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A review by perilous1
The Light Princess by George MacDonald
4.0
A quirky tale that turns several conventions on their heads, this story is chalk full of peculiarities and puns. It almost feel like a parody at times, particularly with how it begins. A princess is born, and a particularly powerful someone is mistakenly left uninvited to the baby's christening. The bitter, witchy woman then takes revenge upon the parents by cursing the child. (Clear riff on Sleeping Beauty.)
It diverges then, as the curse given makes the child unaffected by gravity. The result is a floating princess, who has to forever be tethered least she fly off on the slightest breeze. In addition, her levitation comes paired with excessive levity--so that as she grows, she is unable to take anything seriously. The exception to this being when she is in water. For some reason, she is able to swim in the lake outside the castle--where she regains both a measure of mass and capacity for more serious conversation as long as she is in it. And it's in this condition that a roaming prince happens upon her and falls for the unusual girl.
But of course, the bitter witch can't stand to see any of her targets less miserable than she intended... and so she contrives and connives--coming up with an environmentally disastrous plan that will punish the entire kingdom by draining the lake dry. And the only way to counter such evil requires the ultimate (and willing) sacrifice...
At points cute... yet, also astute.
It diverges then, as the curse given makes the child unaffected by gravity. The result is a floating princess, who has to forever be tethered least she fly off on the slightest breeze. In addition, her levitation comes paired with excessive levity--so that as she grows, she is unable to take anything seriously. The exception to this being when she is in water. For some reason, she is able to swim in the lake outside the castle--where she regains both a measure of mass and capacity for more serious conversation as long as she is in it. And it's in this condition that a roaming prince happens upon her and falls for the unusual girl.
But of course, the bitter witch can't stand to see any of her targets less miserable than she intended... and so she contrives and connives--coming up with an environmentally disastrous plan that will punish the entire kingdom by draining the lake dry. And the only way to counter such evil requires the ultimate (and willing) sacrifice...
At points cute... yet, also astute.