The Princess Diaries

Good story but I never buy additional books because I think publishing cliffhangers is a disgusting marketing ploy. So if you want to have to pay tons of money to finish the book, this one is for you. Shame on the author and the publisher for this trip off.

Bad, Bad, Bad. This book actually seems like an actual diary from a shallow, narcissistic teen. Something a person, later in life, would reread and be embarrassed about. Not something that is turned into book form. The high ratings puzzle me.

The father and grandmother in this book are both very disappointing characters. Mia's father is nothing like I would have imagined and her grandmother is a far cry from the endearing character portrayed by Julie Andrews in the movie. Lilly's brother, Michael, is mostly a jerk in this book. Lilly is a jerk for a longer amount of time than in the movie. Lars is a poor substitute for Hector Elizondo's character of Joe in the movie.

There is too much emphasis on sex. I didn't enjoy the story being set in New York as much as San Francisco, as it was in the movie. Throughout the book, the phrases "and he goes" and "he was like" are used almost exclusively instead of simply writing "said." - No, I'm not 14 now, but I'm not so far removed that I don't remember what it was like to be 14. -- You can have plenty of teen angst right along with good grammar. These phrases are used so often that I find myself feeling Mia is more likely to be an (ignorant) third grader.

At one point, the phrase "me and him" is actually used! This is the height of ignorance. Mia has supposedly been to private school all her life and seems to do well enough except in math. She should be able to construct grammatically correct sentences. It's ridiculous. Another overused phrase: "I am not even kidding."

I love the movie. The movie is one of my favorites. My recommendation is to skip this mediocre book and watch the movie instead.

The Princess Diaries (Full Screen Edition)

While Princess in the Spotlight is a well-written, somewhat interesting story, I will not give it to my 9 year old to read. I haven't decided about whether I'll toss it into the trash or donate it to the library. It's an entertaining, light read. The characters are quite flat and the plot is predictable, but if you want something mindless for a blue day, you'll probably enjoy this one.
Princess Mia isn't terribly bright, and I'm not talking about her algebra grades. She does strike me as the perfect stereotype of a thoughtless and crude teenage girl. Fortunately, not all teenage girls fit this cookie cutter. If you would prefer that your daughter not conform to the dubious "norm", I would not recommend this book. It can hardly be considered a classic, and there are much better uses for her time.

I first read this book in grade school well before the movie was released. The book is so much better than the movie and quite a bit different.

The book takes place in New York City. This is quite a difference from San Francisco. Genovia is a principality, not a kingdom. Mia’s dad isn’t dead. He simply has cancer which has rendered him sterile. This makes Mia the heir, not his death.

Besides Mia’s dad being super-important in the book, Grandmere isn’t the super-nice Julie Andrews from the movie. She is a tough old lady but not evil or anything. She would do anything for Genovia and right now that means turning Mia into a proper princess.

Mia is a freshman in high school when her father informs her that he is the reigning Prince of Genovia. It takes Mia a bit to realize that makes her a princess. Then Mia’s grandmother, Grandmere, arrives in New York City to give Mia princess lessons.

Besides discovering she is the heir to a small European principality, Mia has to deal with her mother’s romantic life. Mia’s mother is dating Mia’s algebra teacher, Mr. Gianini. Mia, like most teenagers, can’t deal with her mother’s romantic relationships. That is what spurns her first diary entry just days before her father informs her she is a princess.

Mia is definitely an engaging narrator. She effortlessly pulls you into the story. She is just a fourteen-year-old girl dealing with normal life until suddenly it isn’t just normal life anymore. She has to figure out how the balance everything with school, friends, boys, and princess-y obligations.

If you have only seen the movie, you definitely need to read the book. Mia is different than the movie version and the books give so much depth to the characters. This is a great, light read that is highly enjoyable.

This review first appeared at Orandi et Legendi (http://catholicamanda.com).

I listened to Princess in the Spotlight on audio while traveling. Again we have Anne Hathaway as a narrator which is amazing. It was a light read that allowed me to focus on driving while listening.

Princess in the Spotlight begins shortly after The Princess Diaries ends. Mia is given yet another shocking piece of news to start off the book: her mother is pregnant. The surprises don’t stop there, though. Mia is scheduled for a primetime interview, her grandmother is interfering, and someone is sending her love letters.

Most of Mia’s focus in this book is on her relationship status, or lack thereof. It is as though she does not feel that she is complete without a boyfriend and she is only a high school freshman. It is ridiculous and actually sad that this is the way Mia is choosing to define herself.

Then Mia’s maternal grandparents from Iowa show up in New York City with Mia’s cousin Hank. This side of Mia’s family is very different from her father and Grandmere. Once we have met the grandparents Thermopolis, it is crazy to think that Mia’s mother is their daughter. They are nothing alike.

To me, this book was just okay. The characters are still developing as they learn more about themselves, mainly Mia. In all, this was just an easy re-read for me.

This review first appeared at Orandi et Legendi ([...]).

I just really enjoy these books in general. They're really fun books when you're in a reading rut that go by quickly and make you laugh. Quite honestly, this book took me an hour to read! This wasn't my favorite book (I liked the first one better) but if I have to read it to reread the series, then I shall!

I really loved Mia's voice and how the author made her seem so real and alive. Mia is just so dramatic and it's so humorous to read! She's sort of letting the whole princess thing settle in while she adjusts but of course her life takes so many different turns. She has to learn to cope with the press and how to rule a whole country while of course dealing with her family and friends who, at times, can be a little strange and slightly exasperating.

Speaking of Mia's friends, I'm still not entirely sure how I feel about Lilly being Mia's friend. From my perspective, she seems like such a terrible friend and isn't understanding of Mia's situation at all. She came across to me as very whiny and pushy.

As always, I do like the diary style of the book - it really fits Mia's voice and the tone of the whole book.

The Final Verdict:
Another great installment of The Princess Diaries although the first book is still my favorite. Mia's voice is very well done and I loved watching her navigate through teenage life as well as finding out she's a princess and expected to rule a country in a few short months. The only aspect I really disliked was seeing Lilly as Mia's friend. She seemed so pushy and was not good friend material at all.
4 stars

Quotes:
“Lilly: Mia, when I recognize a human soul crying out for self-actualization, I am powerless to stop myself. I must do what I can to see that that person’s dream is realized.
[Gee, I haven’t noticed Lilly doing all that much to help me realize my dream of
French-kissing her brother. But on the other hand, I have not exactly made that dream known to her.]”

“And you know what? Maybe Michael didn’t write those notes. And maybe he doesn’t
think I’m the Josiest girl in school.But he thought I looked nice in my pink dress. And that’s all that matters to me.”

Book: The Princess Diaries
Author: Meg Cabot
Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Let me start out by saying that The Princess Diaries has been one of my favourite books for years. I was about Mia's age when I was introduced to the books. I love the light nature of the book and the diary format. It is a very entertaining and engaging read. Unlike most people, I actually read the book before I watched the movie and I actually do like both.

Mia is a very engaging and realistic freshman girl. I have always, always been drawn to her. She is very passionate about what she believes in and has a certain life to her that words really do not describe. She is the type of girl that girls relate to. She has the normal high school girl crush, bullies, and a crazy best friend. Mia is just simply amazing!

I really do think that Mia's reaction to her being a princess was very appropriate. I think that what makes her strong is the fact that she does not want all the attention that goes along with being a royal. She wants to be a normal girl and have normal problems, but does not want to be in the spotlight. She doesn't let the whole princess thing go to her head and remains true to herself.

So, there is some drama in this book. Mia has a crush on one of the hottest boys in school and keeps praying that he will at least notice her. Plus, there is the typical cheerleader mean girl, and, oh yeah, the bossy best friend. Mia is also close to her mom, but Mia and her grandmother are a completely different story. Mia's dad is also kind of afraid to stand up to his own mother.

Meg Cabot did a wonderful job with the diary writing. It really does seem like a fourteen-year-old girl wrote book. Now, this does not mean that the writing was bad. It seems like Meg was able to beautifully recall what is was like to be fourteen and describe the problems of a teenage girl with amazing style and results. The pop culture references are a little dated- while reading, you have to keep in mind that this book was written in the early 2000s.

I do have a warning for those who think that this is going to be like the movie. The book and movie could not be more different. This book does contain some material that is not appropriate for younger children. The book is not a Disney book, but it is tamer than Gossip Girl.

Plus, it doesn't hurt to reread the series since Mia is making her return to bookstores! The Royal Wedding 2015! When the email came that there was going to be a new Mia book, I actually had to blink a couple of times to make sure that I was reading it correctly....Now, if we could just get another Harry Potter book, my world would be complete.

This volume is getting better and better. Won't you just love receiving love letters from a secret lover? In my younger years, I did receive anonymous love letters and I was in heaven! Especially when I learned that those came from the one I secretly had a crush on. But enough about me.

On Mia's case, she got a bad case of sore throat so she didn't go to school, but that didn't excuse her in her princess lessons. Oh, and there's Grandmere who was always urging Mia to give interviews to Hollywood reporters and the like. Maybe her sore throat was a perfect reason she could use to avoid that interview.

But then, she started receiving love letters from an anonymous lover. Did the letters come from someone she's been eyeing on (Michael perhaps?) or is it from someone from her school? Whoever that was, it surely made Mia's swollen throat heal and soon she was back to school in no time. But will she ever discover whom the love letters came from?

and before I forget - Mia's Mom and Algebra teacher are getting married! Exciting!

I'm on a roll, if you've noticed. Once I started Princess Diaries, I don't want to stop anymore. Book 2 was promising, so I'm definitely looking forward to Book 3!

I finally read Meg Cabot YA! YAYYYY! I actually fell in love with Meg when I started borrowing the Heather Wells series from my sister and gobbled up all of her adult books — this was before I had even given YA a second glance — so it took me a while to finally get around to it. Of course I really enjoyed The Princess Diaries movie, but I knew I had to read the books and wow. I knew that the movie and the book were different, but they are VERY different indeed! That was a nice thing for me because sometimes it’s hard to read a book if I know the plot too well from the movie/TV show (like when I read Darkly Dreaming Dexter and was bored because the show was so much more captivating) so it was really nice to have a really different story line than the movie!

For those of you who haven’t read the books and have only seen the movie, here are some of the BIG differences really quickly:
•
Mia’s dad is a BIG part of the books as opposed to the movie where they’ve — erm — killed him off

•Her grandmother is not NEARLY as nice and as lovely as Julie Andrews. She’s a tough old broad but she’s also not created to be a monster either, which is nice.
•The book is in NEW YORK CITY, not San Francisco. Big difference there!
•Michael Moscovitz is more of a nerdy type but described as physically hunky (or at least moreso than the actor who portrayed him. Sorry, Robert Schwartzman) and Mia and Michael have a way more laid-back relationship and more personal already than they do in the movie.
•Cultural Diversity Dance vs beach parties
•No new cars, no foot pop, no fear of public speaking, no big ball at the end (I’m guessing that may be later books?), Mia is a vegetarian
•Lily’s show, Mia’s mom dating a teacher, and the super sweet loft all still exist

Okay, that wasn’t really quick at all, but you can see how different the book is already from the movie! I adored the movie adaptation, but it’s clear that I really need to read this series seeing as how the movie is not an accurate portrayal of the books (not like that’s the main reason but you know what I mean).

So how about I actually talk about the book? Well, I really enjoyed Mia’s character. I like that the book starts off with her as a freshman in high school because it gives the series so much room to grow, however, sometimes her voice felt a bit young. I wonder if that’s because I’m used to Meg’s adult books which incorporate the same kind of humor but obviously this is in a more adolescent way so it wasn’t quite as appealing to me. She was just a riot, though, and I was probably a lot like her as a teenager, personality-wise.

I really enjoyed Mia’s reactions to everything. It all felt very real and she handled it like the average teenager would, I think! She can’t handle the details of her parents romantic lives (who can, really) and she doesn’t even want to think about dealing with princess-type things because she’s already unpopular and doesn’t want to become a social outcast. Meanwhile, she still has to worry about grades and her current crush.

The book was a lot of fun, but I didn’t quite fall in love with it. I’m not sure if that was because I had expectations — whether from the movie or my experience with Meg’s adult books — but it was adorable and I definitely want to read the rest of the series! I look forward to watching Mia’s character grow and I can’t wait to see what else is in store for her!

I really enjoyed the first book in this series and was pleasantly surprised when it was different from the movie, I was again happy to find that this installment is a continuation of the last diary and I really got into it. I sat down with this book to take a break from another one and ended up reading through it in one sitting.

Mia is still getting used to the princess thing and now she has so many other things to deal with. Slowly her life seems to be unraveling more that she thought it could and it doesn't help that her grandmother is the root of all the evil.

Reading Mia's diary is hilarious, it reads like a teenage girls inner monologue perfectly and it is an easy read since it is in diary entry style. I know that this isn't a long review but I don't want to spoil the first book or this one for anyone intending to pick it up. I can say that I will definetly be grabbing the next in the series.

Second in the Princess Diaries Young Adult series about a geeky fourteen-year-old girl who has learned she's a princess and heir to a throne.

My Take
Cabot does a good job of portraying typical teen self-centeredness, frustrations, and obsessions. Mia is something of a dingbat, but also a typical teen making everything about her, jumping to conclusions, and almost never thinking before she acts or speaks.

I do like the diary layout. It's so perfect for conveying Mia's thoughts!

How is it that Phillipe can spend so much time out of the country he reigns?

Too funny how obsessed the vegetarian Mia is about getting her mom to eat healthily for the baby.

No, I can't believe a high school principal is that oblivious?!!

Hmmm, I think Michael may not be seeing Mia as his little sister's best friend...

Loved it when the snotty Grandmére has to party without the guests of honor. It's only what she deserves when Mia's mom's friends can attend the wedding by standing outside on the sidewalk and waving...?!

It's a cute story with a nice dose of reality to it. And it even bears a passing resemblance to the movie. Which, sadly, I preferred to the book.

