Not All Princesses Dress In Pink

Not All Princesses Dress in Pink. By Jane Yolen and Heidi E.Y. Stemple. Illustrated by Anne-Sophie Lanquetin. 2010. June 2010. Simon & Schuster. 32 pages.

Not all princesses dress in pink.
Some play in bright red socks that stink,
blue team jerseys that don't quite fit,
accessorized with a baseball mitt,
and a sparkly crown.

I like the premise of this one. That no two princesses are alike. That you don't have to love pink to be a princess. But while it celebrates individuality, I couldn't help but notice that while princesses don't all dress in pink--apparently all of them do have to have a sparkly crown. Sometimes the use of the phrase "and a sparkly crown" sticks out more than others. In my opinion, this insertion sometimes spoils the story.

For example,

Some princesses roll around,
wrestling on the muddy ground,
then get right up to skip and dance
in tattered, stained and muddy pants,
and a sparkly crown.

I also wasn't crazy about the artwork. Though illustrations are certainly something subjective. Just because I didn't care for them won't mean that you won't.


© Becky Laney of Young Readers