The Penguin and the Pea

The Penguin and the Pea by Janet Perlman was a great version of one of my old favorites the Princess and the pea. It’s about a prince determined to find a real princess to be his wife. The prince’s mother believed that a true princess would not be able to sleep if there was a pea under her bed. Sure enough the princess in the story felt the pea and is then able to marry the prince. I like the fact that the author chose a penguin, one of the only birds that can’t fly as the subject of the story. It gives the reader the message that anyone can be a princess. I’m glad I read this story again now that I’m older. It brought back memories of sitting in my parent’s bed and listening to my mom read stories. When my mom would read the princess and the pea to me, I remember wondering how the princess could feel that pea under all those mattresses. I loved the silly idea of a pea under all those mattresses and so will most kids! If you liked the original princess in the pea I recommended giving the penguin version a try!