Fancy Nancy's Favorite Fancy Words

I came a bit late to the Fancy Nancy party. This diminutive diva has been charming readers since 2005. Her penchant for wearing tutus and intricate headgear may appeal to the little girls who are her main audience, but it's a different quality that wins the hearts of parents and grandparents. Fancy Nancy also loves fancy words. This trait displayed by Nancy since her inception has been parlayed into this whimsical little vocabulary book featuring 26--actually 27--of Nancy's favorite words, from Accessories to Zany. If you are searching for a children's book for girls that appeals to their inner princess but isn't dumbed down, Fancy Nancy is just the ticket.

I bought this book to read with my 4-year-old and 5-year-old granddaughters. The 4-year-old was intrigued. This book actually induced her to stop crying after she had shut her fingers in the bathroom door. The 5-year-old, a budding naturalist, listened halfway as she looked through my National Geographics.

That observation brings me to a point that should be rather obvious: Fancy Nancy isn't for everyone. To those who object to the over-the-top gender stereotyping that is Nancy's stock-in-trade, I offer the example of my two granddaughters: you can't brainwash a tomboy with a cutesy picture book. Glancing down the list of Nancy titles, it's obvious that the author has tried to defuse the gender issue by writing books in which Fancy Nancy explores the outdoors and visits museums. Personally, I don't think there's anything wrong with reading books about a super-feminine little girl as long as there are other kinds of books in the rotation.

Grandparents tend to put a high premium on vocabulary and language skills; in fact, one study indicated that children who are cared for by grandparents score higher on measures of vocabulary. The Fancy Nancy books feature thread-thin storylines, but if Nancy's love of words rubs off on her readers, they are worth their weight in feather boas.