The Best of Fancy Nancy

PreS—Gr 2—Six stories about Fancy Nancy, a precocious, preternaturally sophisticated six-year-old, are featured in this compilation: Fancy Nancy; Fancy Nancy and the Posh Puppy; Fancy Nancy: Bonjour Butterfly; Fancy Nancy and the Late, Late, LATE Night; Fancy Nancy and the Delectable Cupcakes; and Fancy Nancy and the Mermaid Ballet. In each story, Nancy comes up against a world that insists on suppressing her affinity for fanciness. For example, she succeeds in fancying up her family for a night on the town, only to be tripped up by her own extravagance; she's forced to miss her best friend's butterfly birthday party when she has to attend her grandparents' 50th wedding anniversary get-together; she longs to be cast as a glamorous mermaid in the ballet, but instead is given a role as a dull willow tree. Each story is performed with adorable enthusiasm by 10-year-old Chloe Hennessee, and enhanced minimally by occasional sound effects, such as a dog barking or glass breaking. Me sure to have the book available so listeners can peruse Robin Preiss Glasser's personality-rife illustrations to fill in the space between the lines and bring Nancy's flamboyance fully to life.—Jennifer Verbrugge, Dakota County Library, Eagan, MN