By E.S. Redmond
Candlewick Press, $15.99, 32 pages
Meet Miss Minerva von Vyle, the mischievous, wicked girl who is spoiled rotten and loves to throw temper tantrums to get her way. After going through 52 nannies in 52 weeks, Minerva meets her newest nanny – a clever woman who awards Minerva the title of The Unruly Queen. Originally thrilled, Minerva becomes less enthusiastic when she learns that she must be a queen of the beasts, banish anyone who misbehaves, and live in a dark palace giving up home luxuries. She looks around at her chef, her butler, her pretty pink room, toys, pets and soon declares that she doesn’t want to be The Unruly Queen. She is going to work hard to become a good little girl.
E.S. Redmond’s book is a superb lesson for children – Behave! The illustrations, in the same fashion as Edward Gorey’s, are driving as much as the rhyming content within, making children to scan every page from corner to corner. Besides learning behavioral lessons children will giggle at the monsters and beasts that appear throughout the book. This book made me want to seek out Redmond’s other work, Felicity Floo Visits the Zoo and to cheer her on for more children’s books.
Reviewed by Sophie Sestero
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