Princess Cora and the Crocodile by Laura Amy Schlitz illustrated by Brian Floca [Review & Giveaway - USA/CANADA]

On sale March 28 2017 
ISBN: 9780763648220
Picture Book, 80 pages
Ages 4-8

My thoughts:  This is a fun book to read and children will thoroughly enjoy it. Just the right length for readers in grades three and four who are delving into the realm of early chapter books with a substantial amount of text and abundantly illustrated, the young reader will gleefully cheer the Princess on as she rebels the rigid scheduling of her life and escapes to explore the great out-of-doors on her own.

Her co-conspirator is the wickedly cute crocodile who changes places with her in exchange for some luscious cream puffs.

The illustrations will capture the attention and tickle the funnies out of every reader. Brian Floca is a Caldecott Medalist and it is easy to see why he has been so recognized because his art charms, captures the attention, entertains, and tells the story just as the author intended - with wit and clarity.

The story by Newberry Medalist author Laura Amy Schlitz is just the right length for young readers who are entering the chapter book realm. It is complete with a beginning, need, solution, and conclusion. It ends on a joyful note which is good for young readers who love (and perhaps need) a happily-ever-after story.

The problem Princess Cora faces is an over scheduled life where she doesn't have time to discover the world and life on her own. Each scheduled activity is truly good and desirable, but they leave no time for her to be a child and do what a child does so well - play and discover. It has been said, "Play is the work of children." And so it is in a child's play that the work of self-discovery, invention, adaptation, and originality come into being. The story has a lesson for parents as well as a bit of fun for children.

What I especially like:

• The wonderful illustrations done in strong pastels and with fascinating details.
• The part where Princess Cora is on her own exploring the out-of-doors - picking strawberries, making a bed/fort under the pines, etc.
• The wickedly funny crocodile.
• The facial expressions on the characters showing their reactions.

What I didn't care much for:

• Princess Cora calling something "stupid."
• Princess Cora rebelling against her parent's plans.
• Princess Cora being out 'n about on her own. (Of course, she was on the castle grounds, so this was probably o.k.)

I really think the book is superb and the author and artist have done a wonderful job of putting it together to create a charming story.

About the book: A Newbery Medalist and a Caldecott Medalist join forces to give an overscheduled princess a day off — and a deliciously wicked crocodile a day on.

Princess Cora is sick of boring lessons. She’s sick o  and of running in circles around the dungeon gym. She’s sick, sick, sick of taking three baths a day. And her parents won’t let her have a dog. But when she writes to her fairy godmother for help, she doesn’t expect that help to come in the form of a crocodile—a crocodile who does not behave properly. With perfectly paced dry comedy, children’s book luminaries Laura Amy Schlitz and Brian Floca send Princess Cora on a delightful outdoor adventure — climbing trees! getting dirty! having fun! — while her alter ego wreaks utter havoc inside the castle, obliging one pair of royal helicopter parents to reconsider their ways.

GIVEAWAY

TWO WINNERS EACH A COPY

Open to USA/CANADA - NO P.O.BOXES

Begins March 20

ENDS April 10 @ 12:01 EDT

a Rafflecopter giveaway

DISCLOSURE: I received a complimentary copy from Candlewick Press to facilitate this review. Opinions are my own and I was not compensated.