By Christopher Healy

Published 2013

AR Level 5.0

AR Points 12.0

Word Count 79,846

I was always drawn to books with classical heroes and sword play, but like most every kid alive (and as mentioned in previous posts) I loved to laugh. This book has all of this and then some. Slapstick humor and fully fleshed and (wonderfully funny) characters bring this story of down-on-their luck heroes to life.

Description from B&N:

Prince Liam. Prince Frederic. Prince Duncan. Prince Gustav. You’ve never heard of them, have you? These are the princes who saved Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, Snow White, and Rapunzel, respectively, and yet, thanks to those lousy bards who wrote the tales, you likely know them only as Prince Charming. But all of this is about to change.

Rejected by their princesses and cast out of their castles, the princes stumble upon an evil plot that could endanger each of their kingdoms. Now it’s up to them to triumph over their various shortcomings, take on trolls, bandits, dragons, witches, and other assorted terrors, and become the heroes no one ever thought they could be.

Christopher Healy’s Hero’s Guide to Saving Your Kingdom is a completely original take on the world of fairy tales, the truth about what happens after “happily ever after.” It’s a must-have for middle grade readers who enjoy their fantasy adventures mixed with the humor of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid books. Witty black-and-white drawings by Todd Harris add to the fun.

Final Take: The characters are hilarious, the action is fast, and the story is well plotted. If your child likes funny adventures of the fairy tale kind this should be a great read. And that’s good because at 400 plus pages, they will need to really like to read. Longer than many books at this age-level it is great for readers who like to immerse themselves in a book. This is the first book in the trilogy, so if your child loves it, there’s more to keep them going.