Princesses Behaving Badly

Sure, most people over Disney age don't believe that being a princess is really all it's cracked up to be. At the same time, however, we kind of do -- witness the world's fascination with Kate Middleton, the pretty commoner who married Britain's Prince William to become Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge.

Princesses Behaving Badly is an effort to inject a little bit of reality into the princess fantasy, to make sure that the fairy tale doesn't become the expectation. The best way to do that is to talk about real life princesses. Historical princess have been capable of great things as well as horrible things; they've made stupid decisions and bad mistakes, loved the wrong people or too many people or not enough people. They are women who lied, murdered, used sex as a weapon, or dressed like a man to hold on to power. They weren't afraid to get a little dirt, or blood, on their hands. These women were human, but the word princess, along with its myriad connotations, often glosses over that humanity. Their stories may begin once upon a time, but they don't always end happily ever after. 

The stories of these 30 historical princesses from across the world are illustrated by award-winning artist Douglas Smith, perhaps best known for his fantastic illustrations for Gregory Maguire's Wicked books.