I Love My Purse

I Love My Purse is a sweetly whimsical book aimed at children and younger readers (K-2, Lexile 560 ).  At 34 pages, hardcover format, it's the right size and length for a solo reading session with a colorful message that isn't preachy or threatening.

I loved the way that Charlie, who's a normal, active, friendly and fun kid, influences the people he meets in his everyday life by being himself.  The book could so easily have been strident or unhappy, and it's not.  It's full of full color illustrations by Sonja Wimmer, accompanied by Belle DeMont's bouncy text.

There's a lot to like here.  Charlie isn't threatened or bullied, he's a really polite kid who sticks up for his desire to use his purse to carry his stuff.  He's not feminized or anything other than a boy (the art really shines here when the reader gets to see what a typical kid carries around, including a half eaten apple,  a shoe, a frog in a bathtub and other even more whimsical things).  It's never mentioned, but the characters are ethnically diverse and Charlie's father seems to be a positively portrayed single parent.

I enjoyed this beautiful little book very much.

Five stars.  Positively portrayed non strident message about gender role conformity.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher.