THE PRINCESS AND THE PEABODYS

Another light entry to be added to the shelf of ye olde fractured fairy tales, likely to be popular with pre-teens looking for light romantic comedy. Sarcastic eighth-grader Casey is athletic, uninterested in boys and a somewhat selfish person when it comes to being a team player. She’s shocked by the sudden addition to the Peabody family of Princess Eglantine, via a rusty old box. It takes some time for “Egg” to lose her haughtiness, and Casey needs time to get over her jealousy of her family’s unbelievably unquestioning response to this magical appearance. After a number of mildly humorous struggles, Casey and Egg become more like siblings and Egg teaches Casey to be a modern female. While the punny title reflects the overall tone, it references a wholly unrelated fairy tale. Instead, this has much more in common with a fractured version of Cinderella. Not a necessary purchase, but a fairly good, light, summer read. (Fiction. 8-12)