Princesses on the Run

PreS-Gr 2—Antonia is a spoiled princess with lots of toys, books, fancy dresses, and the latest technology-yet she is bored and lonely. When she escapes her fancy bedroom in the castle and goes outside, she discovers freedom. She stops to pick up her friends Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, Snow White, and Rapunzel. The girls all enjoy being outside as more fairytale characters and creatures join them. They run until they reach the sea and can go no farther. When the friends go home, each one changes her lifestyle. The book's messages are clear: material possessions alone will not make people happy; kids shouldn't give in to drudgery; and readers should get outside and play. This pleasantly designed title will entice the princess-obsessed with its pink and gold cover, and the mixed-media illustrations are generally pleasing to the eye. Occasionally, though, there are inconsistencies: the cartoon-style figures sometimes look very young and at other times like older teens, and though the setting appears to be a typical fairy-tale world, there are computers and smart phones. Larger libraries that cannot keep pink princess books on the shelf may want to consider this one, but it is not a must-have for most collections.—Angela J. Reynolds, Annapolis Valley Regional Library, Bridgetown, NS, Canada