The Frog Princess is a children's novel by E. D. Baker, first published in 2002. The 2009 Disney film, The Princess and the Frog, is loosely based on this novel.[1]
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Emeralda, aka Emma, is the only princess in Greater Greensward. But she is clumsy with everything, including the magic touch she inherited from the first green witch centuries back, and has a laugh like a foghorn. When her mother says she has to marry the stuck-up Prince Jorge from East Aradia, her worst enemy, she runs off to the swamp where she meets Prince Eadric of Upper Montevista. The only problem is that he has been turned into a frog by the witch Mudine. Emma kisses him and tries to reverse the spell, but her whole life changes when she turns into a frog. Emma and Eadric set off to find the witch that turned him into a frog and ask her to change them back. With what little magic Emma has learned from her Aunt Grassina, the current Green Witch, Emma tries to save Eadric and herself.
Diane Roback was mixed in her review for Publishers Weekly saying that "the tale occasionally offers peppy dialogue and some comical scenes--particularly as the newly transformed Emeralda adjusts to catching flies ("My eye-tongue coordination wasn't very good," she admits). Unfortunately, the plot doesn't make much of the magical elements (for example, the characters' encounters with a dragon and a nymph seem inconsequential), resulting in a disappointingly flat fantasy."[2]
Todd Morning was positive in his review for Booklist saying "the ending in this fairy tale–twisting first novel is rather like a Shakespearean comedy, with lots of disguises revealed. Unlike some takeoffs that revolve around one joke, this manages to be entertaining throughout, helped along by Emeralda’s amusing first person narration and the many witty lines."[3]
Nancy Menaldi-Scanlon in her review for School Library Journal thought that the vocabulary did not match the book's intended audience saying "The tale moves at a good pace, and, though the happy ending is predictable, the trials and tribulations that precede it are interesting. However, it's difficult to determine the book's audience. While the story would appeal to primary to intermediate grade girls, the vocabulary is rather sophisticated and seems to be more suited to young adults."[4]
E.D. Baker followed The Frog Princess with more books in the series chronicling Emma and Eadric's adventures: Dragon's Breath (2005), Once Upon a Curse (2006), and No Place for Magic (2008), as well as a prequel, The Salamander Spell (2008).
There is also an epilogue series of the books about Emma and Eadrics' daughter, Millie. The titles for that series are The Dragon Princess, Dragon Kiss and the most recent," A Prince Among Frogs".