The Rescue Princesses 15 – The Amber Necklace

Paula Harrison's The Amber Necklace is a Rescue Princesses adventure for 7 year olds about a shy princess who has to find her voice to save a family of lemurs.

What happens

Every morning Princess Zina creeps out of the palace to leave fruit on the wall for the ring-tailed lemurs. The rainforest starts right outside the gate. Her friends Lily and Scarlett are coming to stay for the Ramova Carnival, and she can't wait.

The three of them are secretly Rescue Princesses. They've promised to help animals in trouble, they talk to each other through magic rings, and they know ninja moves.

Then a truck crashes into the forest. A group of workers in yellow helmets start marking trees, ready to cut them down for a shortcut for the carnival floats. These are the tamarind trees, the only ones that feed the lemurs all year round.

Zina tries to tell her mum and dad. They're far too busy choosing banquet menus to listen (roast lamb or chicken pie?). So it's up to the princesses, and a baby lemur who's been left behind.

Zina is quiet and a bit shy, which makes her lovely to follow. Her cheeks go hot every time she has to speak up to a grown-up. When she finally stands in front of the workers and explains why the trees matter, you really feel her nerves.

Her friends balance her out nicely. Scarlett chatters nonstop and would rather climb trees than talk. Lily is the crafty one, and she's even sewn them all ninja outfits.

There's lots of real lemur detail folded in too. Did you know ring-tailed lemurs hold their tails straight up while they look for food so nobody gets lost?

And then there's Zina's necklace. Her grandma gave her the amber jewel, and it seems to whisper whenever she's in the forest. What could that mean?

It isn't the girls' first adventure (they've already rescued an otter and a baby kangaroo), but everything you need is explained along the way.

What to read next

If your reader wants more magic and more animals whose home is in danger, try The Baby Firebird. Talia lives beside a hidden valley of firebirds with tiny flames on their wings, and she's just been given a stone that lets her talk to magical creatures.