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Frogkisser!

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By DeeDee

Frogkisser! 
By Garth Nix
Scholastic Press, 2017. Fiction. 372 p.
Princess Anya prefers to spend her time in the castle library studying books on sorcery while her older sister, the crown princess, entertains suitors. When an evil wizard turns her sister's latest prince into a frog, Anya volunteers to find a way to change him back into a human. She sets out on a quest to find the ingredients for a magic lip balm that will allow her to kiss the green fellow and turn him back into a human even if she is not in love with him. On the way she is joined by friends and allies, and begins to understand that her real quest is much bigger than a well placed smackaroo.

Nix can always be counted on to come out with a winner. The story is fun and frothy, but with a serious undercurrent. Nix delights in twisting familiar fantasy tropes, and readers will enjoy watching clever but reluctant Anya slowly come to accept her role as a true leader. Will there be a sequel? We can only hope. This was a good one for fans of Jessica Day George or Gale Carson Levine.

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