where everyone is free.

[Renae Williams]

This book explores a lot of touchy subjects that took place during slavery. We always hear stories of the adults tragedies during these times, but it was interesting to see how painful it was for the children as well. I couldn't imgagine being seperated from my parents at such a young age and this happend all of the time. It is important for children to learn about the past, and this book presents it in a classy way.

[Catherine Woodman]

I really love the work of Faith Ringgold and making African American history available to kids--however, this book is by no means representative of her usual work. The illustrations are better than the story but neither is great. The story is too complicated and unengaging to follow easily, and the piece I liked best is the cover illustration.

[Stephanie Sun · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a really good book! The imagery was awesome and I especially liked the Prince of Night...ok, so about the ending, basically their village becomes invisible....does that mean that they all died? Because some part of me thinks that there can't be a happy ending for this type of story....help anyone?

[Antonio · Rating 5 out of 5]

“The Invisible Princess,” is a story that illustrates the pain and fear that slaves experienced as a result of the ever present possibility of being separated from family members. The book also demonstrates the importance of religion in the lives of slaves and their masters.

[Cya]

An African-American folktale about couple who wants a child. It takes place on a plantation with an evil plantation owner. This book has great illustrations. This is a good book to read during Black history month or just to show folk tales from different cultures.

[Ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This picture book tells about freedom. Although it is a fiction, it can help children understand about American history of slave and plantation. I also like its picture. The colors are beautiful and the illustration looks fantastic. It matches well with the story.

[Michelle Odenbaugh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book! It really demonstrated how different black and white people's lifestyles were back during slavery.

[Andrea Retana]

I would like to use this book to teach students about folk tales from different cultures during Black History Month.

[Sherrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful folktale which explores slavery and injustice in a way younger children can understand. The drawings are colorful and the dialogue is lyrical. Highly recommend for children ages 4-9.

[Brittany Basalla · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very sweet book that talks about freedom. Not necessarily one I would pick out again. Enjoyable but not one of my favorites.

[Aubrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Firstly, I absolutely love the illustrations in this book. It wasn’t a book that could keep my toddler interested and engaged from page to page, though. It is a picture book with plenty of text that would be more suitable for upper elementary grades.
Secondly, the Christian mysticism is not just hinted at but it’s apparent and striking throughout. The slaves get stung by bees, eat honey cakes, and ascend “up, up, up above” to live in peace. The slave owner repents and begs to be stung by the bees so that he may also go to The Invisible Village of Peace, Love, and Freedom.
I can’t help but to be reminded of the common, proslavery explanation that it was through divine means that Africans were brought to the United States to be slaves and thus also be exposed to Christianity and, finally, truly saved. Of course, many slaves adopted Christian beliefs and practices and it was through the practice of the religion that their hope in freedom was profound. It is not lost to history that the same religion used to enslave them also provided solace.
So, if you’re keen on taking a journey down this lane, go ahead and pick up The Invisible Princess. Because I can promise you that you will spend the entire day reading and rereading, researching and questioning, wondering and asking, “How is the religion that Captain Pepper (surely) used to enslave these people the same religion that promised (and provided) the slaves with the freedom they desperately craved?”
You will ponder about forgiveness for an hour.
You’ll search for more reviews and articles written by those with more knowledge on the subject than you.
I think it’s been beneficial for me to have read this book but i definitely have more questions than before I picked it up.

[Connor/Caroline Craven/Louis-Jean]

This tells the story of a girl who is born to an African-American family of slaves in the south. She is stunningly beautiful and dazzles the daughter of the slave owner with her grace and beauty. This story analyzes slavery and what makes people beautiful.

This story is fascinating, raw and powerful. It really is hard to think that something as awful as slavery ever existed in our country, as books like this highlight in an extremely poignant fashion, but as always knowledge and perspective are our greatest allies in never repeating our mistakes and analyzing them through a critical lens.

[Allyson · Rating 5 out of 5]

So many good things about this book. It is a great way to introduce the shameful history of slavery in our country to young children. The artwork is approachable and attractive; it captivated my 4yo. I was happy to have a princess she could relate to that was not Disney. We have read the Paper Bag Princess by Robert Munsch, but I think for her age, Ringgold’s artwork was just more exciting to her. When I asked her later what the book was about she said it is about love.

[Adynah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Glorious!

[Sierra Butler]

A wonderful read-aloud. I used this for middle school grades; it stirred up many discussions on race.

[Sally · Rating 4 out of 5]

The art of Faith Ringgold is exquisite.
I love the halos of the princess and the goddesses who protect her.

This is one you just have to read for yourself.

May there continue to be hope.

[rags · Rating 5 out of 5]

read @ high museum exhibit

[Debra Golden · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed it, and was inspired to look for more of Ringgold's children's books after showing here work to one of my classes. Strong images and a more positive message than I actually anticipated.

almost everybody lives happily ever after feel on my second read