Oh my, this book is so pretty and the detail in the pictures so exquisitely delightful, I didn’t want it to end. In the way of so many fairytales, a suitable husband must be found for the princess and the edict is that to win her hand ‘he’ must present the King and Queen with ‘the most wonderful thing’. While this is happening the princess has requested that before she has to settle down she would love to explore their city. As all manner of grand and bewitching items are paraded before the royal parents by hopeful suitors, the princess is quietly and unobtrusively finding her own Wonderful Thing!

Vivienne French is a fine storyteller and Angela Barrett has long been one of my favourite illustrators and together they have created an enchanting story for children 3 and up.

Alexa Dretzke