Editorial Content for Hamster Princess: Ratpunzel

Harriet Hamsterbone is at it again in the third installment of the Hamster Princess Series by Ursula Vernon (award winning author of the DragonBreath Series).  Having just saved the Mouse Kingdom, Harriet arrives home for a brief respite.  While there she learns that Heady the Hydra's egg has been stolen. Eager to right this wrong, Harriet and her best friend Wilbur, alongside her trusty battle quail Mumfrey, embark on a quest to find the missing egg. Their search leads them to Ratpunzel.....who has a rather intriguing tale to tell.

"I enjoyed RATPUNZEL and would recommend it to anyone who likes fairy tales, animal based stories or is looking for a good beginners' graphic novel. "

Being new to this series I didn't know what to expect, however, I found it to be quite entertaining. Ms Vernon did a good job of creating a fairy tale atmosphere. The pacing was well done and mirrored that of a classic fairy tale. Her overall writing style was straight to the point and sometimes humorous. I like how she didn't dumb down the story because she was writing for kids, opening the book to up a broader audience. I wasn't sure how the rodent aspect of the story was going to work, but it ended up being the novels most unique element. The characters were solid and worked well together.

I'm pretty selective when it comes to illustrations in books because I feel like a lot of times it's not accurate or needed, but I have to hand it to Ursula Vernon, I thought she completely captured the characters and the artwork really helped the story along. I also thought the placement and frequency of the pictures was well done. The only umbrage I have is Harriet's age. Harriet's supposed to be a hero, renowned warrior, OgreCat slayer and have all those muscles. I just didn't buy that she could do all those things at 12. That being said, I enjoyed RATPUNZEL and would recommend it to anyone who likes fairy tales, animal based stories or is looking for a good beginners' graphic novel.