Princess Lea: The Life Story of Lea Salonga

by Yvette Fernandez, Nicole Lim (Illustrator)

Long before she was Kim in Miss Saigon, the singing voice of Disney’s Princesses Jasmine and Mulan, and a well-loved judge on The Voice of the Philippines, Maria Lea Carmen Salonga was just a little girl from Manila who dared to dream big. Written by Yvette Fernandez and illustrated by Nicole Lim, Princess Lea narrates how Lea went from a six-year-old who landed a part in a local production of The King and I to an internationally renowned performer who has starred as Kim in Miss Saigon, Eponine and Fantine in Les Miserables, and Mei-Li in Flower Drum Song; won honors from the US’ Tony Awards and the UK’s Laurence Olivier Awards; and sung for six Philippine presidents, three American presidents, and the Queen of England. To encourage aspiring young entertainers to reach for their dreams, Princess Lea also lets readers in on common terms in the performing industry and imparts the lessons Lea has learned throughout her journey to becoming a singing superstar.

Genres: Childrens

20 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2013

About the author

Yvette Fernandez is the editor-in-chief of Town & Country magazine. She lived for many years in New York but is happy to be home with her family and her Peter in Manila.

Reviews

[K.D. Absolutely · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the fifth in this series of children's books from the duo of Yvette Fernandez and Nicole Lim. Whenever I see that they have a new book, I cannot resist the temptation of buying it since the book is easy-to-read, definitely has a positive message as it is about a well-loved and inspiring personality in the country and the illustrations are refreshing to look at. Also, a portion of the net proceeds of these books goes to ICanServe Foundation, which provides hope and help to women with breast cancer. It promotes early breast cancer detection through information campaigns and community-based screening programs.

The early 4 books are:

If you want books for your small children to enjoy while at the same time learn critical life lessons, buy these books. You will also be helping the breast cancer patients through ICanServe Foundation.

This book Princess Lea is a welcome addition to this collection because many young children dream of being entertainers on stage or movies someday. The book tells the story of Lea Salonga the only Filipino who has won the Laurence Olivier and Tony Awards for stage performances. Salonga, as you know, beautifully played, when she was just 17 years old, the role of Kim in the musical play of Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil, Miss Saigon. Salonga is much-revered and one of the most admired and most influential Filipinos in the world now. When she opens her mouth to give an opinion on certain matters, the whole nation listens.

I am just looking forward to more books in this series. How about featuring Rosa Rosal, Manny Pacquiao and Megan Young?

[Clare · Rating 3 out of 5]

This storybook is about the inspiring life story of my super idol forever Lea Salonga, how she started as a singer and actress. The things I like about this storybook are first, the illustration. Cutie illustrations of Lea make this book look adorable. Second, how she (Princess Lea) narrates her road to success in a simple but substancial way. Lastly, I also like the sides uhh vague words with its meaning used in the narration that a child is not yet familiar of. Because of that, the vocabulary bank of children reading this book will nourished. This book will inspire kids to reach their dreams whatever that is.

[Oscar Maquito · Rating 3 out of 5]

*3.8/5

[Hannah Laine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I want to read this

[JHACK · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been a Lea Salonga fan for as long as I can remember but I've never heard about this 'til I saw it on Facebook. It can be read in less than five minutes, but I think it was a fun quick read. Princess Lea is like a quick summary of Lea's career, success, love and life in general. Some may like it, some may not. I personally liked it, and of course I'm biased, but what I find amusing about it is the illustration itself. Rob's caricature looks a lot like him! I also liked the part where the author included a list of what Lea learned about acting and life. I just thought that Lea Salonga could've done a better job if she had written this herself.

After reading this, I realized something - I've finally found one of the perfect giveaways for kids this Christmas. =D

[Bambi Toledo · Rating 3 out of 5]

What can I say? I love Lea Salonga. Always have, always will. I'll devour anything that has to do with her. This is probably something that not many people know about me (not even my best of friends) but I'm obsessed with Lea. You know... standing under the shower spray, singing On My Own imitating poor Eponine Thenardier, singing Lesson Number One while cutting through the air with an umbrella, singing Sun and Moon absentmindedly every once in a while -- that kind of stuff. But really, I can't explain why people don't know how huge a fan I am. Maybe it's because imitating Lea is something I do in private all the time, given that I make a complete idiot out of myself I might never recover from the embarrassment. So here ya go, Princess Lea! 3/5 stars! :)

[Val Bayhon · Rating 5 out of 5]

The drawing was so adorable!

[Roxanne Bibit]

ok

[Gab Miguel · Rating 5 out of 5]

THE BEST MY FOREVER IDOL