THERE WAS AN ODD PRINCESS WHO SWALLOWED A PEA
by Jennifer Ward & illustrated by Lee Caleron
The familiar song gets a princess makeover in this second of its like from Ward (There Was an Old Monkey Who Swallowed a Frog, 2010; illustrated by Steve Gray).
The exuberant princess in this tale begins her day by swallowing the titular pea, which had been under her mattress. From there, the things she ingests get more farcical and less foodlike (as well as a lot bigger): a crown, a rose, a witch, a queen, the entire moat and a castle. Observant readers will pick out items and characters that belong in other fairy tales—Cinderella's glass slipper, the Frog Prince and a prince who could be from Rapunzel’s tale. Spot-on rhymes and rhythms keep the pages turning: “There was an odd princess … // … who swallowed a moat. / Slurped it down her delicate throat.” Although princess fans may not care, Ward’s rendition of the traditional song lacks a story to glue it together—readers never learn why she swallows each thing, unlike in the original. A small scroll at the bottom of each spread depicts each item in the correct order, helping audiences correctly chime in. Calderon’s brightly colored digital illustrations match the silliness of the text. His characters sport droll expressions, and his princess is certainly a stand-out with her vibrant purple hair.