Lola Dutch by Kenneth and Sarah Jane Wright

An exuberant and imaginative character springs to life in this debut picture book from a husband and wife team. Lola Dutch is, as her animal friends often say, “a little bit much.” She begins the day sliding down the banister of her Parisian-style apartment house, then creating a magnificent (and messy) breakfast. The next project for the day is a trip to the library, resulting in towers of books about inventors and artists which, of course, leads to some great art. After all this fun, Lola still has ideas but Bear is firm. It’s time for bed! But first there have to be bubble baths, bedtime stories, and a majestic bed fort. But maybe sometimes simpler is better? Finally, Lola is tucked into her own gilt bed, in her pink room, with Bear to tuck her in and say goodnight.

The story is illustrated in soft pastels and watercolors with many homages to famous artists and authors. In her imagination Lola travels through a papercut landscape of Matisse, crosses a bridge over a Monet lily pond, and she and her friends create magnificent portraits in the style of Klimt, van Gogh, and Picasso, among others. The book itself is a creative adventure, with a dollhouse printed on the back of the jacket and paper dolls to cut out and play with.

This was fun and exuberant. Fancy Nancy fans are sure to enjoy it, as well as Eloise aficionados. The things is, it’s awfully similar to Eloise. Lola lives in a mansion, accompanied only by Bear, Gator, Crane, and Pig. They are too subservient to her whims to be family, and Bear especially seems to act much like a combined butler and nanny. All of the books they see at the library are older classics, scientists, and artists, nearly all male. Some of the names include Da Vinci, Bell, Edison, Morse, Dickens, Bronte, and Austen, and the main artists are Matisse and Monet.

It’s a cute book. But do we really need another book about a privileged white girl who gets to explore her dreams and artistic interests with no curbs or barriers? I’d argue that we don’t. Fancy Nancy is, I think, popular precisely because it features an everyday little girl making the most of what she has - Fancy Nancy can make even a motel visit into something special. Crafty Chloe makes things with her own two hands - she doesn’t need an artists’ studio, professional tools, and a mansion setting to let her creativity free.

Verdict: Is this cute? Yes. The pictures are adorable, the additional activities fun, and the cheerful text attractive. Will kids check it out? Sure. Will it be memorable? I doubt it. It’s time we saw more girls of different races exploring their creativity - and took it out of the city mansion setting. An additional purchase at most.

ISBN: 9781681195513; Published 2018 by Bloomsbury; Review copy provided by publisher