By Boni Ashburn, Illustrated by Julia Denos
Abrams Books for Young Readers, $16.95, 32 pages

At some point every little girl and boy has a favorite something. Be it a blanket, dress, stuffed animal or pillowcase, inevitably it goes everywhere the child goes and is loved until there is nothing left. This is the case for the little girl in I Had a Favorite Dress by Boni Ashburn. After outgrowing her favorite dress, her mother teaches the little girl to become resourceful and “make molehills into mountains.” The dress evolves into a shirt, and a skirt, all the way down to a frilly accessory for her hair.

While told in a rhythmic style, the book teaches children in a fun way to find their own solutions to seemingly daunting issues, while explaining it via whimsical anecdote. By the end of the story the young girl is no longer running to her mother to solve problems, but becoming creative to find her own resolutions. The book is wonderfully done and is only made better with the lovely pictorials by illustrator Julia Denos. Denos’ colorful images make the story come to life as characters pop off the page and gain a new sense of style.

Reviewed by Sophie Sestero

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