Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse by Kevin Henkes (1996)

This book is about a little mouse called Lilly who wants to show off her new purple plastic purse. She gets in trouble at school because she took out her purse to show everyone before she was supposed to. After her teacher takes it away she gets mad and draws an angry picture and leaves it for him. He, on the other hand, writes a nice note and puts it in her purse which he returns at the end of the day. She finds his note and feels guilty about the drawing she left for him. She needs to find a way to make amends and with the help of her parents, she does.

This story is wonderfully told by Kevin Henkes. I like his use of repetition throughout the story. I find it helps the kids remember the words and when they "read" it themselves they can remember those words.

The story gives you the opportunity to talk to your child about the right way to handle bad feelings, the need to wait sometimes, self-control, admitting wrongdoing, making amends and sharing. Sound pretty heavy-duty for a children's book but the author pulls it off wonderfully.

There are some "big" words in the story which I appreciate.

The illustrations are somewhat detailed and contain some humorous snippets of conversation.

The angry drawing that Lilly made of her teacher contains the word "hate". Maybe I'm old-fashioned, but I don't like to hear kids say this word so I don't say it-reading or not.

A good book for ages 2-8.