Princess Picky (Single Titles) [Hardcover]

Marjorie Priceman (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 4 and up | Series: Single Titles

Princess Nicki has perfect posture, wears perfect princess attire, and has perfectly memorized every chapter of "Manners for Monarchs" -- but she refuses to eat her vegetables. From Caldecott Honor recipient Marjorie Priceman comes a droll, playful story about a perfectly picky eater.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Priceman's (Emeline at the Circus) exuberant art crowns a story of a princess who learns to eat her vegetables. The opening spread sets up the premise: the otherwise perfect Princess Nicki scowls as a plump lady-in-waiting wearing wimple and cornet offers her a single pea on a plate; other royals hover anxiously. At the king's order, the staff tries bribes. The coachman, for example, says that if Nicki will try a bite of broccoli, she may ride in a gilded coach "complete with white wall tires... and a global positioning pigeon." With their characteristic verve and quirky fun, Priceman's high-intensity, lushly colored illustrations make hay with the palace fantasy, from the acrobatic jesters to the storybook-style servants to the cats who mirror Nicki's expressions. At last, the castle wizard asks Nicki what she wants. When she tells him her answer to be smart and tall and long-haired, to have a dog and to fly he sends her off with magic pips to plant at midnight. "You tricked me!" she complains when they yield "vile vegetables." "To the contrary," says the wizard. He explains that the vegetables will help her grow smart, tall and long-haired. "You'll have to ask your mother about the dog... and I'm still working on the flying," he finishes modestly. The final spread shows Nicki flying her kingdom's first airplane, with her dog, Turnip, by her side. Young readers might not like their vegetables any better, but they'll certainly clamor for more of Princess Picky. Ages 4-8.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 3-Known as picky and persnickety, Princess Pain-in-the-Neck will not eat her vegetables. No amount of coaxing and bribery will change the stubborn child's mind. Finally, when the wizard asks her what she wants, Princess Nicki lists her wishes, including "I want to fly." The wizard advises her to bury the pips he gives her in the ground, care for them, and when the magic potions appear, "Pick them. Eat them. Chew thoroughly." Soon, spinach, carrots, broccoli, peppers, beets, and peas appear where magic pips stood, and the wizard promises all sorts of results if she will eat them. Ultimately, the princess concedes and gets everything she wants. She grows up to be tall and smart and invents a flying machine. On the last page, she is seen soaring high above the kingdom in her airplane with her long hair trailing behind her. Priceman's vibrant and exuberant acrylic and cut-paper illustrations propel the story forward. The plot seems a bit purposeful: eat your vegetables and you'll grow tall, wise, and inventive. Inquiring readers might want to know what caused the formerly perfect princess to partake in a vegetable rebellion, and doubt her turnaround that seems a bit too quick to be convincing.
Marian Creamer, Children's Literature Alive, Portland, OR
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Roaring Brook Press (September 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 076131525X
• ISBN-13: 978-0761315254
• Product Dimensions: 11.4 x 9.6 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,080,522 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Cute, funny, empowering, February 4, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Princess Picky (Single Titles) (Hardcover)

OK, the subject is didactic: child won't eat vegatables. But the solution is unique, and although she eventually makes the choice the parents want, the __choice__ is her own.

Great illustrations, quirky humor, fun book!

5.0 out of 5 stars This is my daughter, March 4, 2010

By 

Matthew Fleming (Seattle, WA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Princess Picky (Single Titles) (Hardcover)

I got this book for my daughter who is 4 and this is her. She is very Picky!

5.0 out of 5 stars I love you Marjorie Priceman!, June 25, 2009

By 

cambridge reader "cambridgearea" (cambridge, ma United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Princess Picky (Single Titles) (Hardcover)

In my search for non-conventional princess books I came across this little gem. I have a 4 year old daughter, and I try to find books with positive role models for her, rather than the disney princess stories which focus on beauty, image, and being rescued by a prince. This story, about a princess who won't eat her vegetables fits the bill, and has the added bonus of illustrating in a humorus way the benefits of eating your vegetables. Other plusses: the princess is described as good at math and smart. In the end she invents an airplane and is a pilot. (No discussions about her getting married.) There are no discussions about her beauty. Shows how seeds grow into plants. The illustrations are beautiful and creative, too. Well done as always Marjorie Priceman! (I also love by the same author Rachel Fister's Blister and How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World.)