The Story
Drama, drama, drama. First it's Mom's baby and Mr. G. Then that elusive email writer who just has to be Michael. Throw in all the extravaganza of a wedding and the hideous prospect of a TV interview...eek...

The Characters
Mia Thermopolis is a fourteen-year-old who's just learned she's the only heir to the throne. Fat Louie is her sock-eating cat. Lilly Moscovtiz has been her best friend since kindergarten and has her own cable TV show, Lily Tells It Like It Is. Michael, a senior, is Lilly's hunky brother whom Mia has loved and drooled over forever.

Helen Thermopolis is Mia's mom, an artist with an upcoming show. Frank Gianni is Mia's algebra teacher who has knocked up her mom. They elope to Mexico to avoid the wedding extravaganza Grandmére wants to put on. Mamaw and Pepaw are Helen's hated parents, who run a hardware store in Versailles, Indiana. Grandmére flies them and Hank out for the wedding. Lilly gets her hands on Hank along with his ambition to be a Calvin Klein underwear model.

Artur Christoff Phillipe Gerard Grimaldi Renaldo, Prince of Genovia and reigning monarch, is a playboy who had a fling in college which resulted in Mia. He's shared custody with Helen by having Mia spend her summers in France. Then he got testicular cancer, and Mia is his only offspring.

Amelia Mignonette Grimaldi Thermopolis Renaldi is her Royal Highness, the Princess of Genovia, the dowager princess, and Grandmére. She is teaching Mia all she needs to know before meeting the Genovian people in December. Rommel is her furless poodle. Vigo is Grandmére's Master of Protocol and event organizer. Lars is her bodyguard.

Jo Crox is Mia's secret email admirer whom Mia fantasizes is Michael. Boris Pelkowski, a Russian with a horrible violin, is Lilly's boyfriend.

Beverly Bellerieve is the host of Twenty-four/Seven and interviews Mia on her show.

Tina Hakim Baba has her own bodyguard. Shameeka is in trouble after Mia's TV interview.

The Cover
The cover on the book I read had a bright, pretty blue for a background with a gold keyhole as metaphor for the diary concept. The author, crown, and the specific part of the tile is picked out in metallic silver while the "Princess" is in a royal blue, each outlined with teeny-tiny spotlights. Very clever.

The title certainly reflect the story for Mia is a Princess in the Spotlight.

I've forgotten how genuinely enjoyable these books were. I mean, I recalled I liked them, but I'd forgotten how much!

Princess Mia returns and promptly screws everything up. She flubs an interview, inadvertently reveals her mother is pregnant by Mia's Algebra teacher, and missteps repeatedly on her way to the one romance she truly desires.

You can definitely see the "Bridget Jones" influence here, but, thankfully, the neuroses are a bit less damaging. Mia is satisfied with her weight (though her hair could use some fixing) and doesn't really have any bad habits (except chewing her nails), so her worries are almost completely focused on the high school experience. And, really, who DOESN'T worry about that? And, as far as her family goes, she has some tension there, but the ending is uplifting and absolutely perfect.

The books do mature by small degrees each release, so they're nice for growing with kids.

Like some of the other reviewers out there, I had seen the movie (several upon several times) prior to reading the book. So going into this review, it's a little hard to separate the too, but I'm going to try.
I liked the journalistic style of the book, which was probably a given considering the book's title, but I still enjoyed it. The thoughts are very true to what you would imagine (or perhaps remember) a 15 year old girl thinking during some of the "traumatic" times in Mia's life. Crushing on a boy who is too popular to notice you, having a best friend whom you love but also are annoyed by at times, worrying about classes and grades, and of course that one girl who seems to live to make your life miserable. Let's face it, unless you WERE that girl, we all had one. So, even though I am definitely not 15 anymore, I felt the story (aside from the whole Princess thing) was easy to relate to and get invested in. I'm very much looking forward to reading the rest of Mia's stories in the rest of the series.

I've forgotten how genuinely enjoyable these books were. I mean, I recalled I liked them, but I'd forgotten how much!

Princess Mia returns and promptly screws everything up. She flubs an interview, inadvertently reveals her mother is pregnant by Mia's Algebra teacher, and missteps repeatedly on her way to the one romance she truly desires.

You can definitely see the "Bridget Jones" influence here, but, thankfully, the neuroses are a bit less damaging. Mia is satisfied with her weight (though her hair could use some fixing) and doesn't really have any bad habits (except chewing her nails), so her worries are almost completely focused on the high school experience. And, really, who DOESN'T worry about that? And, as far as her family goes, she has some tension there, but the ending is uplifting and absolutely perfect.

The books do mature by small degrees each release, so they're nice for growing with kids.

