A picture book broken into short chapters, The King's Equal is about an arrogant prince who can only become king once he finds a bride that he considers his equal. Seeing nothing short of perfection in himself, he rejects many of his potential princesses outright, before encountering the beautiful and mysterious Rosamund. As a peasant in disguise, Rosamund challenges the king's perception of perfection and equality when she flips the king's task on its head, and tricks him into living as a peasant for a year in order to prove he is equal to her. Beautifully illustrated with a message that resonates in contemporary culture, this fairy tale is an unjustly overlooked classic.Publisher description;
Prince Raphael is as rich and as handsome as a prince should be. He is also arrogant, greedy, and selfish. Knowing Raphael to be an unfit ruler, the dying king decrees that his son shall not wear his crown until he marries a woman who equals him in appearance, intelligence, and wealth. Then a magic wolf brings Rosamund, the daughter of a poor farmer, to the castle. The prince and his advisors - amazed by Rosamund's cleverness and beauty - joyfully pronounce her the king's equal. But the story is not as simple as that. For not only must Rosamund be Raphael's equal - Raphael must be hers.