Combining the romance and enchantment of princesses with a message of youthful female empowerment, these books are about girls who didn't just sit around waiting to be rescued. Against great odds, they changed their own lives--and their worlds. Stories of princesses from different cultures and different epochs in history are richly illustrated with photographs, maps, and lovely pen-and-watercolor paintings that help bring these fascinating females to life. In what could be a tale from The Arabian Nights , this book tells the story of a girl who grew up in 13th-century Persia to be so desirable that she was kidnapped several times for her beauty. Qutlugh Terkan Khatun found refuge at last in the arms of a prince, who married her and made her a princess. With him she ruled a nation, and the people asked her to continue as their sovereign after the prince's death. Her wisdom brought the people a golden age of peace and prosperity, and she is known, above all, for her kindness and compassion. Sections on the clothes Qutlugh Terkan Khatun wore, the foods she ate, and why she is remembered today are included.