Breaking the sonnet barrier
The Frog-Prince“You’re just like every toad I’ve ever met,” / said the Princess to her smooth companion. / “Except maybe more persistent,” she thought / quietly. “I’m still not sure why a person like me should bother with a totally slimy, / webfooted thing, when I’m so perfectly / content with my ball and myself.” “I see,” / said the frog laconically. “Perfectly content.” Something about his tone—half-burp, / so sure—instantly enraged the Princess, who / then grabbed the frog’s slick carapace and threw it at the wall, which broke the beast into / his handsome, manly origins. “How warped,” / said the plussed Princess. “Now what do I do?” It’s a classic story. Princess meets frog, princess kisses frog, frog morphs into handsome prince, and young royal couple live happily ever after. Yet in one early version of the fairy tale, the princess is somewhat less gracious. Instead of kissing her amphibian, she hurls...