Fancy Nancy: Fanciest Doll in the Universe
This umpteenth installment in the chart-topping series stars, once again, a little girl reminiscent of Eloise of the Plaza in her over-the-top tastes. Nancy, however, lives in a pretty normal-seeming home, which is often thrown into chaos by her unchecked ambitions. This time, Nancy’s troublemaking little sister has desecrated Nancy’s favorite doll (who looks like Marie Antoinette) by drawing a pirate skull on the doll’s torso—and in permanent marker! Nancy’s mother consoles Nancy by taking her and her doll to a local hotel’s History Doll Gala. Here Glasser’s work will paralyze readers’ addiction to princesslike adornments: the gala party is downright overwhelming in its ruffles and glitz. Add dressed-up dolls and doll owners, a doll carousel, and sumptuous-looking tea cakes, and, well, it’s a pink-colored nirvana. Happy endings come as expected, making this sibling-conflict entry into the series as reliably enjoyable as the others. Preschool-Grade 2. --Connie Fletcher