Book Descriptions
for Harriet the Invincible by Ursula Vernon
From Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)
This twist on “Sleeping Beauty” stars Harriet Hamsterbone, an atypical princess. She’s good at some traditional hamster princess skills like checkers and fractions, but is abysmal at others, like looking “ethereal” and being “melancholy.” Harriet would much rather battle dragons or ogrecats and enter jousting matches with her trusty riding quail, Mumfrey. When her parents reveal that Harriet was cursed by the wicked fairy, Ratshade, at birth and is fated to fall deeply asleep when she cuts herself on a hamster wheel on her 12th birthday, clever Harriet sees a fabulous loophole. She is invincible until then. The curse must keep her alive until she turns 12. Harriet and Mumfrey set out a numerous dangerous challenges and find great success. On the fated day, unexpected allies and Harriet’s stereotype-crushing attitude ultimately save the day. Illustrations and text bubble asides successfully complement the traditional prose in this humorous tale of a strong and unconventional heroine. (Ages 8–12)
CCBC Choices 2016. © Cooperative Children's Book Center, Univ. of Wisconsin - Madison, 2016. Used with permission.
From the Publisher
Sleeping Beauty gets a feisty, furry twist in this hilarious new comic series from the creator of Dragonbreath
Harriet Hamsterbone is not your typical princess. She may be quite stunning in the rodent realm (you'll have to trust her on this one), but she is not so great at trailing around the palace looking ethereal or sighing a lot. She finds the royal life rather . . . dull. One day, though, Harriet's parents tell her of the curse that a rat placed on her at birth, dooming her to prick her finger on a hamster wheel when she's twelve and fall into a deep sleep. For Harriet, this is most wonderful news: It means she's invincible until she's twelve! After all, no good curse goes to waste. And so begins a grand life of adventure with her trusty riding quail, Mumfrey...until her twelfth birthday arrives and the curse manifests in a most unexpected way.
Perfect for fans of Babymouse and Chris Colfer's Land of Stories, this laugh-out-loud new comic hybrid series will turn everything you thought you knew about princesses on its head.
Harriet Hamsterbone is not your typical princess. She may be quite stunning in the rodent realm (you'll have to trust her on this one), but she is not so great at trailing around the palace looking ethereal or sighing a lot. She finds the royal life rather . . . dull. One day, though, Harriet's parents tell her of the curse that a rat placed on her at birth, dooming her to prick her finger on a hamster wheel when she's twelve and fall into a deep sleep. For Harriet, this is most wonderful news: It means she's invincible until she's twelve! After all, no good curse goes to waste. And so begins a grand life of adventure with her trusty riding quail, Mumfrey...until her twelfth birthday arrives and the curse manifests in a most unexpected way.
Perfect for fans of Babymouse and Chris Colfer's Land of Stories, this laugh-out-loud new comic hybrid series will turn everything you thought you knew about princesses on its head.
Publisher description retrieved from Google Books.
