School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 1-Posey is about to start first grade, and she can't help but feel a little intimidated. Her mom won't be walking her to her classroom, neighborhood boys have terrified her with stories of a first-grade monster, and-worst of all-she won't be allowed to wear her pink tutu to school. Posey doesn't think she can be brave without it and is more nervous than ever. How will she survive her first day? This is a sweet book, and children will relate to the child's fears about her new experience and leaving her security tutu behind. There's also a confidence-building ending in which the new first graders are encouraged to be true to themselves. The illustrations are spare and in black and white, but they do complement the story. Children will find this offering a good start for trying chapter books as it is has such an easy reading level. This first title in the series is likely to find an appreciative audience.-Elizabeth Swistock, Jefferson Madison Regional Library, Charlottesville, VA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
Readers anxious about starting school will identify with the ingenuous heroine of Greene's (the Moose and Hildy books) novel, first in a series. Fancying herself the "Pink Princess," Posey dreads the first day of school: she can't wear her beloved tutu, and her mother will be dropping her off outside instead of escorting her to the classroom. She accuses her mother of abandoning her, then credibly lashes out at her brother ("It's all your fault.... I was the baby till you got here"). After the boys next door tell her that a monster haunts the school, Posey's grandfather assuages her fears, but it's her teacher who has the solution to both problems, inviting her students to wear their "favorite clothes" to start the year with a dress-up parade. Greene's simple sentences are distinguished by punchy dialogue and sentiments that do justice to a range of emotions, from frustration and nervousness to unadulterated glee. They should go a long way to easing the worries of readers embarking on a new stage in their school life. Final art not seen by PW. Ages 5-8. May) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
