Parents' Guide to

The Kingdom of Wrenly Series

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Common Sense Media Review

Carrie Kingsley By Carrie Kingsley , based on child development research. How do we rate?

age 5+

Fun adventures of prince and friend in magical kingdom.

Parents Need to Know

Why Age 5+?

Any Positive Content?

Parent and Kid Reviews

age 4+

Based on 5 parent reviews

age 4+

Our family loves it!

Our oldest is 8 and youngest is 4. The whole family loves it! The adventures are exciting and suspenseful without being too scary. Pictures on almost every page so it keeps our youngest happy and engaged if the story goes a little over her head. The main characters are respectful of their elders and kind hearted. Parental figures are present, it boggles my mind how so many shows and books these days have total absence of elders/parents. Great positive messages. My oldest loves to read them on her own as well as listening to us read aloud with the little kids. Only one of the last ones with the shadow "monster" was a bit too scary for our 4 year old but our kids are sensitive and don't have much exposure to anything violent or scary so may not be an issue at all for your family. We loved this series!!
age 3+

Great Read Aloud

We searched for months to find an illustrated, interesting, gentle chapter book series to read aloud to my daughter before bed. These are wonderful! My daughter loved them at 3 years old and still loves them at almost 5 years old. We have been reading 1 chapter aloud at night for about 2 years. She scares easily but does not get scared before bed with these. Excellent for language development. I feel like they teach moral lessons and good character without their being an ongoing scary problem to solve or the main characters being naughty. The only things that might be considered a little scary or suspenseful are quickly resolved so readers are not left thinking the worst until the next chapter. They are also interesting enough to sustain her attention!

What's the Story?

In the KINGDOM OF WRENLY series, young Prince Lucas befriends Clara, the daughter of his mother's seamstress, and the two take off for adventures around the kingdom. From looking for a lost gem, to caring for a rare dragon egg, to calming an angry sea monster (who just wants people to stop polluting the ocean), the two friends never turn down a challenge. They'll ride on ships or horses, visit trolls, fairies, and mermaids, and plead their case for more adventure with King Caleb, always looking to solve problems and improve the world they live in.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (5 ):
Kids say (1 ):

With quick pacing and interesting adventures, these books are great for young readers. The illustrations and easy-to-follow stories make them good for reading aloud, especially for pre-readers who are bored by the plots in simpler books. As with most fantasy books for kids, The Kingdom of Wrenly Series has the usual amount of suspending disbelief about autonomy (kids are allowed to roam the kingdom on boats and land without an adult in sight) and time (Lucas and Clara visit many places in the kingdom in one day), but that dive into imagination is part of the fun.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about how Lucas is allowed to go almost anywhere in the Kingdom of Wrenly, often without an adult. Where are you allowed to go without an adult? Is there anywhere you want to go alone but aren't allowed? How do you think you can earn that privilege?

  • Is there a big difference between Lucas and Clara's lives? What does it mean for their friendship that she is a "commoner" and he is a prince?

  • What other books have kingdoms and dragons and magical beings? Why do you think we like reading and watching stories about them?

Book Details

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