Graphic Novel Review – The Prince and the Dressmaker by Jen Wang (5/5 stars)

Reading Level: Middle Grade
Genre: Graphic Novel/Fantasy
Length: 288 pages
Publisher: First Second
Release Date: February 13, 2018
ISBN-13: 978-1626723634
Stand Alone or Series: Stand Alone
Source: Borrowed from Library
Rating: 5/5 stars

“Paris, at the dawn of the modern age:

Prince Sebastian is looking for a bride―or rather, his parents are looking for one for him. Sebastian is too busy hiding his secret life from everyone. At night he puts on daring dresses and takes Paris by storm as the fabulous Lady Crystallia―the hottest fashion icon in the world capital of fashion!

Sebastian’s secret weapon (and best friend) is the brilliant dressmaker Frances―one of only two people who know the truth: sometimes this boy wears dresses. But Frances dreams of greatness, and being someone’s secret weapon means being a secret. Forever. How long can Frances defer her dreams to protect a friend?”

This book was so much fun to read and just absolutely entertaining. This is a very well done historical graphic novel set in Paris. I loved the illustration, the endearing characters, and the humor in here…the whole thing was incredibly well done.

Frances dreams of being a great seamstress and Prince Sebastian dreams of wearing great dresses. It seems like a match made in heaven until Frances realizes that keeping the Prince’s secret is causing her dreams to suffer. However, when they both head their own ways no one wins.

This is a beautiful and heartfelt graphic novel that is also a ton of fun. It’s one of those books that will break your heart on one page and then make you laugh out loud on the next. The illustration is fantastic and I loved all the dress designs. It’s easy to follow and fun to read.

My son and husband weren’t interested in this one (it looked too girly), however I think everyone could enjoy this because there’s a lot of humor in here too (not just fashion and dresses).

Overall I loved this book and will be looking for more graphic novels by Wang. This was so much fun to read and so well done; highly recommended.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
– New Release Reading Challenge
– Goodreads Reading Challenge
– Graphic Novel Reading Challenge