The Lacemaker and the Princess by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

Reviewed by Karen

Ratings

Content Ratings based on a 0-5 scale where
0 = no objectionable content and
5 = an excessive or disturbing level of content

Guide to Rating System

LANGUAGE

VIOLENCE

SEXUAL CONTENT

ADULT THEMES

Ratings Explanation

Violence: Brief description of mobs marching on Versaille.  George, Isabelle’s brother, is killed in the ensuing chaos while trying to protect the Marquis de LaFayette.  In the Author’s Note at the end of the book, the execution of King Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette is mentioned.

Adult Themes: There is the underlying theme of the coming French Revolution.

Synopsis

In the year 1788, eleven-year-old Isabelle Bonnard is a lacemaker in the town of Versaille, France.  That is her social class—a tradesman—she was born into that station and there she will stay.  “What God has ordained, men cannot change.”  But while delivering lace to the palace one day, Isabelle has a chance rescue from the Queen herself, Marie Antoinette.  By day, Isabelle becomes a member of the court and playmate to the King and Queen’s nine-year-old daughter, Therese. She learns the ins and outs of French court life–manners, food, social mores, etc.  But soon, Isabelle begins to ponder the blurred line of her double life.  When she’s at the palace, she is a person of rank, and yet at home, her tradesmen status is scorned.

Meanwhile, the country of France is in turmoil.   The common people are over-taxed and underfed.  They see the gross misuse of the money by an extravagant court.  King Louis XVI’s weak and indecisive behavior infuriates the peasants into revolt.  As the French Revolution begins to unfold, Isabelle must decide between friendship with Princess Therese and her own survival.

This is a great book for kids who like historical fiction.  Life in Versaille leading up to the French Revolution is told through the eyes of a child.  As Isabelle contemplates the inequities of the social classes in France, I hope young readers can do the same in the world around us.