Yes, the title may sound rather girlish, but believe me, Princess Diaries is different. It's not about the pretty and petite princesses in pink. The novel, written in the form of a journal, features Mia Thermopolis, a normal teenager, who has bigger problems than ruling a country. She has to work hard to stop flunking Algebra, who is taught by her mother's current boyfriend, which does not make the job easy for her. She has to deal with her crush on the school's most popular boy, Josh Richter and with her best friend Lilly's intelligence. She has to make sure her beloved cat, Fat Louie, doesn’t swallow socks. She tries hard to avoid getting the ‘freak’ status, her being 5”9, flat-chested and dishwater blonde. She has to ignore the frequent taunts of the school’s queen bee, Lana Weinberger, whose favourite hobby is to give Mia a hard time. So when her father tells her that she's the heir of a small European country called Genovia, she isn't exactly thrilled.
The story follows her as she struggles to transform from an awkward teenager to a graceful, perfect princess. She is supervised by none other than the dowager princess of Genovia, Queen Clarisse, her grandmother. Mia knows what will happen if her secret becomes public. But her very annoying grandmother may, in fact, do exactly just that. She also develops a crush on Lilly’s brother, Michael Moscovitz.
The story is narrated in Mia’s teenager slang. Her blabbering about Greenpeace, her Top Ten lists compiled during World Civics and her to do lists are hilarious. It is an excellent read.