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The Water Princess: A Classic Adventure
A thirsty world is near its end – and there’s only one way to make it rain. When the world needs a hero, it finds one in a princess – who journeys on a moonless night on a dangerous path to find faith in herself. Will she save her father, her people and the planet from a catastrophic drought? Told through the eyes of a father-daughter camping trip, The Water A Classic Adventure takes the reader on a journey through the majestic and wild central California mountains and coastline. Will it ever rain again? Beautifully illustrated, The Water A Classic Adventure will inspire readers to find and hike the same mountains overlooking the Pacific Ocean as the princess with a bow and arrow trying to make it rain.About the AuthorAuthor Ron Ricci originally told a campfire story called “The Water Princess” to his daughter and a group of friends camping with their dads when the girls were 10-years old. Years later, his adult daughter Annie encouraged him to publish the story and painted the water drop featured on the book's cover to inspire him – and it worked! The cover illustration of the princess with her bow and arrow as well as all the other interior illustrations were created by Lyn Meredith, an talented and self-taught artist from Hanford, California. Follow the adventure on Facebook.com/thewaterprincessbook; on Instagram @thewaterprincesbook; and on Twitter @thewaterprincesbook.
78 pages, Paperback
Published January 29, 2019
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
June 14, 2019
Ron Ricci obviously had several themes or concepts that he wanted to write about in The Water Princess. So he has combined them all into one delightful story in which he enlightens young readers to the importance of being mindful of the treasures offered by earth's natural environment while he also explores the special "teacher-student" relationship fathers and daughters can enjoy when both sides are willing.
Ricci cleverly combines the mythological story of a young daughter caring for her ill father with that of a modern day child learning from her father about the wondrous mountain areas of Central California. How were those huge mountains and deep valleys formed? Why is water so important to our environment? Intelligent young readers are bound to be full of questions and keen to have their dads take them on a camping trip like the one our modern miss enjoys with her dad.
What a great book for parents and children to read together!
©Viga Boland, author and book reviewer
http://www.vigaboland.com
Ricci cleverly combines the mythological story of a young daughter caring for her ill father with that of a modern day child learning from her father about the wondrous mountain areas of Central California. How were those huge mountains and deep valleys formed? Why is water so important to our environment? Intelligent young readers are bound to be full of questions and keen to have their dads take them on a camping trip like the one our modern miss enjoys with her dad.
What a great book for parents and children to read together!
©Viga Boland, author and book reviewer
http://www.vigaboland.com
December 8, 2019
Sweet story but still needs some development
When one reads stories about princesses in the age where children's movies and shows embellish princesses with exaggerated qualities of strength, magic and confidence, readers come into these types of books with high expectations and Ricci certainly delivers on these points. A warm, enduring story of a father-daughter camping trip paralleled alongside one of an ancient native father and daughter fighting for the survival of their people with magic and wisdom, there are undeniably sweet and inspirational aspects of this novel that teaches children about wonder and the importance of giving back to the land and your heritage. However, the dialogue and plot is rather repetitive and underdeveloped, leaving much to be desired, and this story could use far more details and background and character. However, the idea behind it all is spectacular and worth the quick read.
When one reads stories about princesses in the age where children's movies and shows embellish princesses with exaggerated qualities of strength, magic and confidence, readers come into these types of books with high expectations and Ricci certainly delivers on these points. A warm, enduring story of a father-daughter camping trip paralleled alongside one of an ancient native father and daughter fighting for the survival of their people with magic and wisdom, there are undeniably sweet and inspirational aspects of this novel that teaches children about wonder and the importance of giving back to the land and your heritage. However, the dialogue and plot is rather repetitive and underdeveloped, leaving much to be desired, and this story could use far more details and background and character. However, the idea behind it all is spectacular and worth the quick read.
July 1, 2019
I can really resonate with the backstory or Ron Ricci’s The Water Princess; it started out as a campfire story he told to his daughter and her friends.
If you have kids of your own or have worked with kids, you know that storytelling is a magical experience.
It’s cool to see that magic of the storyteller-listener connection get woven into a full-length book, which itself is a sort of magical realism blending the real world of the California landscape and a fantasy narrative about obtaining water for a thirsty world.
This book reminded me a little of Grace Lin’s Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, although Ricci’s book has the extra heartwarming layer of the father-child camping trip connection—and who doesn’t think it’s cute to go on an adventure with your kid?
If you have kids of your own or have worked with kids, you know that storytelling is a magical experience.
It’s cool to see that magic of the storyteller-listener connection get woven into a full-length book, which itself is a sort of magical realism blending the real world of the California landscape and a fantasy narrative about obtaining water for a thirsty world.
This book reminded me a little of Grace Lin’s Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, although Ricci’s book has the extra heartwarming layer of the father-child camping trip connection—and who doesn’t think it’s cute to go on an adventure with your kid?
December 3, 2019
I really loved this story and how the author switched back and forth between the story of the father and daughter in the real world vs the pair in the story. This was a great book that had strong female characters and the father-daughter relationship was done very well. My only issues were more craft related. I did notice some errors with grammar and spacing (things such as "Iam" vs " I am"). I also felt that some of the grammar would throw off an early reader and it would have been more beneficial to keep sentences simpler instead of using semi-colons, etc. Also, more showing could have been done by incorporating the five senses and having some action beats and body movements to show emotion (use of the emotional thesaurus stuff). But the story itself was stellar.
December 23, 2019
This book does a wonderful job of connecting present-day America to its Native American roots and a more Spanish-speaking future. The story is mythical, inclusive, and visionary. The perfect length for a bedtime or campfire story; this multi-generational tale is a great introduction to storytelling for children. The images of the American landscape evoked are also beautiful. Older readers may be reminded of John Steinbeck's Salinas Valley in East of Eden. Instead of two sons and their quest for their father's love, this is a story about the love between daughters and fathers.
June 14, 2019
I bought this book for my 9 year old son, and was so incredibly surprised by how amazing it was. Such an original compelling story with undertones of female empowerment and taking care of the earth. My son really enjoyed it and continued reading even after I took a break. Highly reccomend this to parents looking for an entertaining story with a valuable message.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews