Princess Furball

by Charlotte Huck; illustrated by Anita Lobel

Book reviews Story Characters Use of Magic Country of origin & printable map Related Books

From Publishers Weekly
Stylized watercolor-and-gouache paintings give a lush, medieval air to this assured retelling of a traditional tale. Ages 4-up.

From School Library Journal
Grade 1-4-- In this variant of the Cinderella story, a motherless princess grows into an accomplished and capable young woman. It’s a good thing, too, for her heartless father intends to marry her to an ogre in exchange for 50 wagonloads of silver. The princess, thinking her demands will be impossible to meet, requests four bridal gifts--a dress as golden as the sun, one as silvery as the moon, a third as glittering as the stars, and a coat made from the skins of 1000 animals. When her father meets her demands, the princess dons her coat of a thousand furs, packs her three dresses into a walnut shell, and runs away, taking along a special soup seasoning and three small treasures that had belonged to her mother. Disguised by her strange coat, Furball, as she is now called, finds work as a drudge in a neighboring king’s kitchen. When the king gives a ball, she dresses herself in the gown of gold and attends. The princess attends a second ball, and a third, leaving each one abruptly and dropping golden tokens in the prince’s soup after each appearance. At the last ball, the prince slips the golden ring on her finger before she disappears, and when the ragged Furball is brought before him, can identify her as his mysterious guest and future wife. Huck’s telling is smooth and graceful, with a slightly rustic informality perfectly echoed by Lobel’s flat, primitive style. With a palette that ranges from warm brown to radiant white, the illustrations complement the storyline visually, placing it in an undefined middle-European setting. Author and illustrator have created a strong female character: particularly endearing in her coat of fur, she is resourceful and charming throughout. The princess’ reliance on her own abilities and the absence of obvious magical help make this a fresh and satisfying addition to library collections of all sizes. --Linda Boyles, Alachua County Library District, Gainesville, FL

Ingram
Desperate to escape an unwanted marriage to a cruel ogre, a clever princess hides her identity behind a coat of a thousand furs and finds true love with a handsome king.

There was a young princess with hair of gold. She was often unhappy and lonely because her mother was dead and her father paid little attention to her. The young princess was lucky because she had an old nurse who cared and loved her like a mother. The old nurse allowed the young princess to run and play with the village children, but also made sure that she was taught to be a fine lady.

One day the old nurse died. The young princess was sad and lonely again. Her father promised her in marriage to an Ogre who agreed to give the King fifty wagons of silver in return. The young princess pleaded with her father to stop this marriage, but the father refused. The princess asked for one thing from her father before the wedding. She wanted three bridal gifts - one dress as golden as the sun, another dress as silvery as the moon, and a third as glittering as the stars. Also, she wanted a coat made of a thousand different furs. The father immediately ordered his best weavers to begin making the three dresses his daughter wanted. Then, he commanded his hunters to kill a thousand different animals so that the coat would be made. When all the gifts were ready, he gave them to the young princess and announced that she would be married tomorrow. The princess decided the only thing she could do was to run away.

During the night, the young princess packed the three new dresses into a package so small that it fit into a walnut shell. In another shell, she packed the gifts from her mother - a gold ring, a gold thimble, and a little gold spinning wheel. In a third walnut shell, she put her favorite seasoning for the soup the Cook taught her to make. Then, she put her coat of a thousand fur animals on and went out into the snowy night.

Being very tired, the young princess made a bed out of the hollow of a tree. She slept until it was almost noon. Meanwhile, the young King of the area was hunting with his mean and dogs. The dogs surrounded the tree where the young princess slept. The young King ordered his men to search the inside of the tree. Two hunters informed the king of a marvelous creature covered with thousand different furs. The young King ordered the men to tie it up and bring it to the castle.

Once they arrived at the castle, the two hunters showed the young princess a dark shed. That was to be her new home. She was then taken to the kitchen where the Cook made her does the dirty daily chores. The young princess lived a servant to the servants for a long time.

