I Want My Dad!
(Little Princess)

Ross's pint-size Little Princess wishes that her dad, the King, could be more like other fathers--a ragtag group of palace employees. While the Cook bakes his son elaborate cakes, "even the dog would not eat the famous burned-black cakes that her dad baked." The General teaches his son to ride a pony, but the King is allergic. The Admiral teaches his daughter to swim; the King wears water wings in the bath. The Gardener takes his children on forest adventures, but "the King got lost on his way to bed." Under the tutelage of an overzealous maid, the Little Princess learns to bake, swim, and ride a pony and goes for a nature walk, all with disastrous results, leading her to embrace her dad and all of his humdrum habits. Ross's idiosyncratic royals and distinctive pencil and watercolor art relay the message that there's no father like one's very own. Ages 5-6. (Mar.)