CupcakeJonesThe Hunt is On!

5stars

By Ylleya Fields & Michael LaDuca
Belle Publishing, $15.95, 32 pages

Cupcake Jones loves her multi-colored tutu. She wears it in the garden while hunting for interesting bugs, while doing cartwheels in the house and even during a horseback ride! Cupcake Jones does not love cleaning up her room. But one morning when she can’t find her beloved tutu, Cupcake Jones learns a valuable lesson about the importance of staying organized. Young readers will laugh as Cupcake Jones searches everywhere finding all her other missing belongings…but no tutu! As she frantically hunts, Cupcake cleans her room along the way. Hooray! But will she find her favorite tutu?

With two daughters and a son, author Ylleya Fields knows children’s books. When her eldest daughter was two, Fields noticed the lack of titles featuring modern African American characters. This resourceful mom decided to write her own children’s book and the character Princess Cupcake Jones was born. Michael LaDuca’s colorful illustrations add fun and whimsy to Fields’ rhyming words. He highlights the principle characters by placing them in focus in the foreground in front of a dreamy, hazy background filled with detail. Kids can hunt for the hidden word “love” on each page and the book’s website has downloadable pages to color and other activities. Look for new stories starring Cupcake Jones in the future. Although the book features a female character, any boy with a sister, cousin or friend will be able to identify with Cupcake’s dilemma and will benefit from the book’s important lesson.

Reviewed by Elizabeth Franklin

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