Jahanara, Princess of Princesses

by Kathryn Lasky

Book Overview

Beginning in 1627, Princess Jahanara, first daughter of Shah Jahan of India's Mogul Dynasty, writes in her diary about political intrigues, weddings, battles, and other experiences of her life.... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0439223504
• ISBN13: 9780439223508
• Release Date: September 2002
• Publisher: Scholastic
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.4" x 7.7"
• Age Range: 10 to 13 years
• Grade Range: Grades 5 to 8

Customer Reviews

An Indian Princess

Jahanara is held captive because of her father's claim to the throne. She is bright, educated, and unable to marry because of her royal status. As her world changes rapidly, she must adapt to new situations and new tenuous allies with only a small group of advisors to help her. Confined behind lace screens, she has access that many politicians only dream of. It is up to her to make her golden world a comfort to those around her and to help the country take an early step towards unification.

This is an incredible book

Jahanara is a high ranking princess living in India, but life is pretty boring for her. She has an evil stepmother named Nur Mahal who is determined to destroy Jahanara's father the emperor and they have to go through extreme measures to keep him safe.But despite that, Jahanara finds some interesting things to do, including a 'flirting market' and sneaking food to eat during the holy month of Ramadan, where all devout Muslims are to fast all day.But when things take a turn for the worse, Jahanara proves herself to be worthy of the royal family of India.This book is absolutely wonderful. After I started reading, I could not put it down!Life in the harem sounded so interesting, and the historical note is very informative. You will not be disappointed with this stellar book

The Exciting Life of Jahanara: Princessof Princesses

Jahanara princess of princesses: Book ReviewBy: Kathryn Lasky I think the author did a very good job writing this book. She never let the reader get confused in reading the story. I never felt that I wasn't the character. Everything the character felt, I felt. She always explained and described everything that was happening very well. Everything was told step by step. This fictional biography is based on the Indian princess of princesses, Jahanara who lived in 1627. It takes you through four years of her life. The story begins when they are prisoners under an evil woman, Nur Mahal, who has Jahanara's two brothers separated from them. Then Jahanara's father tricks everybody and regains the throne and Jahanara's family is free. Jahanara then travels and gets the nicest apartments along with jewels as big as her big toe; being her father's favorite. But she is still not free. This book is also a mystery. When Nur Mahal finally let's the two brothers go, they return normal, except one. He has changed very much; he acts odd and is very, very pious. Jahanara also gets very confused sometimes for she does not know what is going on because nobody tells her. Therefore she has to find out for herself. This book's strengths are that it captures the reader. Once you start reading it, you cannot stop. When I had to stop, I felt as though I was watching a show on T.V. but I had to miss it because I was going somewhere. The author does a good job keeping you hooked to the story. You can picture what was going on, as if it were a real show. This book has only one weakness. The author uses some Indian words that you can't figure out. So you have to look at the glossary at the end of the book. This can interrupt your focus. I definitely recommend this book to all readers. It is full of adventure, but mostly mystery. It will have you keep on asking, "What is going to happen next?" This is a "have to read book."

Behind the veils

This story gives a good in-site on how the women feel about maintaining the purdah:a veil that keeps the men from seeing the women.The author talks about the struggle for the throne of India and how the rightful ruler was impriosned to the far reaches of India. I liked this book because it talks about how women have more control than they realize. Any one who likes books that take place in a well-known past will throughly enjoy this book. It is a wonderful story of imprisonment ,escape, loss, and riches.

The best rani ever!

I am an Indian girl from San Jose, California. I read 3 different royal diaries and put all the ones I did not on hold in the library. I never knew much about the Mogul Dynasty even though I am Indian. I am Hindu, and I know much more about the festivals we celebrate, and the gods. I heard about Shah Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal when I was about 8. I never heard that they had children. This book also made me want to learn more about the Mogul Dynasty (even though we won't be studying it till mid-January). My friend, also in my class saw me reading that book so much, that I wouldn't play with her at recess, wanted me to loan the book to her. Something that confused me in this book was that Nur Mahal was Shah Jahan's stepmother and wasn't even related to Mumtaz Mahal until after Shah Jahan's marriage had the same last name and her. Usually, Indian women have the same last name as their husbands after marriage. Some women even change their last name to their husband's first name. So that fact confused me (So technically, her name should be Nur Jahan). Also, Jaytayu might be pronounced (Jay-taaa-u) for Americans. Really, its spelled Jatayu (Jaaa-thaaa-uuu). This book was very historical. Of Course, you can't make an author get everything correct, can you? I thank Katheryn Lasky for making me be more interested in my culture. Before, whenever my mom used to give me those lectures about my culture, I used say, " Stop! I can't take it anymore!". Now, I am like, "Oh! That is so cool! Thank you Katheryn Lasky!

She's getting better all the time!

I thought Kathryn Lasky was going great with Marie Antoinette and Mary of Scots, but with Jahanara she's gotten even better. I'd never even heard of this seventeenth-century Indian princess before I read this book, but now I want to know more about her. And that's the ultimate goal for writers of historical fiction, isn't it? Jahanara, despite being the highest-ranking princess in the Indian royal family and owning jewels the size of robin's eggs, leads a pretty dull life. She is almost never permitted to venture outside the harem where she lives with her younger siblings and her father's many wives. And when she does leave, she must wear a thick veil to conceal all of her features, as is customary with Muslim women. She worries constantly about her family. Her father is the emperor of India, but his stepmother Nur Mahal is constantly plotting against him to the point where he once has to fake his own death to escape her clutches. Two of Jahanara's younger brothers, Dara and Aurangzeb, were taken political hostage by Nur Mahal and she worried constantly for their safety. Then they returned, Aurangzeb was not the same person who had left. He had not only become a militant Islamic who hated all things that were not Muslim (as compared to Jahanara and Dara who snuck food to eat during Ramadan), he was also greedy and power-hungry. Though he had two older brothers, Aurangzeb was determined to become emperor and Jahanara was sure he would kill for the privilege. Thus the royal court of India swirled with intrigue, even behind the screens of the harem. I found this to be very interesting book, especially in the descriptions of courtly dress and manner. I had only two small problems with it. There was a minor subplot where Jahanara adopted a street child which I found unnecessary, as it added nothing to the story. And at the end of the book there were two large gaps in the diary entries, one of a year, the other of several months, with weak explanations for them. It was as if Kathryn Lasky was in a big hurry to finish the book and get to the final dramatic climax. However those are only small squabbles I have. The historical note is very interesting and informative. It tells the fate of Jahanara's family, andstates that it was for Jahanara's mother that the Taj Mahal was built. In a nutshell, I loved this book.