Like some of the other reviewers out there, I had seen the movie (several upon several times) prior to reading the book. So going into this review, it's a little hard to separate the too, but I'm going to try.
I liked the journalistic style of the book, which was probably a given considering the book's title, but I still enjoyed it. The thoughts are very true to what you would imagine (or perhaps remember) a 15 year old girl thinking during some of the "traumatic" times in Mia's life. Crushing on a boy who is too popular to notice you, having a best friend whom you love but also are annoyed by at times, worrying about classes and grades, and of course that one girl who seems to live to make your life miserable. Let's face it, unless you WERE that girl, we all had one. So, even though I am definitely not 15 anymore, I felt the story (aside from the whole Princess thing) was easy to relate to and get invested in. I'm very much looking forward to reading the rest of Mia's stories in the rest of the series.

Okay, so who has NOT seen the movie, The Princess Diaries? And, am I the only one in the world who did not know that this was a book? Because until I got the 4th book in the series in the mail the other day, I had absolutely no idea. This is also the first book I have read by Meg Cabot so, after hearing so many great things about her, I decided it was time to check it out.

It is really hard to review a book when you had seen the movie. This is why I usually read the books first. Because, now, it is very hard for me to not compare the two, so be warned.

So, in the book, Mia is only 14, not 15 like in the movie. And in the book, her father is still alive, unlike the movie. Very unsettling. At first, I found the diary format a little awkward because it goes back and forth between the diary entries and regular writing, but I was able to adjust to that and really enjoy the book. And I did enjoy it. While it was different from what I expected, that was not necessarily a bad thing. A lot of the major drama points were still there, just maybe a slightly different set of details to go with it. This really was a very interesting read, and now, tonight, I will have to re-watch the movie to compare and contrast a little more. Seriously, if you didn't know about the book, pick it up.

I definitely enjoyed the read, but I just felt like not a whole lot happens. I'm used to big, epic, complicated plot points and this just didn't have it. I didn't expect this series to be super complicated, but for the love of god will she just make out with Michael already! The problem for me is there is a whole lot of building towards a romance and it still hasn't been delivered! On the other hand I feel this is Meg Cabot's masterful way to keep us reading. We're waiting for that expected first kiss, or first admittance of mutual feelings. I will absolutely be continuing on with the series, I just felt like more should have happened in this book. Still enjoyed my time reading, just wanted more.

I just love this series with Mia. Her grandmother just cracks me up. It's her way or the highway. I felt so bad for Mia finding out about her mom having a baby. She so was not expecting it. When she had the interview I was cracking up with her comments, can't believe she threw everyone under the bus without even realizing it. I was a little upset with Mia's mom for making a decision that didn't include her in such a very important event and moment. Was glad that her grandmother hopefully learned a lesson of not messing around with people's persona decisions. I was a total disaster I really thought Jo-C-rox was Michael. I myself would have been totally devastated. Can't wait to see what happens next.

Mia thinks of herself as a pretty normal teenager. She is a freshman at a private high school in New York City, living with her mother. Her parents were never married, and her father lives in a very small country in Europe. Mia goes there to visit in the summertime.

Mia's problems are pretty normal, too. She is worried about the way she looks, the fact that she is flunking algebra, and the fact that she doesn't have a date for the upcoming dance at her school. Of course, her biggest problem is the fact that her mother has just started dating her algebra teacher.

Then, things change. Mia's father has testicular cancer, which means he will not be able to have any more children. Mia is and will always be his only child. He now has to tell her a big secret--he is the prince of Genovia, which makes Mia a princess and the heir to the throne. Mia is devastated. She doesn't want the responsibility of being a princess, and she certainly doesn't want to stand out from her classmates at school.

Almost immediately, Mia's life is turned upside-down. She wants to keep the fact that she is a princess a secret, which is hard to do when her mean princess grandmother arrives in town and begins to make Mia spend each afternoon with her, learning how to be polite and how to act more like a princess. Mia gets more and more stressed out at the thought that someone might find out her secret. How can she keep this from everyone, even her best friend?

I liked the diary format of this book, and there were some fabulous characters, from Mia's parents to the kids at school and especially her horrible grandmother.

Mia's personality got to me, though. Even for a high school student, she completely overreacted to everything in her life. And the romance that developed seemed so obvious to me; it annoyed me that Mia didn't see it coming and didn't seem to realize whom she should be dating.

Entertaining, as usual, but the way Meg enjoys stereotyping anyone she doesn't agree with gets.... irritating. Yet another hack writer has needlessly portrayed the already underappreciated state of Indiana as a bunch of boring, ignorant hicks whose idea of a good night out in the ~magical land of New York~ is heading to Applebee's. Which is baffling and ironic because Meg herself hails from one of the most liberal and culturally diverse cities in Indiana, Bloomington, a smaller and much less crime ridden version of New York. Did a Hoosier bully her in class or something?

We get it, Meg. You hate Indiana, conservatives, Christians, people who are involved in high school, and female characters she deems "weak" next to the cliché Mary Sue Strong Female Characters she won't stop going on about as Mia (nice feminism too, Meg). But can you keep your teenage resentment out of your books (she does it in All American Girl, Abandon, and Teen Idol especially too)? Maybe find a better way to channel your emotions than in unoriginal stereotypes written on the level I'd expect to see from a middle school writer, not a grown woman and experienced writer.

This may seem harsh and getting OT from the book (which was otherwise almost as funny as the rest) but I wasn't sure where else to address this, as it's prevalent in her novels and just makes her look like a very poor writer, more like a fantasy escapist fanfic one at that.

Writing a review for the book The Princess Diaries presented me with a bit of a dilemma. Although I always try to read a book first and then see the movie, in this case I saw the movie first and then read the book. And while I didn't expect the movie and book to be mirror images, I never expected the book to be as angst ridden as it was either. So while I'm tempted to make comparisons between the book and the movie I do realize that isn't fair so this review will concentrate solely on the merits of the book and at another time I'll also review the movie as well.
The Princess Diaries is written in the form of a diary written by one Mia Thermopolis, a teenager living in Manhattan. Mia, like many others her age, grapples with adolescent woes. What should she wear to school? Will boys ever like her? Why is her hair so outrageously curly and will she ever understand geometry? But most importantly why is her single mother dating her geometry teacher and exactly what are they doing on their dates? The basic plot of the young, somewhat nerdy, girl finding out that she is a princess is the stuff of dreams that many of us remember from the earliest stories our parents read to us as children. But this book is unlike most fairytales we remember since this book takes place in the year 2000 and Mia Thermopolis is no longer a maid surrounded by two step-sisters and a wicked step-mother but lives in a loft in Greenwich Village with her single mother and cat. Mia attends a private school and spends most of her time with her best friend Lily Moscovitz, pining over Josh Richler, the most popular boy in her class, and trying to pass algebra. Weekends are devoted to directing Lily's on air radio program and hanging out with Lily's brother. And her summers are spent with her father and Grandmama , in Genovia a small principality located in an unidentified area of the world. The fact that Mia has no idea why her father lives there or what he does is one point which I found troubling since in all respects Mia seems to be inquisitive and bright. She is also very comfortable with the fact that her parents never married and she is the product of their college romance. Now comes word that Mia's father cannot have any more children no matter whom he marries. But more shocking than this is news that Mia is a royal princess who will be her father's sole heir and she will now be expected to lead Genovia one day. What ensues next is part My Fair Lady and part Billy Wilder comedy film that finds Mia reluctantly being tutored by her Grandmama for her future role as a Princess. From royal lessons in etiquette and which fork to use for which course to stylish haircuts, to a wardrobe befitting a Princess, to dealing with photographers and reporters covering this breaking story to bodyguards dogging her every step, Mia is at first astounded, miserable and totally confused over her new status and wishes all of this would somehow go away. Most of all she worries if she will ever lead a normal teenage life again or if people will simply like her because she is royalty. How she deals with all that is happening to her is described in this book and so far three successive novels, Princess in the Spotlight,Princess in Love and Meg cabot's newest princess book, Princess in Waiting. And it would appear that the author most likely will continue this series based on the popularity of these books.
I enjoyed this book and most likely would have rated it with 5 stars except I really questioned how appropriate some of the subject matter is for the younger side of the young adults generation it was intended for. And since Mia is rather tormented by the revelation of her being a Princess for most of the book, what appears to be humorous antics don't always come across as being all that funny. Still the book had moments that are valuable lessons for those young women that long to be a Princess and adds new meaning to the expression, "Be careful what you wish for."

High school freshman Mia Thermopolis is given a journal to release her "inner rage" and be self-assertive. Mia, like any other teen, wishes to attain self-actualization - oh, and go out with the hottest guy in school (or at least get asked out once), have bigger breasts, a passing grade in Algebra, and that her 25-pound cat wouldn't eat socks. She's pretty well-adjusted, though, living in Greenwich Village with her artist mother, summering with her European dad, making public access TV shows with her best friend Lilly, Algebra tutoring with Michael, Lilly's brother, watching movies of the week, and trying to save the environment. All peachy until her father comes to NYC to tell her she must be his heir to the throne of Genovia, a tiny country in Europe.
To which Mia says, "Thanks. Thanks a *whole* lot," because being a princess isn't all it's cracked up to be. Her scary Grandmere comes to give her daily princess lessons, she has to have a Glock-carrying bodyguard with her at all times, and worst of all, she can't tell anyone because she's already a 5-foot-9, chestless freak with yield-sign-shaped hair at Albert Einstein High whose mother is dating her Algebra teacher. Even though Mia tries to keep the embarrassing princess thing secret, the stress of it all leads to a fight with Lilly, an ice cream stabbing, and a visit to the principal's office. Then her story gets leaked to a major newspaper! Now, who would ask a girl like that to the Cultural Diversity Dance????? Mia thinks her life is over. O-V-E-R.
It's been a while since I was fourteen, but this book took me right back. I guess in a few years this book will become dated like the Judy Blumes of my generation, but it's endearing and funny, especially for all the kids who weren't jocks or drunks or brains. Of course, I'd venture to say *none* of us will find out we are royal princesses, but Mia's traumas and dramas are very relatable. Adolescence is all about identity crises, and hers is a big one. Can she be Her Royal Highness Amelia Mignonette Grimaldi Thermopolis Renaldo and still be future-Greenpeace-representative Mia Thermopolis? Despite the strong empathy I felt for Mia, she isn't perfect. I liked Mia, but I didn't admire her (why does she have to be stereotypically flunking math). Lilly is much more interesting in that respect. Still, Mia is a good kid. She's modest, cute, and conscientious and her voice is thoroughly entertaining. A strong beginning for a lovely series, Meg Cabot's style will capture many young-at-hearts.
Note: the movie took many liberties with the story, so be warned - this is the real thing and much, much more original.

