The Princess Diaries

The Princess Diaries is the first volume of the series of the same name by Meg Cabot. It was released in 2000 by Harper Collins Publishers, and later became a film of the same name starring Anne Hathaway. Summary Mia Thermopolis is an average urban ninth grader. She lives in Greenwich Village with her single, liberal mother, who is a semi-famous painter, but Mia puts on her Doc Martens one at a time, and the most exciting things she ever dreams about are kissing senior Josh Richter ("six feet of hotness") and passing Algebra. Mia's father comes to town and drops a major bomb: he's not just a European politician as he's always led her to believe, but actually the prince of a small country. And Mia, his only heir, is now considered the crown princess of Genovia. She doesn't even know how to begin to cope: "I am so NOT a princess.... You never saw anyone who looked less like a princess than I do. I mean, I have really bad hair... and... a really big mouth and no breasts and feet that look like skis." Mia's troubles are worsened: her mother has started dating her algebra teacher (Frank Gianini), the paparazzi are showing up at school, and she has a fight with her best friend Lilly. After this they don't talk for a while and become distant from each other. Mia goes to her Grand-mère's Plaza Hotel room in order to begin princess training, where she starts to develop into a great princess. Throughout the story Mia also makes another friend named Tina, who is shunned because of her overprotective father, who makes her have a bodyguard. Plot Summary Mia Thermopolis is an average urban ninth grader living in Greenwich Village with her single, liberal mother and semi-famous painter, Helen Thermopolis. She begins keeping a journal after her mother begins dating her Algebra teacher, Mr. Gianni, whose subject Mia is currently failing. Mia has a crush on Josh Richter, the boyfriend of popular cheerleader Lana Weinberger, who often makes fun of her, though she also unknowingly harbours feelings for Michael, the brother of her best friend Lilly Moscovitz. Mia's father, Philippe Renaldo, who has recently recovered from testicular cancer, pays a visit. He reveals to Mia that he is the prince of Genovia, a small European principality. As he is no longer able to have children, Mia is now his sole heir to the throne and the princess of Genovia.