MIMI AND LULU

A purple and pink friendship punctuates three short stories for young ones. Willems’s Elephant and Piggie could invite pink-loving Mimi and Lulu, her friend who loves purple, for a play date. They would have a lot to share. Mimi and Lulu are good friends who struggle with the same issues youngsters everywhere face: when favorite colors collide, jealousy and what to do when your friend has to go home. Three stories, told mostly through dialogue, explore this friendship and how little disagreements can be solved with understanding and humor. Harper’s sunny illustrations, in varying shades of purple and pink on a white background, have details that delight: hair bows, crowns, feather boas, cupcakes and a cheery pretend phone. Emotions are easily shown through the uplifted brows, squinting eyes and an occasionally open, screaming mouth. The frou-frou typeface adds to the overall girliness of this offering and will be embraced by those little girls who like their stories with fancy dashes. Easy to read, with lots of laughs and a few life lessons along the way. (Picture book. 3-6)