The Plain Princess

by Phyllis McGinley, Helen Stone (Illustrator)

The King and Queen plan a birthday party for their daughter Esmeralda, showering her with gifts and toys, ordering a feast with entertainment, and inviting a neighboring Prince to play with her. But the Princess is in a sulky mood, and throwing one of her royal tantrums, she goads the usually well-mannered Prince into declaring what no one has ever dared to admit that she is a plain Princess. Faced at last with the truth, the Princess falls into a genuine decline, and her parents offer a great reward to anyone who can make her beautiful. All the wise men try, without success. Finally, the royal dustwoman, Dame Goodwit, offers to make the Princess beautiful in three months if the Princess will come and live in her cottage with her three daughters. The changes that take place are only natural ones; but when the Princess learns to do a truly unselfish thing, her mouth turns up, her nose turns down, and her eyes sparkle like the candles on a birthday cake.

Genres: Childrens, Fiction, Fantasy, Fairy Tales, Princesses

64 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1945

About the author

McGinley was educated at the University of Southern California and at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. After receiving her diploma in 1927, she taught for a year in Ogden and then at a junior high school in New Rochelle, New York. Once she had begun to establish a reputation for herself as a writer, McGinley gave up teaching and moved to New York City, where she held various jobs. She married Charles Hayden in 1937, and the couple moved to Larchmont, New York. The suburban landscape and culture of her new home was to provide the subject matter of much of McGinley's work.

McGinley was elected to the National Academy of Arts and Letters in 1955. She was the first writer to win the Pulitzer for her light verse collection, Times Three: Selected Verse from Three Decades with Seventy New Poems (1960).

In addition to poetry, McGinley wrote essays and children's books, as well as the lyrics for the 1948 musical revue Small Wonder.

Reviews

[Emma | meadowroselibrary · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read this over and over and I never get tired of it! 🥰

[Elaina McClendon 📚🌸 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is definitely a book I am passing down to my kids one day. I loved it! Beautiful.❤️

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this one aloud to my seven yr old daughter in one sitting (she wouldn't let me stop). She was enthralled. I loved the chances it opened up to have conversations on important subjects for young girls (do your looks really matter that much? What are they reflective of? What really changed for the princess and how?).

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Less appeal nowadays, I suppose, because it's so earnest as to be almost didactic, and of course because we don't say that people are 'plain' much less 'homely' or 'ugly' any more. And I prefer Andersen's The Swineherd myself.

But it's still a nice story, with an important message (all too relevant as now too many parents do spoil our children), and delightful illustrations. Try your university library.

[Boweavil · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the first books I ever read. The beginning of a lifelong passion.

[Cheryl Higgins · Rating 5 out of 5]

For children but GREAT. Loved it in 4th grade and read it to classes.

[Samantha Naud · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great writing. Your classic story of the spoiled girl who gains true beauty when she learns to live an unselfish life. Short book for early readers.

[Laura Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

Found this one through inter-library loans, and it was an interesting find! I discovered Phyllis McGinley via her poetry, but was curious to read some of her children's books, such as this one (as well as the aptly named "Boys Are Awful").

The Plain Princess is, as you may have guessed, about a princess who is very ordinary looking. She's got quite an attitude when the prince who's supposed to be hanging on her every move runs off to play with the gardener's child at her birthday party, and throws a royal tantrum. Her parents, the king and queen, realize something must be done... but what?

So her parents offer a reward to anyone who can improve the princess' looks, but the king also threatens all those who attempt to claim the reward with beheading if they fail. Oddly enough, only one woman comes forward to give it a try. She's got five beautiful daughters of her own, and suggests she may be able to improve the princess's looks – but only if she comes to live with them for a while.

I'll let you guess what happens (or read it for yourself), but let's just say this fairy tale ends happily.

[Teri · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really love this story and think it makes a great lesson for children. It is about a princess who has almost everything as far as material possessions, but her physical appearance is described as "plain." I will not divulge what happens to her that increases her beauty, but it makes for a fun story and a good lesson. It is a hard book to find for a good price. It is out of print. I feel so lucky that I bid on a copy on eBay and got a good deal. I had been looking for this book for awhile. My copy is a discarded book from the library.

[Madisyn Carlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a charming little tale about what true beauty really is. In a culture so infatuated with everything shallow and skin-deep, this tale is a good reminder I firmly believe every girl and woman should read.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this so much, such a sweet, quick read with my 7 & 4 year old daughters. I believe I heard Cindy Rollins recommend it, and I was lucky to find a copy through our library system.

[Katharine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read in one sitting. R and N loved it.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book as a child. I don’t have a copy, but I would like to reread it.

[Sharon Buxton · Rating 3 out of 5]

B. fiction, children's fiction, lower elementary, "fairy tale," from stash, keep

[Deirdre · Rating 4 out of 5]

I decided to read this book because it was sitting on my library shelf, and I wanted to see whether it would still be relevant or attractive to today's little girls. I'd actually never heard of it before, even though it's been around for ages! And I loved some of Phyllis McGinley's other books when I was little, especially A Wreath of Christmas Legends.

My verdict? Though not a great book, this is charming, and will appeal to girls who enjoy old fashioned stories and fairy tales. I'd actually rate it somewhere between a 3 and a 4, but I'm following my usual review practice of rating high, rather than low.

A note: Personally, I loved the book design and illustrations -- but the cover, in particular, would look very old and unattractive to many modern children. I can think of several kids who would enjoy the story, though, if they could get past that.

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

"The Plain Princess" is a children's picture book. It's a fun little book about how a spoiled, disagreeable child is viewed as plain, but as she learns to be helpful and unselfish, she becomes "beautiful." It's a nice lesson and an entertaining sequence of events illustrated with colorful drawings. It's probably not easy to find, but I do recommend this enjoyable story.

[Hope · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unlike The Ordinary Princess (by M.M. Kaye) who learns to appreciate her non-regal appearance, this plain princess goes through a physical change for the better as she matures. BUT this is not a book about the importance of outward beauty. Quite the opposite. Charming.

[Lucinda · Rating 4 out of 5]

a princess learns that beauty comes from within. Actually, from without, how we work and love others. a great little book.

[Kara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully illustrated book about a sour and snobbish princess who discovers beauty through kindness

[Kari · Rating 5 out of 5]

My siblings and I felt very much like the Goodwit daughters when we heard this as kids. We had the story though, not the play.

[Elaine Sumpter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like the ethical values of the characters, they were very nice to one another.

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short morality tale about a plain, spoiled, rude princess who learns how to be kind, cheerful, and hard-working. Her attitude and actions transform her outer self and she becomes beautiful.