You know you have a great book in hand when you and your kids are so engrossed in the story that you don’t realize how valuable the lessons embedded in it are until the end. Such is the case with the Princess Madison Trilogy. We were all enthralled when I read these books to our kids (ages 3-9). At the end, my daughter actually said aloud, “I get it” and began relating the lesson to herself. (Encouraged Mama!)  I want us to get these lessons and live them out. Wonderful trilogy for all families:

When Princess Madison begins to wonder if she’s really a princess or not, she decides to enter The Royal Darling Pageant. If she wins, then surely, she must be a real princess. Compared to her perfect sister Evangeline, Madison doubts herself. Can a princess really have “dirt under her nails, holes in her jeans, and marbles in her pockets?”

Through all Madison does to try to prove herself and win the pageant, she learns the valuable truth from her father, the King: “Princesses don’t get to be princesses because they act a certain way; they get to be princesses because of who their father is.” (I John 3:1)

“A pinch of prevention is better than a cup of cure.” But, when Madison isn’t so careful to obey and finds herself deep in the whispering woods, she is in need of “a lot of fixing”! Madison not only does not know the way home, but also questions if her father will love her as much if she ever does get home.

Rescued by her father, the King, he reminds Madison that, “Many days you will use a pinch of prevention. . . Other days you will be tempted to ignore the rules that keep you safe. On those days you might need a whole bunch of cure . . . But my love for you never changes.”
(John 3:16)

“Madison wanted a puppy of her own more than anything else in the whole wide world.” . . . Including more than obeying her mother who tells her she can have one if she helps in the royal kennel for a couple of weeks first. Madison, sure that Zorobelle, the little yellow puppy, will not be any trouble, sneaks her into the castle.
After stealing bologna for Zorobelle, painting a purple paisley pattern on the puppy to disguise her, and hiding in a wood box with her, Madison’s secret puppy is discovered. Madison discovers that secrets are not as fun as they first seem. Her father, the King, lovingly helps her start again, the right way. (Psalm 32:5)

*Special thank you to illustrator, Phyllis Hornung, for sending us a signed copy of these beautiful books. Meeting Phyllis at the SCBWI Illustrators’ Night in Dallas was a delight as her artwork is enchanting! I’m excited to feature her interview responses this week. See her artwork at http://phyllishornungpeacock.com/Bio.html

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