51 pages • 1 hour read
Meg CabotThe Princess Diaries
Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 2000A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 19-21Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 19 Summary: “Saturday, October 11, 9:30 a.m."; “Saturday, October 11”; “Later on Saturday”
The next day, Lilly is angry that Mia can’t help her record the episode for her TV show. When Mia explains that she has to spend time with her grandmother, Lilly asks why Mia hasn’t introduced her to any of her grandparents. Mia knows that if Lilly meets Grandmère, she will find out that Mia is a princess. In fact, Lilly would “probably want to interview [Mia], or something, for her TV show,” and the last thing Mia needs is her “name and image plastered all over Manhattan Public Access” (123). Later on Saturday, Mia returns home in a rage. Grandmère took Mia to her stylist, Paolo, who “takes unfashionable, frumpy people” and “makes them stylish” (126). Paolo cut Mia’s hair very short, dyed it blond, and gave her fake fingernails. Mia didn’t protest because she has “a fear of confrontation” and “didn’t want to hurt his feelings, or cause a scene” (128). Still, she is very unhappy and feels like Grandmère is “turning [her] into someone else” (129).
Mia confronts her father, and he offers to pay “one hundred dollars a day, in [her] name” (132) to Greenpeace if she continues with the princess lessons. Mia decides that this is fair, and “Greenpeace will have to hire [her] after [she] graduate[s]” (132) if she donates that kind of money. Later on Saturday, Mia meets up with Lilly, who immediately begins to mock Mia’s new look. Lilly says that Mia is “turning into Lana Weinberger” (134), which angers Mia. Lilly continues to yell at her for missing the taping of her show, changing her appearance, and not being able to say no to people like her grandmother. Finally, Mia has enough and tells Lilly to shut up. Mia is momentarily shocked by her own bravado, but she keeps going and says that she is “tired of [Lilly] putting [her] down all the time” (136). Mia storms out of Lilly’s apartment and goes home, and later that night, she decides that her “hair doesn’t look that bad” (137).
Chapter 20 Summary: “Past Midnight, Sunday, October 12"; “Sunday, October 12”; “ Later on Sunday”; “Even Later on Sunday”; “Even Later on Sunday”
Mia expects Lilly to call her, but she never does. On Sunday morning, Mia discovers her “mom and Mr. Gianini sitting at the table eating pancakes” (139). Mia is embarrassed at the thought of her teacher spending the night with her mother, but he tries to make light of the situation, and Mia eventually relaxes. Her mother and “Mr. G” decide to go to Central Park, and, although they invite Mia to join them, she says she has homework and can’t go because she “[doesn’t] really want to be hanging around with a couple” (141). Mia is sad that she and Lilly aren’t talking, but she is also tired of Lilly always telling her what to do. Mia feels lonely, and when Michael messages her later that day, he tells her Lilly thinks “ever since your dad came to visit you’ve been acting like a head case” (145). Michael agrees that Lilly’s boycott of Ho’s Deli is stupid. Then he asks Mia if she’d like him to tutor her in algebra. Mia agrees, although she is a little confused about why Michael would offer to do something so nice. Later on Sunday, Mia has to go to dinner at The Plaza with her father and Grandmère. Because Mia is a vegetarian, she refuses most of the food that is placed in front of her, and Grandmère is annoyed by her pickiness and poor table manners. Her father keeps asking questions about Mia’s mother and Mr. Gianini, and Mia decides that she can’t tell him “that Mr. G had spent the night, or […] he’d have [...] an embolism” (150). When Mia returns home, Lilly “still hasn’t called” (151), and Mia starts to worry about who she’ll eat lunch with at school tomorrow.
Chapter 21 Summary: “Monday, October 13, Algebra"; “Later on Monday, French”; “Later on Monday”; “Monday Night”
The next day at school, Mia and Lilly still aren’t speaking. Lilly’s boycott spreads throughout the school, but Mia refuses to sign the petition when Boris approaches her. At lunch, Mia decides to sit with Tina Hakim Baba, who “sits every day with her bodyguard” (155) alone at one of the tables. Mia discovers that Tina is very nice and has a love for romance novels. Although Mia used to think Tina was a freak because her bodyguard follows her around school, she is beginning to change her mind. Suddenly, Lana appears and starts to make fun of Mia’s hair. Lana asks Tina if she got “an extra hundred dollars today so [Tina] could buy [her]self a new friend” (159). Without thinking, Mia shoves her ice-cream cone into Lana’s sweater. While Lana is still in shock, Mia and Tina leave, and Mia wonders if “self-actualization might be right around the corner” (160) for her. However, later in the day, Mia is studying algebra with Michael during G & T when a note arrives from the principal’s office. Principal Gupta is surprised and tells Mia that she’s “never known [her] to be a discipline problem before” (165) and asks if everything is all right at home. Mia lies and says everything is fine, and Principal Gupta gives her one week of detention. During princess lessons that day, Grandmère gives Mia a quiz over etiquette and government systems, and Mia scores a 98. Grandmère admits that Mia has “come a long way since [they] started” (167).
Chapters 19-21 Analysis
Mia’s dramatic transformation at the hands of Paolo drives an unexpected rift between her and Lilly. When Mia first sees her new hair and nails, she is furious and feels like her grandmother is trying to turn her into a completely different person. However, the makeover starts to grow on Mia. She looks in the mirror and decides that she likes her hair after all, and during her fight with Lilly, Mia wonders if it’s the fake fingernails that embolden her to finally speak her mind about the way her friend treats her. Mia was already feeling self-conscious about the changes to her appearance, and instead of encouraging her friend, Lilly jumps on the opportunity to make Mia feel even worse about herself. In the past, Mia would have accepted this kind of treatment because she hates confrontation and doesn’t like conflict. However, at this point in the novel, Mia is at her breaking point. She is failing algebra, her mother is dating her teacher, she has to attend princess lessons, and she can’t turn to her best friend for solace. Lilly is angry because she can’t understand where Mia’s anger is coming from. Because of their breakdown in communication and lack of transparency, a rift forms between the girls.
At the same time, Mia and Michael’s relationship begins to change. Mia always saw Michael as a cute boy who happened to be the brother of her best friend, and her relationship with Michael was always a direct result of her friendship with Lilly. However, when Lilly and Mia stop talking, Michael stays in contact with Mia. He offers to help her with algebra, and his behavior hints that he might have feelings for her. Of course, Mia has such a low opinion of herself that she can’t entertain the possibility that anyone, especially her ex-best friend’s brother, could possibly like her. Despite Mia’s insistence that she isn’t attractive, Michael’s behavior hints that Mia has her charms and is a more appealing and likable person than she gives herself credit for.
Mia’s emerging confidence following her makeover doesn’t stop with her newfound assertiveness toward Lilly. She also finds the courage to stand up to Lana. When Lana starts making fun of Mia's new hair, she tries to brush it off. However, once Lana shifts her focus and begins to bully Tina, Mia loses her temper and lashes out. Mia may not always have the courage to stand up for herself, but in this pivotal moment, she is motivated by the need to protect an innocent bystander. Mia’s approach may not be refined or proper, but this outburst hints that she might have the makings of a fine princess. She is compelled to protect the innocent and stand up for what’s right. She aces Grandmère’s quiz, and even Grandmère—who is not known for handing out praise to anyone—admits that Mia is making considerable progress. Mia has the potential to develop into a proper princess and a gifted leader if she can embrace the change in her life and start believing in herself.