One day the King gave a ball. Furball, the young princess, asked if she could view the guests. She promised not be caught. The Cook gave her okay but made Furball promise to be back in a half an hour. The young princess took down her hair and removed the gold dress from the walnut shell. When she entered the ball, she was beautiful. The young King rushed to great her. They danced until the music stopped. Before the young King knew what happened, the young princess vanished. She rushed back to her dark shed, put on her fur coat, and smudge her face with dirt and rush to the kitchen. She was not longer the young princess. She was Furball again. As she entered the kitchen, the Cook ordered Furball to make the King’s soup so that she could view the guests. Before the Cook left, she threatened that if any of her hair got into the soup, she would not eat for a week. Furball, the young princess, made the soup and added her special spices from her walnut shell. She also added the gold ring of her mothers to the soup.

After the ball, the King was brought his soup. It was the best soup he had ever tasted. At the bottom of the bowl was the small gold ring. He ordered the Cook to appear before him. From her, he found out that Furball had made the soup. He ordered her brought before him.

When Furball appeared, she was covered with soot and dirt. The young King asked her where she learned to make the wonderful soup. She told him that she was a stranger in his kingdom, and that she had learned to make the soup in another palace. When he asked her about the gold ring, she remained silent. He sent Furball away.

A while later, the Young King had another ball. Again, Furball asked the Cook if she might view the guests. The Cook said okay, but she had to be back in a half hour to make the King’s soup. Furball immediately ran to her shed and took out her silver dress. She washed her face and took down her hair. As she entered the ball, the young King was waiting for her. He would only dance with her. At the end of the half hour, the young princess vanished. She returned to her shed and transformed back into Furball. Once she entered the kitchen, she began making the soup. This time, she dropped the tiny gold thimble into the soup.

After the young King enjoyed his soup, he found the tiny gold thimble. He ordered the Cook to appear before him, only to find that Furball had made the soup. When he questioned Furball about the tiny gold thimble, she would not say a word.

When the King had the third ball, Furball was again given a half-hour to view the guests. This time she wore the dress that glittered like the stars. As she entered the ball, the King knew he was in love. He placed the tiny ring on her finger, and ordered the musicians to play the longest dance they knew. As the music stopped, the princess vanished.

Since the young princess stayed too long at the ball, she only had time to tie a scarf over her head, put soot on her face, and put her fur coat over her glittering dress. She immediately went to the kitchen and prepared the King’s soup with her special seasonings. This time she placed the tiny gold spinning wheel in the soup. Like the other times, the King enjoyed the soup, found the tiny gold spinning wheel, and ordered Furball to appear before him. This time the King noticed the tiny gold ring on her finger. As the King grabbed her hand and she struggled to get free, Furball’s coat of a thousand different animals and her scarf fell off. Furball was now a radiant princess. The King asked the young princess to marry him. The wedding took place the next day. All who attended the ball attended the wedding. The King and his new Queen lived happily ever after.

Princess - She ran away when she became engaged to an ogre. She hides different items in the soup that she makes for the Prince. She marries the Prince.

Father - He paid little attention to his daughter. He promised an ogre that his daughter would marry him in exchange for silver. He performs two nearly impossible tasks as bridal gifts for his daughter. He is never mentioned again.

Old nurse - She taught the princess how to act like a lady. She eventually dies.

Cook - She teaches the princess how to make special soup.

King - Takes Princess Furball to be a servant to his servants. He falls in love with the princess at the ball. He marries the princess.

In the beginning, the King performs two nearly impossible tasks. However, even more magical is that Princess Furball is able to fit her three beautiful dresses into a walnut shell. She also fits a gold ring, a gold thimble, and a little gold spinning wheel into another walnut shell.

There is not fairy godmother figure or talking animal in this story. Everything the princess achieves is really done on her own and not through magic.

Go to a Printable Map of Germany from National Geographic

Many fairy tales came from Germany including those tales by the Brothers Grimm (Berendes 10). In the Brothers Grimm version, we read about stepsisters trying to remove parts of their foot to make the slipper fit. This version takes an entirely different approach. There is no glass slipper. This proves that there are many fairy tales that came from Germany. In fact, there can even be many versions of the same fairy tale.

According to Berendes, wolves, deer, grouse, and lynx are all animals located in Germany (10). This may explain why the kings men were hunting when they came upon Furball.

“Germans love good food” (Frank 40). They love to cook and eat (Berendes 25). This may help to explain why Furball wins the heart of the Prince through both her cooking and by hiding objects in his soup.

Berendes, Mary. Germany. Child ’s World, 2000.

Frank, Nicole and Richard Lord. Welcome to Germany. Milwaukee: Gareth Stevens, 2000.