The Princess and The Goblin - George MacDonald Book Review

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Review Summary

Young Princess Irene is kept in ignorance of the ghastly goblins that live under the mountains--neither she nor any of the castle staff are allowed out after dark. But when she and her nurse Lootie accidentally stays out so late, a hideous creature chases them and nearly catches them. Because of that, Irene meets the young miner boy, Curdie, who knows the weaknesses of the goblins.
After her narrow escape, Irene is drawn up into abandoned parts of the castle to where her great-great-grandmother lives, surviving on pigeon's eggs--also a wonderful character, somewhere between a guardian angel and a grandmother.
Karen, Resident Scholar

George MacDonald, born in Aberdeenshire, Scotland (1824-1905) was one of the early fantasy writers, or as they were called then, makers of fairy stories. This one has subtle but powerful magic, an heroic princess, hoards of goblins and their creatures, and Curdie, the poor but heroic young miner boy who has to be rescued by the princess before he can rescue her. There is more real magic in this book than in all the Harry Potters in the world. Can be enjoyed by readers of all ages from about 10 years upwards.
Michael JR Jose, Resident Scholar

Detailed literary breakdown of The Princess and The Goblin

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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot

Composition of Book
Descript. of chases or violence - 20%
planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 30%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 30%
Descript. of society, phenomena (tech), places - 20%

Tone of book - suspenseful (sophisticated fear)
FANTASY or SCIENCE FICTION? - fantasy world/fantasy past
Coming of age Yes
Youngster becomes - an adult (general)
Is this an adult or child's book? - Adult or Young Adult Book
Family relations Yes

Main Character
Identity: - Female
Profession/status: - Prince/Nobleman/King
Age: - a kid
Has magical/special powers? Yes
How sensitive is this character? - sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor - Strong but gentle sense of humor
Intelligence - Average intelligence - Smarter than most other characters
Physique - very athletic - healthy but a geeky weakling

Main Adversary
Identity: - magical being - an entire race
Age: - long-lived adults
Has magical powers? Yes
Magical/mental powers of main antagonist: - is very quick
Eccentric: Yes - eccentric
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in: - an average amount - throughout most of the book.
How sensitive is this character? - mean, arrogant
Sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence - Genius (really!)

Setting
Terrain - Mountains - Domed/Underground City
Earth setting: - during "Tolkien" (fairytime) times
Takes place on Earth? Yes

Style
Person? - mostly 3rd - rotating 1st
Accounts of torture and death? - no torture/death - generic/vague references to death/punishment
How much dialogue? - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog

Most similar books to The Princess and The Goblin
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Dragon and Thief by Timothy Zahn
A Man Betrayed - The Book of Words 2 by J.V. Jones

Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s).

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