Princessland

K-Gr 2—Romy longs more than anything to visit a fantasy world she calls Princessland. She sits around the house moping, unwilling to do much of anything. It isn't until Lady Cat awakens and leads Romy out of the house that the girl even attempts to change her bad mood. The pet gently encourages Romy to share just what it is about Princessland that she likes so much, implying that she can take Romy to this magical place. As Romy explains, the cat leads her to a bakery (as the girl talks about the food in Princessland), up a tree (when Romy talks about the great view from Princessland's castle), and through the local market (where Romy describes dancing in a ballroom). Along the way, Romy slowly comes to realize that sometimes the greatest journeys occur in one's own imagination. Tanaka's soft, dreamlike illustrations make a great complement to Jenkins's text. The illustrations show each of the places that the cat takes Romy as well as the imaginary places that Romy takes the cat. Lady Cat behaves like a feline yet still manages to pull Romy out of her bad mood.