Emeraldalicious

Kann, V. (2013). Emeraldalicious. New York, NY: HarperCollins.

New York Times Bestseller Children’s Picture Books List for 6 weeks, and it is currently ranked #1. 

Emeraldalicious is the latest of Victoria Kann’s books featuring the whimsical and bubbly main character, Pinkalicious.  Though the books in this series are checked out almost daily in my elementary library, this is the first of the series that I have had the opportunity to read.  Books about princesses and fairy tales have been what young girls everywhere have loved to read for centuries, and it seems that this craze is not going away any time soon.  So, it was very easy to see why so many of my students love these books.

In Emeraldalicious, Pinkalicious and her brother Peter visit their favorite park and are faced with the problem of having to use a self-made wand to transform a garbage dump into something beautiful.  She and Peter discover that every time they use the word “love” a flower grows out of the ground.  So, she and Peter begin making spell after spell with love, turning garbage into beautiful dress, a fleet of birds, an enormous castle, a boat mobile, etc.  In the end, they discover that with a little love, they can make the world “emeraldalicious,” and they transform the garbage dump into a “green tastic” garden.  Though this book is geared toward a female audience, I love that it has a universal message, reminding kids everywhere to make the world a better place by recycling their trash.