Some serious subjects addressed in a very young voice. Kids of strange but probably good (unfortunately) for younger children dealing with neglect and abandonment. The main message was that being alive means that sometimes we hurt but there are many glorious things to experience as well. I'd recommend for the adult to read this first before sharing with a child to make sure it is appropriate subject matter for the child. (It's short enough to read in less than an hour- it took me 1/2 hour.) ( )

I thought that this is a children's book until I read the part where Zoey's mother, Rose, just left her at her grandmother's house without bothering to tell her. Rose is obviously in a state of depression based on what Zoey told Princess Regina.

Young readers are not yet ready for this kind of story with parent's abandonement of children and depression. As they cannot fully comprehend it without someone who will explain it to them, they will just be confused and might also scared them especially with the abandonment issue.

As for an adult reader like me, I really enjoyed the story notably the end where Zoey and Princess Regina found a friend at each other. ( )

This story about a china doll that comes to life is not all cuteness and light. There's a dark edge to it that acknowledges Zoey being affected by her mother's depression. The depression is not explicitly described other than "she gets so tired, she stays in bed." Zoey also visits for the first time the grandmother she never knew she had, only to realize her mother is leaving her there. Princess Regina is the doll that Zoey discovers at her grandmother's house, a doll that's been played with by generations of girls in the family. The doll comes alive when touched by tears, and freezes when left alone for a long time. It turns out Zoey's mother was the last girl who played with the doll. And now Princess Regina and Zoey understand each other's loneliness and become the good friends they need. ( )

When she goes to her grandmother's house for the first time, Zoey finds a tiny china doll that comes alive in her hands and believes that she is a princess and that Zoey is her servant. ( )

I try to read across a broad spectrum of children's literature, to help me in my job as a children's librarian. I take Reader's Advisory seriously and try hard to match each child with the perfect book. Towards that end, I picked up The Very Little Princess, thinking that I have been neglecting, (for lack of a better term) "girly-girl" books. The delightful pink cover with Elizabeth Sayles' fanciful artwork attracted my attention and sealed the deal.

I could not have been more wrong, however, in classifying this short tale as a lighthearted story for girls. (spoiler alert)

One fine June morning, Zoey is surprised by her mother's off-hand remark that they will be leaving soon for her grandmother's house.

Of course, visiting your grandmother probably is natural for you. But it wasn't for Zoey. The truth is she had never met her grandmother. Until that moment, she hadn't even known she had a grandmother!
Zoey dutifully packs a cardboard suitcase (she is by nature a dutiful girl) and goes off to her grandmother's rural home where she is again surprised to find that her mother and grandmother do not appear to be on good terms. In fact, they argue heatedly, prompting Zoey to go exploring, and thereupon to find a most beautiful three and one-quarter inch tall doll. She is further surprised when the tiny doll sits upright and sneezes!

What child has not dreamed of a doll that comes to life? But this is not the doll of dreams. Princess Regina, (as she likes to be called), is a self-centered, bossy doll, a doll that treats Zoey as a servant. But Zoey, being by nature a dutiful girl, is not particularly bothered by Regina's selfish, narcissistic behavior. In fact, she comes to love the diminutive princess, and in her fashion, the princess loves Zoey, too. As the book jacket declares in similar terms, this is an expertly crafted story of family, friendship, love and loss. It is. It also, however, the story of a loss so profound that the dust jacket's cheery countenance might leave a young reader bereft, as she reads that Zoey's mother leaves her, with nothing more than a cheerful, "Be good," with a woman that a day ago, she never even knew existed. Zoey is left with her grandmother because her mother needs to be alone. Does this really happen? I'm sure that it does. Should it happen in a short, cheerful, small-sized book that is suggested for ages 6-9? I'm not sure. In the final chapter, the reader finds that the grandmother turns out to be a kind, wise, and loving woman, but the loss is still great. Place this book in the hands of a child who is capable of understanding and appreciating the story.

Read it as a well-told story, a unique story, even an enchanting story; but don't judge this book by its cover. ( )