BCCB-January 2004 Bulletin Dozen

	The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
	The Bulletin Dozen is a monthly theme-based booklist available as an online-only Bulletin feature. Since we're awfully fond of bakers here at the Bulletin, we thought we'd adopt their philosophy of generosity and throw in an extra one or two when we have them to offer--so don't expect an even dozen. Please feel free to copy, download, or link to these lists. We ask only that you cite the source. See the archive for lists from previous months.
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Crowned Heads: The Life and Times of Princesses and Queens
--selected by Debra Mitts Smith

While fairy-tale princesses and queens may have to deal with spiteful fairies, charmed frogs, and scheming stepmothers, at least they have magic or luck or both on their sides. The real-life princesses and queens featured in this month's Dozen's have no prince charming or fairy godmothers to rescue them. Instead most of these princesses learned at an early age that the only person they could depend on was themselves. The wills of royal parents and the interests of state often dictated whom and when a princess would marry. As some of their stories testify, divorce or sibling rivalry within a royal family could be downright deadly. Readers who like intrigue and danger amidst a royal setting are sure to find it in this month's selections.

Andronik, Catherine M. Hatshepsut, His Majesty, Herself; illus. by Joseph Daniel Fiedler. Atheneum, 2001. Gr. 4-6
Hatshepsut: daughter of a pharaoh, a God's Wife, Regent, and the woman who would be king. (BCCB 3/01)

Barrett, Tracy. Anna of Byzantium. Delacorte, 1999. Gr. 7-9
From the confines of a remote convent, Anna Comnena recounts the events that led to her downfall. (BCCB 7/99)

Brewster, Hugh. To Be a Princess; by Hugh Brewster and Laurie Coulter; illus. by Laurie McGaw and with photographs. Madison/HarperCollins, 2001. Gr. 4-7
In a mix of fact and fiction, Brewster and Coulter present the lives of twelve princesses including Gayatri Devi of India, Ka'iulani of Hawaii, and Elizabeth and Margaret Windsor. (BCCB 12/01)

Konigsberg, E. L. A Proud Taste for Scarlet and Miniver. Atheneum, 1973. 6 up
While awaiting Heaven's verdict on her husband Henry II, Eleanor of Aquitaine looks back at her own life. (BCCB 9/73)

Lasky, Kathryn. Marie Antoinette, Princess of Versailles. Scholastic, 2000. Gr. 6-7
Austrian princess Maria Antonia Josepha Johanna has much to learn if she is to survive the gossip and intrigues of the French court. (BCCB 6/00)

Mannis, Celeste Davidson. The Queen's Progress: An Elizabethan Alphabet; illus. by Bagram Ibatoulline. Viking, 2003. 6-9 yrs
Join Queen Elizabeth I on her annual tour of her realm. (BCCB 6/03)

Meltzer, Milton. Ten Queens: Portraits of Women in Power; illus. by Bethanne Andersen. Dutton, 1998. Gr. 5-10
Ten essays on ten powerful women: Esther, Cleopatra, Boudicca, Zenobia, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Isabel of Spain, Elizabeth I, Christiana of Sweden, Maria Theresa, and Catherine the Great. (BCCB 7/98)

Meyer, Carolyn. Beware, Princess Elizabeth. Gulliver, 2001. Gr. 6-9
Elizabeth, Henry VIII's second child, learns at an early age that it is best not to incur a monarch's wrath.

Meyer, Carolyn. Mary, Bloody Mary. Gulliver, 1999. Gr. 6-9
Divorce is never easy, especially if your father is Henry VIII and your stepmother is the ill-fated Anne Boleyn. (BCCB 10/99)

Myers, Walter Dean. At Her Majesty's Request: An African Princess in Victorian England. Scholastic, 1999. Gr. 4-8
Rescued by a British naval officer from a ritual sacrifice, a young African princess is given to Queen Victoria as a present. (BCCB 2/99)

Tingle, Rebecca. The Edge on the Sword. Putnam, 2001. Gr. 6-10
Aethelflaed understands that as the king's eldest daughter, duties and obligations to her father and his kingdom come before her personal wishes. (BCCB 10/01)

Yolen, Jane. Girl in a Cage; by Jane Yolen and Robert Harris. Philomel, 2002. Gr. 7-10
Marjorie, daughter of Robert the Bruce of Scotland, is captured and put on display by her father's enemy, Edward Longshanks, King of England. (BCCB 2/03)

Yolen, Jane. Queen's Own Fool: A Novel of Mary Queen of Scots; by Jane Yolen and Robert J. Harris. Philomel, 2000. Gr. 7-12
The twists and turns of fate of one history's most tragic queens are recounted by her jester, Nicola. (BCCB 7/00)

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