IN APRIL, bestselling children’s book author Shannon Hale published book number 10 in her acclaimed Princess in Black series. For those who don’t have an elementary schooler in their lives, here’s the gist: Prim Princess Magnolia lives in a charming castle doing dainty princess things with her unicorn Frimplepants. Then, the “monster alarm” sounds. Magnolia transforms into a tough warrior and battles bumbling, goat-eating brutes while shouting commands such as “Behave, beast!” In her latest addition, The Princess in Black and the Prince in Pink, Hale introduces us to one of Magnolia’s new friends: a prince who happens to like wearing capes, tunics, and tights the shade of tropical flamingos.
Like the previous books in the series, which Hale co-authors with her husband, Dean Hale, Prince in Pink was a hit. But not everyone enjoyed it. About a fifth of the book’s Amazon reviewers were so offended by the mere presence of the prince, they gave it the damning one star. “Why does this series need an effeminate boy character?” wrote one unhappy reviewer, summing up the complaints. “This is just another grab to warp a fun series for children into a tool for woke indoctrination.”
In a Twitter (now known as X) thread a couple weeks after the book came out, Hale addressed the hypocrisy of readers who embrace a strong female character but reject a male character who isn’t conventionally macho. “A girl who wears black
