cover image Princess Easy Pleasy

Princess Easy Pleasy

Natasha Sharma, illus. by Priya Kuriyan. Karadi Tales (Consortium, dist.), $15.95 (40p) ISBN 978-8-181-90335-8

Typically, the names of fairy tale princesses suit them%E2%80%94Snow White with her pale complexion, Thumbelina's tiny stature, etc. Not so for Sharma and Kuriyan's modern-day royal, Princess Easy Pleasy, who complains mightily that her family's vacation destinations have none of the comforts of home. (Indeed, her family does little besides hop from one vacation to the next on their private jet.) The princess's endlessly accommodating parents keep the "royal packer" up to date on their daughter's needs: after she complains that the milk in Hong Kong isn't like what they have at home (the family appears to be Indian, though their nationality is unspecified), "for their spring vacation to China along went the cow." As the family travels to Singapore, Cambodia, and elsewhere, the royal jet gets increasingly crowded with a chef, bedding, and pets until the plane bursts at the seams, sending elephants, vegetables, and royals flying. Princess Easy Peasy's attitudinal shift comes too late and too easily to carry much weight, but Sharma's playful use of repetition and Kuriyan's slapstick cartooning will keep readers entertained. Ages 5%E2%80%93up. (July)