GRADUATION GIRL!

A little girl with a style and sparkle all her own worries about the end of the school year.

As Gerry narrates the last few days of the school year, she points out the attributes of a fairy princess (which she is) and frets about next year (as if missing the wonderful Miss Pym, who lets her wear her wings and crown in class, her classroom and their class pet aren’t enough, her new teacher is a man!). “To be honest, I’m having a hard time finding my sparkle about this. (Change is HARD…even for a fairy princess.)” Siblings reading this to their younger sisters (and perhaps brothers) may be reminded of Junie B. Jones—Gerry’s voice is certainly filled with determination, and she is a girl who knows herself. But she lacks Junie’s attitude and childlike voice, channeling more of a Fancy Nancy; when her dad makes pancakes, she can hardly eat three: “(Even a fairy princess can lose her appetite when she’s stressed).” In the end, a tense moment during the graduation ceremony resolves itself in the best way possible and puts all of Gerry’s fears about first grade to rest. Davenier’s ink-and–colored-pencil illustrations neatly capture Gerry’s feelings, making them stand out against the rest of her class’ more joyful faces.

Though the cover is bedecked in sparkles, Gerry’s sparkle is just as internal as it is external—her essential self-confidence shines.