Kirkus Review

Princess Truly returnsto save the day.In this third book about Princess Trulyand the first chapter bookthe brown-skinned protagonist, who wears a red cape, a purple tutu, and magical white buttoned boots, attends the first-birthday party of her friend Lizzie's cat, Waffles. When the exuberant Waffles crashes into the fish-shaped cake, Princess Truly calls on her "magic curls," (styled into two sparkling puff-balls) to make a beautiful new one. During the party, Waffles gets tangled in the balloon strings and floats out the window, with Noodles, Truly's trusty pug, holding on. Truly can save the pets, but only with Lizzie's help. Lizzie panics, knowing she has no magic or extraordinary strength, but Truly convinces her that her smarts, bravery, and belief in herself are enough to do the job. Young readers who admire Black Panther but need to see superheroes as young as they are will enjoy not only Princess Truly's magic hair and flightworthy boots, but also her confidence, creativity, and supportive attitude toward others. Rauscher's pastel-colored watercolor images give readers plenty of details to findespecially animals behaving uncharacteristically. A page in the backmatter provides brief directions for readers to draw Princess Truly and write their own adventure stories.Readers will respond to this confident, can-do girl who demonstrates that magical adventures are easy to create. (Fantasy. 4-6) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.