Patricia von Pleasantsquirrel
by James Proimos
Dial Books for Young Readers, 2009. 48 pages.
“Once there was a princess who had not yet found her princessdom.”
So begins the story of a little girl named Patricia von Pleasantsquirrel. The story might seem predictable: A little girl does not feel she is treated royally enough by her family, goes off to an imaginary land to be a princess, but winds up deciding that princess duties are not for her, and she would rather be home. However, this book is filled with delightful, quirky, and unexpected details that make the story not predictable at all.
I love the reason Patricia sets off to find her princessdom. She reads Where the Wild Things Are and thinks:
“If a silly boy with no social graces could be made king with no effort at all, then imagine how easy it would be for me to find my princessdom.”
Indeed, she takes off and flies far, far away and is quickly made princess of the Land of the Hippos, where she is granted the royal privileges her heart desires, and learns the lessons you might expect in rather unexpected ways.
This is a lovely and silly book for anyone who’s ever had a hankering to be a princess, or even a prince.
Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Picture_Books/patricia_von_pleasantsquirrel.html