Readers enchanted by Hale's Goose Girl are in for an experience that's a bit more earthbound in this latest fantasy-cum-tribute to girl-power. Cheerful and witty 14-year-old Miri loves her life on Mount Eskel, home to the quarries filled with the most precious linder stone in the land, though she longs to be big and strong enough to do quarry work like her sister and father. But Miri experiences big changes when the king announces that the prince will choose a potential wife from among the village's eligible girls-and that said girls must attend a new Princess Academy in preparation. Princess training is not all it's cracked up to be for spunky Miri in the isolated school overseen by cruel Tutor Olana. But through education-and the realization that she has the common mountain power to communicate wordlessly via magical "quarry-speech"-Miri and the girls eventually gain confidence and knowledge that helps transform their village. Unfortunately, Hale's lighthearted premise and underlying romantic plot bog down in overlong passages about commerce and class, a surprise hostage situation and the specifics of "quarry-speech." The prince's final princess selection hastily and patly wraps things up. Ages 9-up. (July) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.
Gr 5-9-The thought of being a princess never occurred to the girls living on Mount Eskel. Most plan to work in the quarry like the generations before them. When it is announced that the prince will choose a bride from their village, 14-year-old Miri, who thinks she is being kept from working in the quarry because of her small stature, believes that this is her opportunity to prove her worth to her father. All eligible females are sent off to attend a special academy where they face many challenges and hardships as they are forced to adapt to the cultured life of a lowlander. First, strict Tutor Olana denies a visit home. Then, they are cut off from their village by heavy winter snowstorms. As their isolation increases, competition builds among them. The story is much like the mountains, with plenty of suspenseful moments that peak and fall, building into the next intense event. Miri discovers much about herself, including a special talent called quarry speak, a silent way to communicate. She uses this ability in many ways, most importantly to save herself and the other girls from harm. Each girl's story is brought to a satisfying conclusion, but this is not a fluffy, predictable fairy tale, even though it has wonderful moments of humor. Instead, Hale weaves an intricate, multilayered story about families, relationships, education, and the place we call home.-Linda L. Plevak, Saint Mary's Hall, San Antonio, TX Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.
There are many pleasures to this satisfying tale: a precise lyricism to the language ("The world was as dark as eyes closed" or "Miri's laugh is a tune you love to whistle") and a rhythm to the story that takes its tropes from many places, but its heart from ours. Miri is very small; her father has never let her work in the linder stone quarries where her village makes its living and she fears that it's because she lacks something. However, she's rounded up, with the other handful of girls ages 12 to 17, to be taught and trained when it's foreseen that the prince's bride will come from their own Mount Eskel. Olana, their teacher, is pinched and cruel, but Miri and the others take to their studies, for it opens the world beyond the linder quarries to them. Miri seeks other learning as well, including the mindspeech that ties her to her people, and seems to work through the linder stone itself. There's a lot about girls in groups, both kind and cutting; a sweet boy; the warmth of friends, fathers and sisters; and the possibility of being chosen by a prince one barely knows. The climax involving evil brigands is a bit forced, but everything else is an unalloyed joy. (Fantasy. 9-14)
Shannon Hale's books reignite my love of reading—that joy of having the time of my life with a great story.” —Stephenie Meyer, author of Twilight
“This is not a fluffy, predictable fairy tale . . . . Instead Hale weaves an intricate, multilayered story about families, relationships, education, and the place we call home.” —School Library Journal, starred review
“The book is a fresh approach to the traditional princess story with unexpected plot twists and great emotional resonance.” —2006 Newbery Committee
“Palace of Stone . . . proves once again that with quick wit and brave words, one person really can change the world.” —School Library Journal on Princess Academy: Palace of Stone
“Powerful and deeply engaging.” —Kirkus Reviews on Princess Academy: Palace of Stone
“This is not a fluffy, predictable fairy tale....Instead Hale weaves an intricate, multilayered story about families, relationships, education, and the place we call home.” —SLJ, starred review for PRINCESS ACADEMY
“Palace of Stone . . . proves once again that with quick wit and brave words, one person really can change the world.” —SLJ on Palace of Stone
Shannon Hale's fantasy tells how Miri, a 14-year-old living in a mining village, comes into her own, saving the village from poverty and possible disaster and finding her place in the world. Narrator Laura Credidio's voice is pleasant and soothing, and her narration is well paced. The ensemble’s acting is good, and the girls who attend the academy, including Miri, are uniformly charming. The casting reveals special care and intelligence in that the voices give dimension to the characters that the story bears out, a remarkable vocal foreshadowing that is due, of course, to the actors' skill. This sweet story will primarily interest 10-14- year-old girls, but even boys may enjoy it (though they may not admit it). W.M. © AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine
