There are no words to express how thrilled I am to be on the blog tour for this book. The Prince and the Dressmaker by Jen Wang is absolutely a delight. I simply adore it! For this tour stop I’ll be sharing my thoughts on the book as well as one of my favorite panels. (Check out the full tour schedule here!)
About the Book:
The Prince and the DressmakerParis, at the dawn of the modern age:
Prince Sebastian is looking for a bride—or rather, his parents are looking for one for him. Sebastian is too busy hiding his secret life from everyone. At night he puts on daring dresses and takes Paris by storm as the fabulous Lady Crystallia—the hottest fashion icon in the world capital of fashion!
Sebastian’s secret weapon (and best friend) is the brilliant dressmaker Frances—one of only two people who know the truth: sometimes this boy wears dresses. But Frances dreams of greatness, and being someone’s secret weapon means being a secret. Forever. How long can Frances defer her dreams to protect a friend? Jen Wang weaves an exuberantly romantic tale of identity, young love, art, and family. A fairy tale for any age, The Prince and the Dressmaker will steal your heart.
My Thoughts:
I cannot stop talking about this book. I held off on submitting my final order for my school library until it’s release because I need my students to read it so we can talk about how great it is.
The first word that comes to mind when I think of The Prince and the Dressmaker by Jen Wang is beautiful… both the art and the story. Here are a few thoughts on each:
Art:
I’m no expert on talking about graphic novels and the art, but I know what I like. And everything worked for me with this one! I loved the style. Not fussy with detail but not stark. The colors are gorgeous. They aren’t sharp, but neither are they washed out. I think I would say it has a really soft look overall. Which went so well with the sweet, sweet story. I also really loved the formatting of this one. (I have no idea if there are technical terms for this so bear with me!) The way the panels were laid out, the focus of each box, and how some illustrations seemed “outside” of the boxes, (you can see what I mean when you look at my favorite panel!) It all worked.
Story:
Ugh. I just love it so, so, so very much. Sebastian and Frances are such wonderful characters. I loved seeing them take chances and embrace the things they wanted. Seeing their friendship grow and deepen was such a treat. Wang strikes just the right balance with the tension and pacing of the story.
When I try to organize all the things I love about this story, two main ideas stick out. First and foremost, I love the focus on being true to yourself. Both of the main characters struggle with this. They know who they are. They’re just both trying to figure out how to be that person “out loud” (and if they even can!)
The second aspect I adored was the way The Prince and the Dressmaker showed characters supporting the people they care about. It was truly beautiful. Basically, there are not enough synonyms for “phenomenal” to cover my love for this book.
My Favorite Panel:
This part was so hard! There are so very many that I loved! My absolute favorite one is a bit spoilery (Sara from Novel Novice is braver than me and shared it on her stop!) so I went with the first one I fell in love with:
This scene is from the very beginning of the book. It’s the first time Frances lets go and makes something out of the ordinary. Of course I love that. But what I really love is the girl who requested the dress. She has no time for the conventions of society. I love the way she wears what she wants and eats what she wants and just dares you to say something to her about it. The color, the expressions, that last panel with Sebastian witnessing it from behind the curtain… perfection.
About the Author:
Jen Wang is a cartoonist and illustrator currently living in Los Angeles. Her works have appeared in the Adventure Time comics and LA Magazine. She recently illustrated Tom Angleberger’s Fake Mustache. Her graphic novels Koko Be Good and In Real Life (with author Cory Doctorow) were published by First Second. jenwang.net
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