The Paper Bag Princess

PreS-Gr 1—Elizabeth is a lovely princess living in a lovely castle wearing lovely princess dresses, and she is going to marry the handsome Prince Ronald. Everything is wonderful until a dragon comes along and smashes Elizabeth's castle and burns up all of her beautiful princess clothing. Plus, the dragon carries off Prince Ronald, and everything is destroyed. Knowing it is up to her to rescue Ronald, Elizabeth discovers a paper bag in the ashes, slips it on, and chases the dragon down a trail of horse bones and burnt forests. She devises a clever plan to outwit it and rescue her prince. Children will cheer on Elizabeth's use of flattery to carry out her ingenious plan in this adaptation of Robert Munsch's picture book (Annick, 1980). The static use of the pen-and-ink comic strip–style illustrations by Michael Martchenko keeps the viewers' focus on Susie Berneis's clever and versatile narration. Use this video along with the book to create a hilarious reader's theater project. (A read-along option is available.) This work emphasizes the significant but humorously conveyed themes of the importance of politeness, resourcefulness, and not judging others by their appearances.—Nancy Baumann, Literacy Consultant, Columbia, MO