Mia gets a journal from her mother because it seems that Mia cannot be actually honest with her about things. For example, the fact that Mia cannot tell her mother about she truly feels upset about her mom (Helen Thermopolis) starting to go out with her ninth-grade Algebra teacher, Mr. Gianni. Mia has trouble in Algebra and she even has to attend review sessions for Algebra after school! She has a best friend named Lilly Moscivitz, who has her own cable access national prime-time television show, LILLY TELLS IT LIKE IT IS, which is on Friday nights at nine p.m.
Mia also has a HUGe crush on the most cutest and gorgeous and most popular senior guy named Josh Richter. At first, I had seen the movie then read the book. The book is more interesting, in VERY different way. So, Mia thinks that Josh likes her and looked into her soul this one day when she and Lilly were at this place called Bigelows and Mia even got the cologne there that Josh uses all the time!
Well, it turns out that she is a princess. Yes, Princess Amelia Mignonette Grimaldi Thermopolis-Renaldo. She starts to have princess lessons at the Plaza Hotel in her Grandmere's suite. So everything in the suite is like, all PINK. Her dad comes into town from Genovia (which is located between the France and Italian border near the Mediterranean Sea, but it is made up, though) and tells her that he is actually the prince of Genovia and she is his HEIR.
Then Mia got really mad and ran real fast out of the Plaza to this Penguin House like, miles away. Then this lady named Carol Fernandez called Mia a "statesque beauty" of Helen Thermopolis and Phillipe Renaldo. Or, Artur Christoff Phillipe Gerard Grimaldi Renaldo. Mia gets her hair much shorter, gets fake fingernails with superglue, and now looks like Lana Weinberger! Who is her total rival and is Josh's girlfriend.
Finally Josh Richter asks Mia to the Cultural Diversity Dance and turns out that he had obviously done it because he can have his picture with the Genovian princess -worth three-hundred million dollars!- on Extra or Teen People or some other magazine.
When Mia and Lilly got in a fight about Mia's new hairdo, Mia ends sitting next to Tina Hakim Baba, who has a bodyguard named Wahim and loves to read teenage romance novels. And Mia one time puts this Nutty Royale at lunchtime on Lana's cheerleading sweater!
This was a really good book. The first is much better to me than the second and third combined! If you saw the movie, but didn't read it yet, then I suggest that you should read it. If you are bored and have nothing to do.

Princess Diaries
Written by Meg Cabot
The Princess Diaries is a great book written by Meg Cabot. The main character in this book is Mia Thermopolis and the book is written as her diary. In this book, Mia describes herself as a "five-foot nine, flat-chested freshman, who also happens to be flunking algebra. Mia's only friends are Lilly and Fat Louie, her cat who has swallowed a sock. Mia thinks that nothing in her life could be any worse, but boy is she wrong! First, her father comes into town and practically changes her whole life by telling her she is a PRINCESS! Mia finds out that now that she is a princess she will be attending princess lessons with her Grandmere. In addition to the fact that Mia is going to have to become used to being a princess, Mia's mom announces that she is going on a date with Mia's algebra teacher, Mr.Gianini! As if this is not enough for Mia to deal with, Mia and Lilly have a fight. Now that Lilly is no longer Mia's best friend, Mia makes a new friend, Tina. The word has been leaked to the newspapers that Mia is a princess, and Lars, who is her driver, becomes her bodyguard. After all this, one thing does seem to be going better in her life. Josh Richter, the hottest guy in school, asks Mia to the Cultural Diversity Dance. However, even her date does not work out. When the time comes to go to the dance, Mia finds out that Josh is a fake! He asked her to the dance so he could kiss a princess in front of the media.
After all Mia's troubles, she and Lilly make up because they miss each other. Now that they are back to they're old tricks like throwing fruit out of the window and having fun together. Mia decides that even though she doesn't want to be a princess, it's not as bad as she thought it would be.
I think this is a great book. Having a bad day? Just read about Mia, who can't even brush her frizz-ball hair, for a great laugh! I would recommend this book to just about everyone. I say this because I know that everyone has felt sad at one time or another and the Princess Diaries is a great way to cheer up. I can't wait to read the next two books about Mia that Meg Cabot has written. I hope you enjoy this book as much as I did. It really shows how important it is to like people for the way they are and not for what they are!

