The Goose Girl (Books of Bayern)

I teach 7th and 8th grade English and have recommended this book to both boys and girls. I've not had one student dislike it yet! My mom turned me onto this book years ago because she thought it was adorable, and I read it in a day because I didn't want to put it down. This book is not a piece of "classic literature" with intricate themes or extremely fine writing, but it is a sweet and enjoyable tale for those looking for something light and fun.

Shannon Hale has proven to be a real creative, original and compelling writer. I was taken in by her storytelling, and completely sold by the characters! The Goose Girl is promising to be my favorite book of 2008. I couldn't put it down and when I finished it, I definitely wished there was more!

This is a wonderful fantasy love story. While it was written for maybe a younger audience, I thought it was great. It is wrapped up nicely in the end. I would recommend this as a light read or maybe something fun for beach-time reading.

Shannon Hale struck gold with this book. It had a great story line and great characters. I literally couldn't put it down. It had plenty of fantasy as well as genuine characters whose problems you can relate to.

Well written, great characterization, simply a delightful, well thought out, engaging and throughly entertaining book! I couldn't put it down. I recommended not only this but all other books by Shannon Hale. She's fabulous.

Princess Anidori-Kiladra Talianna Isilee had a way with animals, birds mostly, that made her an interesting heir to the throne. Shannon Hale, the author of this beloved story, catches your attention with the story of a young crown princess who deals with her own betrothal to a strange prince in a far away kingdom. As she is making her way to the neighboring kingdom with her company tragedy strikes and she is lost, wandering through the forest alone. She soon stumbles across a humble cottage, and is taken care of by a stubborn widow and her son. She joins the widow's son and some friends as they travel into the city where the Princess is supposed to become queen. There she finds that her friends have betrayed her, and that an impostor has taken her place as queen. The rest of the story is of Princess Anidori's struggles to reveal her true identity and take back her place as the rightful queen. Along this journey the princess uncovers things she never knew about herself and what true friendship really means. She even finds love, and joy in the happiness of others.
Shannon Hale throws many twists and turns throughout this book as you follow Princess Anidori's adventures of loss, courage, and love. She describes each characters feelings remarkably well and leads into the next book, 'Enna Burning" very well. She had great success in putting together a book that makes you laugh and then cry on the very next page. I read this book for the first time in 6th grade and was blown away with what a great book it was. Reading it again as a Sophomore in High School has just the same effect. This book is very well written and I would highly recommend it to anyone wanting a good, clean romance filled with adventure and suspense.

I thought this book was a bit simplistic in style, but it was still an enjoyable read. I wish it had been a bit more atmospheric. Between the updated, modern attitudes of the characters and the sparse descriptions, the book seemed much more modern that its intended setting. I liked it, but I felt like with a bit more effort, it could have been fantastic instead of just good.

I really enjoyed this story. It was an easy read but the plot was good and kept me engaged. A couple times towards the end of the book I thought I knew what was going to happen and I was wrong so that was kind of fun. I'm looking forward to reading the rest in the series.

This book was purchased at the request of my teenage daughter so I cannot provide a helpful review. What I can say, from my daughter's actions, is that the book "smells" good. Not sure what it is about new books, but the first thing she does is randomly open the book and stick her face in it to get a whiff. Her reaction indicated that it did pass the "smell" test. That is worth two stars in my book as a dad. The book did arrive before the expected time in good condition which is also worth two stars. As far as content, I will probably never be able to review that since there are many other books that are much higher up my reading list.

I really enjoyed the story, enough to order the next two books. Believeable characters, historical details, class distinctions, and Bayern is Germany in every way. Also the story line is a classic love story-good overcomes bad with an exciting climax. I highly recommend it!

enchanting style, captivating characters, provocative injustice, sweet romance, magical realism, intriguing conspiracies -- this book has everything that I could ask for in a novel! This story bridges the gap between fairy tales and naturalism; breathing life and unpredictability into the world of fantasy.

My daughter and I have recently discovered this author, and have enjoyed all three of her books. This is the first one. It is well-written and interesting, especially if you like "fairy tale" type stories. It is appropriate for all ages. The characters and story line were imaginative -- it didn't feel like I was reading the same old stories I've read before. We highly recommend this book!

Entertaining every time I read it. I only buy books I think I will read again, and I know I will continue to read this book again and again. Very engaging. I hope that Hale's books other books are just as interesting, as I will look into those as well...