Once Upon a Marigold

Once Upon a Marigold is a 2002 work of children’s fiction by Jean Ferris. A comedic tale about a boy named Christian who is raised by a benevolent forest troll, it combines clever references to modern technology with the plot elements and narrative structure of fairy tales as he tries to win the affection of his crush, Princess Marigold. A commoner since birth, Christian, knowing the odds are stacked against him, gets creative to attract Princess Marigold’s attention. Also a coming of age story, the novel tracks Christian’s personal transformation as he goes from shy commoner to royal leader.

The story begins on a day early in Christian’s childhood, where he is lost wandering through a forest. A troll named Ed is also wandering, and he takes Christian under his wing. They live together in a cave studded with crystals deep in the forest. Christian grows up learning the customs of trolls, and also learns to invent various technologies to make forest life easier. One of his inventions is a telescope, with which he watches over the denizens of the fortified castle on the other side of the river. One of these inhabitants is Princess Marigold; immediately infatuated with her, he laments that she is out of reach for a commoner like him.

Christian works up the bravery to send a letter to Princess Marigold by carrier pigeon. To his delight, she responds warmly, and they begin a courtship, naming the pigeon method “p-mail.” They maintain a prolific correspondence over several years. After they get to know each other well, Christian decides he wants to see more of the world outside the castle and meet Princess Marigold in person. He leaves the cave to find a job as a servant at the castle. Ed initially resists, believing that Christian’s life is meant to be in the forest, but reneges once Christian imparts knowledge about his infatuation with the princess. With Ed’s blessing, Christian is elated to receive his first job as the assistant to the castle housekeeper.



After meeting the princess in person, he is more enchanted than ever, delighting in seeing her outside of the telescope’s lens. He reveals that he is the boy she was corresponding with, and they begin a secret relationship. She enjoys the simple pleasures of life such as telling bad jokes, reading and writing, and dogs. Yet Princess Marigold has her own problems: she is subject to a curse placed on her at birth that allows her to read the thoughts of anyone she touches. As a result, people stay away from her, declining even basic conversation. Christian doesn’t care about Princess Marigold’s curse, having grown to love her unconditionally. Also complicating their scenario, her mother, Queen Olympia, is highly controlling, and spends her time trying to set her up to marry a royal cipher so that she can usurp the throne. At the same time, different royalty from neighboring kingdoms pursue the princess’s hand in marriage. The Queen, finding out about the princess’s affair with Christian, tries to break them up, using her head guard, Rollo, to accuse him of treason on a fake charge of trying to destroy the castle. They throw him in prison, declaring that Marigold will get married. When Marigold rebels, they throw her in the dungeon as well so that she can’t escape the impending marriage ceremony.

Queen Olympia falls victim to her own karma when she is exposed for causing chaos and manipulating everyone she possibly can in the kingdom. The King learns that she has been constantly drugging him to keep him sedated while she controls the kingdom. He regains control and begins to issue new orders, but the princess’s wedding is already arranged. Just as the wedding is about to begin, Christian escapes the prison and flies to Princess Marigold on a flying contraption he invented. In the ensuing fight, Christian is severely wounded. Some of the wedding’s attendees find out that Christian is the heir to the throne of a neighboring kingdom called Zandelphia, previously believed to be inherited by Marigold’s triplet sisters. This elevates his status from commoner to royalty, helping to publicly validate his love for Princess Marigold. As the ceremony is thwarted, the power of Princess Marigold’s love magically heals Christian’s wounds, bringing him back from the edge of death; they announce their love for each other with the approval of the crowd.

A drama-comedy that mixes elements of different historical narrative styles and references to both fairy tales and modern life, Once Upon a Marigold recasts themes of the abuse of power, the ability of love and willpower to overcome evil, and the importance of having friends who can work together to solve problems. Also a reformulation of the concept of the bildungsroman, it shows that one’s successful integration into public life consists in a passage through institutions where one takes the initiative to overcome any obstacle.