We All Need Friends (I Want A Friend - Tony Ross)

Member Name: belfin

Product:	I Want A Friend - Tony Ross
Date:	25/04/08 (158 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Might help children lose any fears about making friends at school

Disadvantages: None

***Background***

This Little Princess book, written by Tony Ross has been with us since 2005 and is one in a long line of titles. As well as an extensive list of books, this lovable but stubborn character also appears on television where Jane Horrocks and Julian Clary provide the voices.

I'm sure many parents hate this series of books about the demanding Little Princess who constantly screams out 'I Want!' but I have to say that despite this I find her a rather lovable character and children seem to adore her.

***The Story***

The story starts with the Little Princess complaining about her brother.

"'He doesn't want to play with me!' wailed the Little Princess.

'He only does boys' stuff.'"

The Queen tells her not to worry, as she will make lots of new friends when she starts school the next day. When she arrives she finds that some of the children don't want to play with her and she ends up standing by herself, all lonely. She spots some other children all by themselves and gradually they all end up sharing sweets and playing together. There are soon more of them than the popular crowd who wouldn't play with them.

All the way through the book this large group of children feel that they have no friends but they don't mind because they are having fun anyway.

When the Little Princess puts on her coat and crown at the end of the day and asks all the children with no friends, home for tea, the elite group are a bit put out and ask if they can come too. The Little Princess frowns to start with but eventually agrees and her mother is shocked to see her arrive home with such a large group of children.

The story ends with the Queen asking,
"'Goodness! Who are all these children?'
'My friends,' said the Little Princess."

***The Illustrations***

As with most of the Little Princess books the pictures are drawn in squares and kept separate from the text. The colours are lovely and the expressions of the children are priceless. The writing is clear, black and simple for a young child to read.

***My Thoughts***

I felt really sorry for the Little Princess in this book to start with. I know it can be hard making new friends in a new environment but this book shows that things can turn out all right with a little bit of effort.

Usually this character is quite demanding and sure of herself but we get to see that she has a more vulnerable side here too and that even the most confident of children can be nervous about facing new situations.

Luckily my son fitted in well at school due to the fact that he had already attended the school nursery and knew quite a few of the children but I do remember when he first started nursery and my confident little boy turned quite shy around the other little ones around him.

This book is great for showing that it doesn't really matter if you are one of the popular crowd or not and that by speaking to new people you find that they are in the same boat as you. It is a great idea for anyone with a child about to start school and is a little bit worried about making friends.

***Other Titles In This Series***

I Want My Potty
I Want A Cat
I Want A Present
I Want My Tooth
I Want My Dummy
I Want To Be
I Want My Dinner
I Want A Sister
I Want To Go Home
I Don't Want To Go To Bed
I Don't Want To Go To Hospital
Wash Your Hands
I Want My Mum
I Want My Light On
Pets Board Book
Weather Board Book
Shapes Board Book
Bedtime Board Book


***Other Info***

This paperback is available for the publishing price of £5.99 but is available from Amazon or Tesco for the cheaper price of £3.99. It is not available in paperback at present as it is a new release. It is also available in hardback for the publishing price of £9.99 but is sold at Tesco for only £6.49.

Paperback ISBN No. 000721491X
Hardback ISBN No. 184270298X

Summary: A great addition to this collection of stories.