Book Review of The Princess in Black and the Bathtime Battle
The Children’s Book Review

Written by Shannon Hale & Dean Hale

Illustrated by LeUyen Pham

Ages 5-8 | 96 Pages

Publisher: Candlewick Press | ISBN: 9781536202212

What to expect: Princess Adventures, humor

Everyone’s favorite princess donning a cape and mask has returned in the seventh book of this hilarious series, The Princess in Black.

Princess Magnolia had a stinky problem – something quite odiferous was ruining her afternoon outside in the sunshine. Quickly transforming into the Princess in Black, she rides out on her trusty steed to find the problem. Is it a monster? Doesn’t seem like it. Is it stinky and smelling up all of the goat pasture? It sure is!

When she and the goat avenger try to wave away the smell, they accidentally send the smell south to Princess Snapdragon’s kingdom. Princess Snapdragon transforms into Flower Girl, ready to uncover the source of the rotten stench. A silly waterfall effect of shenanigans ensues, where each new smell-fighter accidentally sends the yucky odor to another princesses’ land. The Princess in Black must find the source of the smell and end it where it starts. But when she finds the slimy, yucky monster, will she be able to bathe all the stink away and set the smells of the land to right?

Author’s Shannon Hale and Dean Hale bring the Princess’ signature humor to life in the seventh book of this cute series. With LeUyen Pham’s colorful, imaginative and engaging illustrations that add to the laughter, the Princess in Black books do a great job of hooking readers. This Bathtime Battle is a fun and charming story about making mistakes and then making them right.

Readers will enjoy their adventures, but will also absorb the lesson – sometimes you make something bad happen to someone else! All that’s left to do is to fix it the best you can. With the in-depth illustrations and generous white space, this is an excellent book for children just starting to read chapter books, and the story is fun enough to keep long-time chapter book readers entertained.

Great illustration, hilarious dialog, and a sweet story combine to make The Princess in Black and the Bathtime Battle a real winner!

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About the Authors

Shannon Hale and Dean Hale are the award-winning husband-and-wife team behind the Princess in Black series, illustrated by LeUyen Pham. Shannon Hale is also the author of the Newbery Honor Book Princess Academy as well as the New York Times best-selling series Ever After High. Shannon Hale and Dean Hale live in Salt Lake City, Utah.

About the Illustrator

LeUyen Pham is the illustrator of many books for children, including Real Friends by Shannon Hale and Aunt Mary’s Rose by Douglas Wood. LeUyen Pham lives in California.

The Princess in Black and the Bathtime Battle, written by Shannon Hale & Dean Hale, was reviewed by Denise Mealy. Discover more books like The Princess in Black and the Bathtime Battle by following along with our reviews and articles tagged with The Princess in Black, Friendship, Adventure, Princesses, and Humor.