Too Princessy!

Publishers Weekly

If there’s one thing boredom is good for, it’s coming up with creative adjectives that end in “Y.” In their third collaboration, Reidy and Leloup introduce a heroine who can’t find an activity that suits her mood. In bright, busy digital spreads, she unpacks toys from a box, but discovers that a puzzle is “too piecey,” a piano is “too plinky,” and riding in a red wagon is “too zoomy.” This high-energy outing sends a clear message: sometimes the simplest toy is the best one. Ages 3–5. Agent: Erin Murphy, Erin Murphy Literary Agency. Illustrator’s agent: Michèle Manasse, New Work Illustration. (Jan.)

Children's Literature - Beverley Fahey

A rainy day, a little girl, and a box of toys should make for a fun afternoon. But not for this little princess who has a complaint for each toy she pulls from the box. The jack-in-the box is too jumpy, the puzzle too piecey, scrapbooking is too gluey, springs on her feet are too springy and her red wagon too zoomy. Tossing and abandoning one toy after another leaves her with a empty box which she discovers makes a perfect castle for one no-longer-bored little girl. Bright, bold, playful illustrations depict a single-minded and very expressive little girl. Each toy takes center stage with a little wind-up chick as the tot's constant companion and foil. This could be fun for a toddler story time as the length and energy are ideal for squirmy little ones. That some of the words like marsy and mooey may not be actual words is irrelevant. Two other titles in this series include Too Purpley (for budding fashionistas) and Too Pickley (for young gourmets). Reviewer: Beverley Fahey

Kirkus Reviews

The superpink cover's a bit of a pink (red) herring for those seeking a princess or anti-princess theme, but this sibling of Too Purpley! (2010) and Too Pickley! (2010) has a field day showcasing one hilariously realistic way that kids reject toys. "I am bored!" announces a pigtailed girl, lying upside down on the floor with an emoticon frown. From there until the penultimate page, the text is made exclusively of rhyming explanations for why this toy and that toy aren't worth her playtime. They're "Too jolly, too jumpy, / too diggy, too dumpy!" (jolly and jumpy are a jack-in-the-box and a wind-up bird on a trampoline, diggy and dumpy are a steam shovel and a dump truck) or "Too goopy, / too gluey, // too Marsy, / too mooey!" (goopy is modeling clay, gluey is collage crafts, Marsy is a telescope and mooey is--natch--a riding cow). What's wrong with a puzzle? "Too piecey." A wagon? "[T]oo zoomy." Bright colors and high visual energy match the quick verse. Listeners will enjoy the scansion; observers will be tickled that as hard as this girl clings to her indefatigable determination to be bored, she's actually having a quite a romp. Leloup slyly shows her relishing most of the toys--albeit briefly--before tossing them aside. Adults won't be surprised at the only object she stamps with approval, and kids will want re-reads. (Picture book. 2-5)