Parents' Guide to

Once Upon a Marigold

By Terreece Clarke, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 9+

Delightfully offbeat fairytale full of surprises.

Book Jean Ferris Fairy Tale 2004
Once Upon a Marigold Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this book.

Community Reviews

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age 8+

Based on 3 parent reviews

christineaustin100
christineaustin100 Parent of 14-year-old
July 13, 2022
age 8+
Really good! I read this when I was twelve and I liked it so much my classmates had trouble getting my attention when I was reading it. However I agree with the other reviews about Christian and Marigold’s lovey dovey stuff. I usually like romance books but those parts made me uncomfortable to read. Also, the queen is a bit much as she plans to kill some of her family to be the sole ruler. However no one gets hurt and there is no blood. However the book is really good!!

This title has:

Educational value
Great messages
Great role models
Too much violence
TheQuietestQuill
TheQuietestQuill Parent of 10-year-old
November 10, 2015
age 10+

My daughter didn't want to stop reading!

We chose Once Upon A Marigold as part of our fifth grade curriculum because it sounded fun and has won several awards and we haven't been disappointed. The book is full of quirky characters set in a fantasy world of trolls, centaurs, the Tooth Fairy, and royalty. There are many opportunities for new vocabulary words to be learned while kids are being entertained. "One more chapter, please?" has been repeated frequently as we read together. We'll be buying the sequels to read as well.
See all 3 parent reviews

What's the Story?

Christian and Edric the troll's paths cross one day when Christian runs away from his uptight family. Determined never to go back, Christian makes Edric and his two dogs, Beezlebub and Hecate, his family. They live a good life until Christian falls in love with Princess Marigold and decides that he should see more of the world -- the world around Marigold's castle. When Christian discovers a plot against Marigold and her father, he enlists his family to help break out of prison, prevent Marigold's arranged marriage, foil Queen Olympia's murderous plot, reunite several families, and reveal his true and forgotten identity. Oh, and learn about Princess Marigold's curse, whew!

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (3):
Kids say (12):

Quirky characters, fun and unusual elements, and surprising plot twists make ONCE UPON A MARIGOLD a must read for tweens. Jean Ferris has created magic in this fun-spun fairytale. There's royalty and weddings, fashion and trolls, plots and action, a geography-challenged tooth fairy, and inventions, p-mails, triplets, crystals, and a sick ficus.

Ferris' plot may be more tangled than the tooth fairy's maps (which is why she's always lost), but it all comes together wonderfully in the end. And while part of it is predictable -- it's a fairytale after all -- the details of the conclusion are anything but. Kids and parents will love the modern twists and delight in the details Ferris uses to richly embroider this tale.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about what it means to be a family. Do you need to be related to be a family? In what ways does Edric act like a parent toward Christian? Do you know someone that has a non-traditional family?

Book Details

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