Princess: You Know Who You Are

by Francesca Castagnoli, Izak (Illustrator)

Welcome, Your Highness.

If you’ve picked up this book, you know who you are. You have a taste for life’s finer champagne with breakfast, custom lingerie, and kitten heels—even in the snow. At the office, you’re a corporate merger of style and substance, flawlessly handling the most difficult clients or performing life-saving surgery wearing snakeskin stilettos. Your romances play out like De Beers moments (well, in your mind anyway). And above all, you know instinctively that the real road to enlightenment begins with entitlement.

Princess is a celebration of the princess in every woman—a witty, delightful handbook for building your own happily ever after. You’ll learn (and raise!) your PQ (Princess Quotient), tackle the PSAT (Princess Self-Assessment Test), and answer the age-old princess Is having it all ever really enough? Paying homage to the fine art of pampering, the princess rules of entertaining, the princess pooch, and of course, Prince Charming, Princess is sure to be a favorite. After all, it’s about you.

Genres: Nonfiction, Humor

222 pages, Paperback

First published January 13, 2004

Reviews

[Annabelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Since that December funk after reading The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini over a decade ago, I've largely stuck to light reads for the months of November and December. Thus, Princess: You Know Who You Are comes on the bloodied heels of Shark Bites: True Tales of Survival.

Full disclosure: I cannot stomach anyone above the age of ten who likens herself or himself to a princess. Come to think of it, despite all those fairy tale books I read as a child, princess was never a job description I aspired to. Weird, but I think back then I was aiming for woodcutter's son or young squire to the prince. But the first few pages of this book, published in 2003, captured my curiosity; it reminded me of the old Cosmo* magazines I used to look forward to reading at beauty salons.

First off, the title is a tad misleading, which is what almost made me brush it off to the dustbins of my online Shopee books inventory. It doesn't glorify princesses as we have been programmed to perceive them to be--think vapid, pooch-toting, shopping spree-ing, pre-sex tape Paris Hilton. Or Malibu Barbie. Surprisingly however, this book is all about women empowerment, a fact underscored at the beginning of each chapter by citing the MYTH vs REALITY. Take Chapter Two, for instance, on The Making of a Princess, which I think encapsulates the book's core, kick ass message: Myth: Princesses are simply grown spoiled children. Reality: Being a princess is a choice to live one's life the way it was fully intended." (Yes! Think entrepreneurial, post-sex tape Paris Hilton and uber "profashional" Barbie in the Barbie movie.)

Three stars for Castagnoli's material and sardonic writing style. Five stars for the illustrations by Izak.

* Small wonder. Francesca Castagnoli honed her writing chops at Harper's Bazaar, Cosmo Girl!, and Mademoiselle.

[Drusilla · Rating 1 out of 5]

Gfit

[Cindy · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's a quick read. The book has some funny parts but its obviously meant to be entertaining at best. If you do take the "advice" seriously, you may need the help of another kind of book.

[Kerry · Rating 1 out of 5]

Fabulous book for Barbie types who think life is all about trying to live like Paris Hilton and co. Vapid!

[Briar Sangiuliano · Rating 5 out of 5]

SO much fun.

[BookMouse · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun read. A number of things I thought were silly, but otherwise, it was fun.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Light fun read with plenty of laughs! Will certainly help fluff up your princess aura.

[Jenny · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute and fun book to read, but some of the content in there can seem a bit frivolous and impractical.

[jenn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read on my honeymoon. Possibly the most important book of all time.

[Carla Jean · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's fun--a lot of fun--but not earth-shattering.