Archive for the ‘Princess Pistachio’ Category

“Young readers are going to love this amusing chapter book, which introduces us to a girl who is sure that she is a princess who is being raised by the wrong family. It is amusing to see how Pistachio deals with her naysayers, and how she learns that there are actually more important things in […]

On her birthday, Pistachio Shoelace gets an unsigned card that says “Happy birthday, my little princess” and a golden crown. She has suspected her whole life that she is actually a princess, so she weaves a tale that she believes is the story of her royal heritage. At dinner, donning her princess dress and crown, […]

“Pistachio is overjoyed when a golden crown arrives by mail, along with an unsigned card that reads, “Happy birthday, my little princess!” She decides that her real parents are a king and queen who will be coming for her soon. Suddenly it seems less important to obey her “adoptive” parents or be kind to her […]

“In Princess Pistachio, Marie-Louise Gay appeals to young readers making the transition to chapter books. The text is easy to read and full of engaging conversations between the “princess” and her family and friends. Her friends are brutally honest with her when she pretends to be someone she is not: “You are no more a […]

“…The skillful combination of text and illustrations addresses many serious concerns of early childhood—and even of parenthood—without straying from the book’s tone of fun and frivolity. (Among the issues so adeptly addressed are adoption, sibling relationships, classmate rejection and a missing child.) The characters are pen-and-ink creations tinted with bright watercolors; Pistachio’s russet braid and […]

“…It’s a great deal of fun to read about Pistachio and her attempts to prove her worth as royalty, despite many parental obstacles…It isn’t until a family emergency fills her with worry and sets her on a course to find her little sister that she realizes what is truly most important in life. This is […]

“…Children have always been taken with Marie-Louise Gay’s Stella and Sam series of books, by the wonder and wisdom of an older sister and the innocent inquiry of her little brother.  Now, these readers can enjoy Marie-Louise Gay’s signature illustrations in the more challenging stories of Pistachio, the girl who is definitely more like a […]

“Bear on the Homefront (September), by Stephanie Innes, Harry Endurulat, and Brian Deines, follows up their acclaimed book, A Bear in War, to tell the story of Canada’s “wartime guests,” the British children who were evacuated to Canada during World War Two. Iconic Canadian painter Ted Harrison’s own life story is told in A Brush Full of […]