PRINCESS IN WAITING

The latest in the Princess Diaries (Princess in Love, 2002, etc.) is as hilarious and enjoyable as its predecessors. Gangly 14-year-old New Yorker Mia may be the princess of the small European country of Genovia, but that’s about all she can see going for her. Besides, being a princess can really cut into one’s social schedule. Mia is in Genovia, attending to her princessly duties over her winter break, when the story opens. With no easy access to a phone or the Internet, she has a hard time keeping in touch with her new boyfriend Michael Moscowitz. Not a problem, her scheming Grandmère contends, and suggests Mia read Jane Eyre to get ideas on how to win in romance. Back in New York, Grandmère foils Mia’s first important date with Michael by forcing her to attend a ball. Luckily, Michael is too cool, and comes through as valiantly as Mr. Rochester. The diary format lets the reader follow each twist-and-turn from Mia’s point of view, with plenty of asides on current media events (which, while fun, will date quickly—readers may already have forgotten what is funny about a “Free Winona Ryder” t-shirt). Cabot’s fresh, fast-paced voice catches the new reader up with the important details so that having missed the first three episodes doesn’t get in the way of enjoying this one. (Fiction. 11-16)