I won a copy of this book through Gransnet in August and delayed my review until I saw how it was received by my little step-niece Amy who is 5 years old.
For more information see the blog post
Why do girls want to be princesses?
I like the idea of a gentle reminder that girls can make choices more often made by boys, but for me there is a basic problem with this book and that is the art work. It simply isn't clear what it is meant to be and that's why I wanted to see a child's reaction before posting a review.
The characters are drawn in such a way that you can't immediately tell small character is supposed to be the little girl, let alone who any other character is supposed to be. I suspect the style is supposed to be child like, but it misses the mark because the girl looks like a blue rabbit. The pictures simply don't tell the story going by the words below.
I showed the book to two other adults - one man and one woman - saying who I was giving the book to without saying I hadn't bought it. Both reactions were similar - awkward silence. When I told them it was a prize and what my thoughts were, both joined in immediately agreeing the book just isn't clear.
When I gave the book to Amy and she read the first set of words, she said "Why is the blue rabbit riding a scooter?"
It's a shame the idea had a poor choice of art work.
BBC Radio 4Extra Scheduling Shake-Up.
