The princess and the grain of rice

PreS-Gr 4--This beautiful retelling from the author of God's Little Astronomer of the story of the Princess and the Pea is set in the Joseon Kingdom in Korea. The main character, Jeongsoon, is a kind girl who wants to help the children in her village. She sees an avenue for that help by marrying the prince, but first, she must pass three tests. The final test is to sleep on a stack of one hundred mattresses mattresses under which a grain of rice has been placed. This is a lovely version; the princess character is more fully developed than previous adaptations, mostly in the demonstrations of Jeongsoon's kindness and motivation. The artwork features gorgeous details of Korean culture that will help readers visualize important aspects of this particular princess. The author's notes offer insight into Cho's process for creating and refining her story in this excellent adaptation for folklore and fairy-tale collections. VERDICT This charming Korean retelling of a familiar story is refreshingly adapted and will have listeners in story hours clamoring for more.--Debbie Tanner

This retelling of "The Princess and the Pea" draws from history to imagine a new story about a real monarch from 18th-century Korea, in the midst of the country's centuries-long Joseon period. The crown prince's mother, the queen, will select his bride, and she arranges for her son's potential wives to undergo three challenges. Young Jeongsoon is a bit awkward and clumsy, but she's long dreamed of being a princess--and bringing aid to the hungry children of her village. When she's invited to compete, she's thrilled. She falters during the Manners Test but advances to the Wisdom Test. Her sincere response pleases the queen, and Jeongsoon alone is selected for the final challenge, the Sleep Test. Here, Cho replaces the familiar pea with a single grain of rice and adds a sweet little mouse to further complicate matters. Jang's vibrant digital art depicts lush palace grounds, richly colored hanboks, and a royal wedding befitting a princess, all while firmly anchoring the story in Korean history. Young readers will delight in seeing Jeongsoon prevail; her triumph will feel especially poignant for those who share her cultural background. While Cho doesn't interrogate the concept of arranged marriages or the age gap between the real-life Queen Jeongsoon and King Yeongjo (she was a young teen, while he was 64), she does emphasize that it is Jeongsoon's inner beauty, warmth, and wisdom that make her fit to be a monarch. A solid entry in the princess genre, elevated by its representation of Korean culture. (author's note, information on the true story, photographs of the author and her family visiting Queen Jeongsoon's burial site)(Picture book. 4-8) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.