Princess Smartypants Rules [Hardcover]

Babette Cole (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 4 and up | Grade Level: P and up

Princess Smartypants has always preferred her royal pets to a pesky prince, but when she decides it would be lovely to have a baby, nothing can stand in her way!
Sure enough, a twist of fate brings her just what she has been hoping for, but she soon realizes babies can be an awful lot of trouble. Perhaps Princess Smartypants wasn't cut out for motherhood after all-but fortunately she knows just who is. . . .
Publishers Weekly wrote of the first Princess Smartypants, "Truly comical watercolors in softly glowing colors complement this fairy tale parody perfectly . . . an appealing book for budding feminists."
This is a hilarious royal romp, packed with action and drama, from master storyteller Babette Cole.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 2–The protagonist introduced in Princess Smartypants (Penguin, 1987) is back for another adventure. This time, the young royal of Totaloonia decides that it would be fun to have a baby. When she asks her mother if it would be possible to have one without getting married, the queen quickly replies, "Certainly NOT!" Thinking that Princess Smartypants needs something to occupy her time, the Queen puts her in charge of making the Royal Gravy for a banquet. The grocer misunderstands her phone order and sends a packet of "ready-mix BABY" instead. The resultant brown-skinned, super baby is kidnapped by evil Count Rottenghut in short order, and Princess Smartypants leads a squadron of dragons on a rescue mission. She is congratulated and put in charge of the kingdom while her parents go on tour. To help control the rambunctious infant, she enlists the help of two baby dragons to keep him out of trouble. The plot has too many twists and turns. The protagonist's actions do not ring true and she seems almost incidental to the story. The illustrations are humorous and help give some sense of personality to the characters. Purchase only where the previous story is in demand.–Wendy Woodfill, Hennepin County Library, Minnetonka, MN

From Booklist

Gr. 1-3. Princess Smartypants is back, and she wants to have a baby. Predictably, her mother thinks she should be married first. To distract her, the queen orders her kitchen-phobic daughter to prepare a royal banquet. However, in a mix-up with the grocer, the ready-mix gravy becomes a ready-mix baby, a supernaturally strong black one, who terrifies all the banquet guests except for the evil Count Rottenghut, who proceeds to steal him. Prince Swashbuckle, once turned into a toad by the princess, greets the count and stolen baby with glee, hoping the boy will aid in the secret takeover of Totaloonia. But Princess Smartypants (along with a squadron of dragons) saves the day, kingdom, and baby in one fell swoop. Later, when her boisterous baby becomes the palace pest, the princess sighs, "Perhaps some people are just not cut out to have babies" and ends up keeping him somewhat sedate with the help of two fierce baby dragons. The story is dizzying and eye-rollingly frivolous, but Cole's fabulous, funny illustrations will not disappoint fans of Princess Smartypants. Karin Snelson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Putnam Juvenile (March 17, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0399243496
• ISBN-13: 978-0399243493
• Product Dimensions: 10.4 x 8.7 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #762,849 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Princess Smarty Pants Rules, February 4, 2007

By 

Janis Totham-Davies (Takoma Park MD) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Princess Smartypants Rules (Hardcover)

Princess Smarty Pants Rules is my kind of book, utterly delightful with wonderful illustrations. Children of all ages and parents and grand parents will thoroughly enjoy this and the other Smarty Pants books. I love them all and so will you. Go on treat yourself and have as much fun as I did reading this to my grand children.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Princess Smartypants Does Rule!, February 22, 2007

By 

Beth "Beth" (Redwood City, CA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Princess Smartypants Rules (Hardcover)

Treat your daughter to a book which teaches her that autonomy and self-sufficiency is okay and that you don't have to get married to be happy. This story is about a girl who does not want to follow the norm.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another delightful story from Babette Cole, August 9, 2005

By 

Catherine Grosse - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Princess Smartypants Rules (Hardcover)

This is a continuation of the original Princess Smartypants which was delightful in itself. Now Princess Smartypants decides she'd like to have a baby of her own. It tells of her adventures with the baby and some creative solutions to the challenges it brings.