This review is on the book Princess in the spotlight by Meg Cabot. This story is part of the princess diaries series and is the continuation of the first one. This story takes place in california. Mia,her mother, her father, her grandmother, and her friends and family are the characters. Mia is still continuing to take princess lessons from her grandmother while balancing her everyday life. Mia has many new conflicts to face in this book. Mias mother and algebra teacher are going to get married and are having a baby. Also, Mia is getting love letters from a secret admirer and has a television interview that will be watched by over 2 million people.

This book is both a mystery and a comedy. I liked Mia Thermopolis the most because she is just a normal 15 year old girl going through evryday problems while becoming a queen to a foreign country.She was very interesting in this book the way she handled all her problems. She was much more grown up in this book than in the first one. She acted way more mature. She was my favorite character in this story, rather than any of the other ones. She was also the main character of the story. I liked this book because it was a continuation of the first one. I have only read this one and the first one. Mia had all new problems in her life and some new characters such as, Kenny her biology partner, her cousin, her other grandmother, and her aunt and uncle.

I found it was also very easy to read. It wasn't a book you felt like you had to read. It wasn't very long, It was only almost 300 pages long. In my opinion the most interseting part was the end, where she found the solution to all of her problems. For example, she finds out her secret admirer, how her interview went, her algebra teacher moves in with her and her mother, and her secret crush really likes her.

The Princess Diaries is an entertaining, fun book about a freshman attending Albert Einstein High School in New York. All Mia Thermopolis wants is to stop being the "freak" she considers herself to be and to have a boyfriend, specifically Josh Richter,who is apparently "six feet of unadulterated hotness." Her mom simply makes things worse when she starts dating Mia's algerbra teacher.
Then her life takes the most dramatic turn yet: Mia finds out she's a princess!
Follow Mia's life from her day-by-day installments in her journal, complete with many amusing notes and observations. I think anyone who wants to read a light, enjoyable story should try this one. I read this book nearly a year ago and I still find pleasure in reading it.
However, there is emphasis on the word light. One of my main problems with this story is that it lacks depth. Mia isn't exactly the most intelligent teenager, and while she is congenial enough, she isn't on of my favorite characters in literature. Besides that, the plot of this book stems from such an overused idea: loser teen becomes famous and gets a makeover; now she goes through major changes at school. Josh Richter, the most popular guy in school, really turns out to be a jerk. Hmm, maybe I've heard that before?
Yet the ironic thing about this book is that despite its faults, it still manages to be a good read. I suppose one reson is the backdrop of the book; it has an interesting cast of characters and the environment Mia lives in is extremely entertaining. So, particularly if you're a teen girl or slightly younger, try reading The Princess Diaries. But keep in this in mind: it is in no way a profound story.

Mia Thermopolis never expected that something exciting was going to happen in her life. That was, until her father came to town. Mia is a freshman at Albert Einstein High School. She is not very popular or too pretty but she finds ways to deal with it. Her best friend's name is Lilly Moscovitz. Mia and Lilly have been friends since they were in kindergarten. In the beginning of the story, Mia lives with her mom in an apartment in Manhattan. Her dad and her mom are separated and her dad lives in Genovia with Mia's grandmother.
Mia's father turns out to be the prince of Genovia. He had cancer and can no longer have children, so there is no heir to the throne. The only heir left is Mia. She is not very happy when she finds out that she is a princess because she will have to move to Genovia and leave all of her friends.
The first step to being a princess is to learn how to be a princess. Mia's grandmother gives her princess lessons every day after school. Mia learns everything about sitting right, which fork to use first, how to walk, stand, eat, and talk. Mia's grandmother also takes her to the salon to get a total makeover. Mia's hair turns from light brown frizz into short blond silky hair. Mia also gets a fancy manicure. Her grandmother teaches her how to deal with the press, too.
The big dance comes up and by that time everyone knows that Mia is a princess. Josh Richter, the coolest and most handsome guy in school, asks her to the dance. When they go together Mia finds out that he only wanted to go out with her because she was a princess, not because of whom she really was. Mia figures out that Josh was a big jerk. In the end, Mia finds that being a princess is not really that bad.