Princess Sylvie

Pre K-Gr 2—Fans of the author will be pleased to discover that this Swedish tale, originally published in 1934, has been translated into English. On a garden walk, the king and his daughter stray from the castle grounds into a wild wood beyond the gated wall, turning everything appropriately chaotic. The king has never been to the woods and is enthralled by what he finds there. Distracted, he doesn't see Princess Sylvie chase after her little dog, who runs off after a rabbit, who is leading him right into the arms of a big, lonely bear. Once the king catches up to them, he finds the princess happily astride the ursine creature. Disturbed by what he sees, he commands Sylvie to climb down and anxiously returns with her to his ordered world. Soft, gentle watercolors keep the mood light and airy and complement the fairy-tale quality of the text. While some plot points are left hanging, Sylvie's new taste for the wilder life ends the story in a thought-provoking way.—Julie Roach, Cambridge Public Library, MA