The Princess Diaries Book Club Guide
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Once a month my daughter has a few friends over for a book club. This month they discussed The Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot. I know other homeschool families enjoy having book clubs too, so I thought I would share our Princess Diaries book club in case you would like to host one too.
The Princess Diaries is a light-hearted young adult book in which Mia Thermopolis, an average teenager from New York City, discovers she is actually the Princess of Genovia. This creates all sorts of problems as she struggles to adjust to her new role while still clinging to her old life.
Throughout most of my daughter’s homeschool experience, she has participated in a book club. Some years it was led by a co-op teacher or a friend’s mom, but most of the time, I have led the discussion.
One of the hardest parts of hosting a book club is choosing the books. In past years my daughter and her friends discussed different options until they finally made a choice. It usually took at least 30 minutes and involved me reading Amazon descriptions aloud.
Every parent has different rules about what their kids can read, so sometimes the choices were vetoed and we needed to choose another book.
This year we decided to choose all of the titles for the year over the summer. Last year’s books were mainly deep works of literature, so we decided to select titles that were a little lighter this year.
The Princess Diaries Book Club
Overview
The Princess Diaries is the story of Mia Thermopolis. She grew up believing that she was just a typical child with divorced parents. During the school year she lived in New York with her mom and during the summer she visited her father’s family in the European nation of Genovia.
When Mia is in high school she learns the truth. She is the princess of Genovia and is in line for the throne. This is not welcome news.
Mia has no interest in being a princess, but it isn’t really optional. Her grandmother flies to New York to give her princess lessons in an attempt to help her adjust to her new title.
Transitioning from an ordinary life to life in the royal family isn’t easy. Learn all about Mia’s struggles by reading her diary entries.
Discussion Questions
- What were your general feelings about the book? Did you enjoy it?
- Did you relate to any of the characters?
- One of Mia’s princess lessons is to write about women she looks up to. What did you think of her list? Who would you include on your list?
- How does Mia’s life change after she finds out her secret identity? Does anything stay the same?
- Would you want to be in Mia’s place?
- Do you think it was appropriate for Mia’s mom to date Mia’s algebra teacher?
- Do you think Mia’s parents made the right choice when they decided to hide her royal connections?
- Does being a princess seem fun?
- Do you think Mia really didn’t know her family was royalty?
- How does the diary format help drive the novel?
- This book is the first in a series. There are 17 total books. What are some things you think might happen to Mia in these books?
- How does this book compare to other princess stories?
- Do you think Mia’s parents should have told her the truth about her identity earlier? What would be the ideal age to discover you are part of the royal family
- Is Mia’s grandmother more similar to a traditional grandmother or a fairy godmother?
- How would the story be different if it was told from another character’s perspective?
Snack Choices
As soon as I began planning The Princess Diaries book club I knew that I wanted to serve tea party snacks. I had visions of baking delicious treats to serve on silver trays.
In reality, I was way too tired to do any actual baking. This book club meeting fell smack in the middle of a very busy week. I purchased everything from the grocery store, being cognizant of food allergies in the group (gluten and dairy).
I served:
- Oreos
- Snickerdoodles
- Dark chocolate peanut butter cups
- Apple slices
- Chocolate hummus
- Mini strawberry sandwiches
- Mini cucumber sandwiches
- Tea
I cut the mini sandwiches into hearts and flowers with small cookie cutters to make simple treats feel a little more special.
No products found.
I chose gluten-free dairy-free versions of everything, but you can use whatever works best for your group.
Other Ideas
Watch the movie – Watching the movie is an obvious choice after reading the book. My daughter and I spent a rainy afternoon rewatching The Princess Diaries movie.
You will instantly be able to tell if anyone watched the movie instead of reading the book. The movie is very different! Some of the changes are minor – San Francisco instead of New York, but others are major – Mia’s dad being dead, instead of alive and well.
Read more books in the Princess Diaries series – The Princess Diaries is the first book in a long series. If you enjoy this book, you will likely enjoy the others. There is even a new book coming out in March 2023.
Creative writing – Pretend you are Princess Mia for a day. What would you do? Write a diary entry of your princess day as a creative writing project.
I hope this Princess Diaries book club guide helps you host a wonderful book club!
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