Locked away in a high tower in the forest through the scheming of her wicked stepmother, a beautiful princess encounters a wandering prince, and the two fall instantly in love. With the help of a kindly witch and her magic book, the prince is transformed into a canary, and the two young lovers meet secretly. But the princess's jealous stepmother soon discovers what is going on, and concocts a malicious plan, gravely injuring the prince. Will the princess be able to save her love? And can the prince be convinced that he was not betrayed?

With parallels to the more well-known tale, Rapunzel, The Canary Prince is an Italian fairytale from the city of Turin, and has also been retold in Italo Calvino's Italian Folktales. Eric Jon Nones, whose work on this beautiful picture book was apparently funded through the Fullbright Program, presents an engaging story. But the true strength of this book lies in Nones' gorgeous watercolor illustrations, with their bright hues and Renaissance vistas. I was reminded of the work of Paul Zelinksy... ( )

Ah-ha! it is the princess who saves the prince this time!!

The story is a bit stale; it's very cliched as far as fairy tales go. Nothing new here.

The illustrations though are positively beautiful. Wonderful use of colors and imagery. ( )