Seventieth Printing of The Paper Bag Princess!

This week, we sent off the 70th printing of The Paper Bag Princess. Originally published in 1980, The Paper Bag Princess has inspired children for 32 years with its tale of the daring Elizabeth and her journey to outwit a ferocious dragon and save her prince (who turns out to be... well... not all that princely). The final scene, with Elizabeth leaping for joy as she heads off into the sunset, later became Annick's logo.

 
The Paper Bag Princess is available in paperback, hardcover, Annikin edition, and board book. There's also a special 25th Anniversary Edition that contains not only the original story, but also tons of behind-the-scenes extras such as:

• Why Robert Munsch decided to start writing picture books
• How Annick paired up Robert Munsch and Michael Martchenko
• The real Elizabeth who inspired the story: she was seven at the time and is now married with a daughter of her own
• A step-by-step look at how picture books are created and published
• Early sketches from Michael Martchenko, including some that didn't make it into the final book

Here's an excerpt that accompanies the original sketch for Prince Ronald's rescue:

The ending of The Paper Bag Princess is now world famous: the snotty prince doesn't want to be rescued by Elizabeth because she's a mess. In the original story, Elizabeth bops him one for being so rude and ungrateful, as you can see in this sketch. But hitting people--even arrogant princes who just might deserve it--isn't appropriate, and Bob and his publishers decided to take it out. Instead, Elizabeth tells off the so-called prince and then leaves him behind, proving that true nobility has nothing to do with appearances and everything to do with behavior.

If you have your own memories of The Paper Bag Princess to share, please leave us a comment!

A Royal Picture Book!

We have Google alerts set up for our book titles, authors, and illustrators, to keep an eye out for reviews and online mentions. Our most famous book, Robert Munsch's The Paper Bag Princess, pops up at least a few times a week. But last week, I was amused to see a few mentions of The Paper Bag Princess turn up in connection with the royal wedding!

On the parenting blog Upbeats and Downbeat, Gail Underwood Parker writes about how The Paper Bag Princess teaches that "it is up to each of us to discover what OUR 'happily ever after' looks like." And on the Kabongo blog, Margaret gives the book a review "in honor of the new Princess Kate."

If you haven't checked out this classic strong-princess tale yet, you're in luck: you can choose from the original edition (paperback or hardcover), the 25th anniversary edition, the Annikin edition (for tiny hands), or the board book version!

Updates for Fall

We're excited to announce that our Fall books are now up on our website! Check them out at www.annickpress.com/catalog/new.html

Today I found a great blog post called Great Children's Books About Princesses. I was very pleased (but not surprised!) to see that The Paper Bag Princess had made the list. (Fun fact: this book has now been in print for 30 years. It's available in hardcover, paperback, Annikin version, board book, and special 25th Anniversary edition!)

It also got me thinking: what would Elizabeth, star of The Paper Bag Princess, read as a teenager? Any suggestions? Favorite young adult novels with strong female protagonists? Let me know in the comments! (Personally, I'd vote for Suzanne Collins's Hunger Games trilogy... can't wait for the third one, Mockingjay, to come out this August!)

Summer of Munsch!

So far, it's shaping up to be the Summer of Munsch! Earlier this week, it was announced that Robert Munsch had donated one of his unpublished stories to 8-year-old Taya Kendall in Guelph, Ontario. She got her classmates to illustrate the book, Braids, and will be selling copies to raise money for AIDS orphans in Kenya. Check out the full story at TheStar.com or GuelphMercury.com, and be sure to visit the Children of Bukati website to find out how you can buy copies of Braids!

But wait, there's more! Today, Munsch received an outstanding birthday present (his birthday is June 11) when he was inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame. The Walk of Fame honors Canadians who have made significant cultural achievements, and the addition of nine new members this year (including Tom Cochrane, Howie Mandel, and Kim Cattrall) brings the total number of inductees to 124. You can search for their stars in the sidewalk east of the Princess of Wales Theatre on King Street West and south along Simcoe Street (or look them up online!). All of us here at Annick Press send our heartfelt congratulations to Robert Munsch and all of the Canadian Walk of Fame inductees!

Finally, to cap off this unofficial Summer of Munsch, we are proud to announce that a board book version of The Paper Bag Princess will be available this fall -- it should arrive in our warehouse at the end of August! Now even the youngest children can cheer for smart, resourceful Elizabeth as she defeats the dragon and discovers that not all princes appreciate being rescued!

Dragon Finds New Home in Library

Reading and dragons come together at the Dufferin/St. Clair Branch of the Toronto Public Library in a special room inspired by The Paper Bag Princess by Robert Munsch and Michael Martchenko. After a major renovation and restoration, one of Toronto's oldest public libraries reopened this week. The Dufferin/St. Clair Branch features a KidsStop with an Enchanted Forest theme. KidsStops are interactive early literacy centres where children and their parents and caregivers can learn pre-literacy skills in a hands-on environment. And who better to help young children become excited about books and reading than the iconic dragon from the classic Munsch favourite? The Toronto Public Library is the world's busiest urban public library system, and we're delighted that Annick Press is a visible presence in this renovated branch.