3 h 21 minAudiobook5 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if irresistible charm has nothing to do with being good?
In Paflagonia and Crim Tartary, royal birth brings power but little wisdom. William Makepeace Thackeray’s The Rose and the Ring sends these rival households into confusion with enchanted objects that make their owners attractive without making them better. Prince Giglio has a claim to the throne, but his uncle, King Valoroso, holds the crown.
Princess Angelica expects admiration, while Prince Bulbo enters the royal marriage plans and their magical confusion. Below them stands Betsinda, a servant whose conduct contrasts with royal vanity. Behind the trouble is Fairy Blackstick, whose gifts test people rather than simply please them. Palace quarrels lead into journeys, danger, and struggles over power, love, and judgment.
What you’ll discover
- Charm without goodness Watch a rose and a ring expose the gap between attraction and character.
- A prince under pressure Follow Giglio as obstacles to love and his royal claim challenge his judgment.
- A servant among royals Meet Betsinda, whose place beneath the princes and princesses sharpens the comedy of rank.
- Magic with a purpose Discover why Fairy Blackstick offers tests instead of merely giving people what they want.
- Royal folly laid bare Enjoy palace quarrels that turn snobbery, greed, and flattering attention into lively comic targets.
Who will love it
Readers who like fairy tales told with a wink, comic villains, royal families behaving badly, and a narrator who chats with the audience. Anyone fond of Victorian humor or stories about vanity will feel at home.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A usurper king rules Paflagonia
- Blackstick gives a little misfortune
- Angelica takes credit for another's work
- The ring changes hands in a quarrel
- A night with a warming pan goes wrong
- Misfortune teaches, and charm is borrowed
- A pantomime told by a teasing narrator
Who’s who
- GiglioThe rightful Prince of Paflagonia, good-natured but unschooled, who loses his crown and his sweetheart's regard and must learn to earn his place.
- AngelicaValoroso's vain daughter, who takes credit for her maid's work and longs to marry a dashing prince.
- BetsindaA foundling maid, clever and kind, who does the Princess's work and cares for the sick Prince.
- Prince BulboThe plain, greedy, easily flattered heir of Crim Tartary, who carries a magic rose.
- Fairy BlackstickA retired fairy with a black wand who believes a little misfortune is the best gift for the young.
- Countess GruffanuffAngelica's haughty governess, once a maid, who schemes to better herself by any means.
- King PadellaThe ruthless ruler of Crim Tartary, who took his throne by force and wants no rival.
Formats and delivery
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- Audiobook
- 3 h 21 min, complete, read by Lucas Linden.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 5 minutes, to read or to hear.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
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- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
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The Rose and the Ring
by William Makepeace Thackeray · 1855
A magic ring and a magic rose make two spoiled royals adored, while a fairy hands out misfortune as a gift.
Medium level2–5 hours to read25 languages
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In short
Imagine a gift that makes everyone adore you, whether you deserve it or not. That is the joke at the heart of The Rose and the Ring, a comic fairy tale by William Makepeace Thackeray, published at Christmas 1854.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A usurper king rules Paflagonia
The story opens at breakfast in the palace of King Valoroso of Paflagonia. A letter says Prince Bulbo of Crim Tartary wants to visit. The King's daughter Angelica is thrilled, and her father asks about her gowns and orders a costly necklace.
The cheerful family has a dark corner named Giglio. He is the King's nephew, and when his father died, Valoroso took the crown that belonged to the baby.
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What is The Rose and the Ring about?
It is a comic fairy tale about two kingdoms, Paflagonia and Crim Tartary, and a magic ring and rose that make their wearers seem beautiful. A prince with a stolen throne, a spoiled princess and a fairy all play their parts.
Who is the Fairy Blackstick?
Blackstick is a retired fairy who carries a black wand that doubles as a walking stick. She believes a little misfortune is the best gift she can give a child, and she guides the young people through their trials.
What is a fireside pantomime?
It is the name Thackeray uses for the tale, borrowed from the holiday stage shows of his day. Stock figures, silly chases and sudden magic make it work like a pantomime told aloud to children by the fire.
The author
William Makepeace Thackeray
1811–1863 · English Victorian novelist
William Makepeace Thackeray was a British novelist born in Calcutta, India, in 1811. He moved to England as a child and later lived in London. He wrote Catherine in 1839–1840, Barry Lyndon in 1844, Vanity Fair in 1847–1848, and The Rose and the Ring in 1855. He died in London in 1863.
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