I am Princess X

 1.      BIBLIOGRAPHY

Priest, Cherie. 2015. I am Princess X. Ill. by Kali Ciesemier. New York, NY: Arthur A. Levine Books. ISBN: 9780545620857

2.      PLOT SUMMARY

 May and Libby became best friends in the 5^th grade after a cast and asthma sat them both out of PE. They proceeded to use the chalk left on the sidewalk to create Princess X, a character that grew alongside their friendship. When Libby tragically died after a car accident with her mom, Princess X died with her. When her parents divorced May moved away with her mom and on a visit back home she began to see stickers of Princess X in different places around town. She soon discovered the website with Princess X comics that included information only she would know and other eerie similarities between Princess X and Libby. Enlisting the help of a tech. wizard, Trick, May sets out to find, Libby, the only person that she thinks would have the information to put the comic together. May soon discovers that Libby is in trouble and the person that kidnapped her is out to get May and Trick, too. Following the clues that Libby left in the comics May and Trick soon find her along with the person that helped her stay safe on the run. Together they all use their skills to bring down Needle Man, the person that killed Libby’s family and was still hunting her down.

 

3.      CRITICAL ANALYSIS

The characters are growing in circumstance and in their situations in life. May moves from a person that rejects new relationships to building them on a search for her friend. Libby is a big mystery throughout the course of the book, but even she moves into a place of visiting the grandma that initially rejected her dad, and in a way, her. The story mainly focused on action and the movement towards solving the mystery behind Princess X, so there wasn’t as much focus on inward development. Their strengths like loyalty, bravery, and intelligence are noted along with weaknesses like May’s inability to draw and Trick’s act of revenge that changed his circumstances.

The events flow logically and are very action driven. Once May discovers that Princess X is out there, there is so much movement. She enlists Trick’s help, reads the comics, finds clues, and they get chased by an unnamed person that they discover is the person that kidnapped Libby. The story is original and plausible, but not as believable ad others. The setting is Seattle, Washington and that’s mentioned in the context of coffee shop visits, the weather, and the change seen in the neighborhoods. The search for lasting friendships, sacrifice, and loyalty are seen throughout. The dialogue was natural and the tone was humorous. There wasn’t as much thrill, but it was an interesting and fun read.

4.      REVIEW EXCERPTS

Starred review in Booklist: “The unembellished style is a perfect match for the noir-lite tone, and May and Trick, whose banter crackles with energy, rival any team of gumshoes out there. Teens who roll their eyes at adults out of touch with Internet culture will eat this up.”

Reviewed in Horn Book Guide: “Scenes from the comic are interspersed throughout the harrowing and mysterious narrative featuring an engaging protagonist.”

Reviewed in Kirkus Reviews: “Priest cranks the suspense somewhat by casting the kidnapper as both an IT expert and a killer, but because he mostly appears only in the emotionally charged, sparely drawn purple-and-black comics pages that Ciesemier scatters through the tale's first two-thirds, he remains, at best, a shadowy bogeyman. Promising elements aplenty, but they never fully mesh or deliver more than a passing chill.”

Starred review in Publishers Weekly: “Fresh and contemporary, this hybrid novel/comic packs a lot of plot in a relatively short book, but its strongest suit may be Priest's keen understanding of the chasmic gap between the way teens and adults engage in the landscape of the Internet.”

Starred review in School Library Journal: “Even when the action moves online, Priest keeps the story exciting and approachable without ever resorting to technical jargon. Accompanying illustrations by Ciesemier bring the story found in the webcomic to life and integrate beautifully with May's search for Libby in this utterly satisfying read.”

 

5.      CONNECTIONS

*Other books written by Cherie Priest:

Priest, Cherie. The agony house. ISBN: 9781338582178

Priest, Cherie. Fathom. ISBN: 9780765321220

Priest, Cherie. Boneshaker. ISBN: 9780765318411

*This book can be used to initiate discussions about technology and the role it can play in our lives.

*Invite students to write letters to May or Libby asking them any questions they still have about the story or sharing their favorite part.