Abigail McKenna's Reviews > Princess Academy

The half-exposed slabs and laboring villagers gave the place energy, a feeling that here was where all the work of the world was done. Here everything was important. Sometimes just looking at it made Miri's chest feel hollow.

I love to read middle-grade books. That's something I determined a long time ago. And when one loves to read middle-grade books, certain stories crop up over and over in your recommendations from various sources. "Princess Academy" was one of those books. So when I saw it at a good price in a pretty edition at a used bookstore, I picked it up. And then proceeded not to read it for a long time because what are TBR piles for if not for sitting in the corner staring you down judgmentally?

But hey, I finally picked it up. And was reminded why I love middle-grade books so much.

Miri's story felt nostalgic even though I shouldn't have any reason to be nostalgic for it. It reminded me of books I loved as a kid, and I understand now why it's such a staple of middle-grade for so many people. Miri is a wonderful main character to follow, strong-willed but smart enough to calculate her position, not afraid to stand up for her village against the traders but soft-hearted enough to want to please her family and friends. I just love her a lot.

I also appreciated how I actually got to recognizing a lot of the names of the other girls at the Academy. Situations with 20+ characters in them can sometimes overwhelm me, but I actually could keep track of the ones we were introduced to without too much difficulty. Which, I feel, is a compliment to Shannon Hale.

Other things I loved:
- Peder
- Miri and Britta's friendship
- Esa, just overall. I love her.
- the lasting effects of the Academy on Mount Eskel.
- the whole vibe of the Mount Eskel village in general, tbh. it felt almost Avonlea-ish, and it's great.
- the test on the hill and the overlapping answers
- the ENDING i'm so HAPPY
- it worked out exactly how I wanted it to I just didn't know how I wanted it to work out for like... most of the book xD I was torn but I looooved the way it worked out.
- Miri's relationship with her Pa by the end *all the heart eyes*

My only issue was with Olana and the way the Academy was run. It just bothers me when adults mistreat kids because they can or because they think "it's the best way". It's not. As someone who works with kids, it's not. So that still bothers me about this book, but I loved the rest of it enough to still give it five stars. Yeah. It's great.