Whatever Wanda Wanted
By Written and Illustrated by Jude Wisdom
Phyllis Fogelman Books, $15.99
ISBN 0803726937

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There's more to life than things

Wanda is a greedy girl, there's no doubt about it. She's spoiled, too. And it's no wonder. Her busy parents have given her everything her heart desires since the day she was born.

And what parents they are! Wanda's mother sports a Marge Simpson hairstyle, while her proud papa wears what can best be described as green high heels along with his tie. While this may sound rather zany, rest assured, it's all just part of the wry, humorous world that British illustrator Jude Wisdom creates in Whatever Wanda Wanted. Her cartoony creatures in bright, primary colors are guaranteed to make young readers giggle.

Of course, every child will recognize right off the bat that greedy Wanda must get her comeuppance. The only question is how. As it turns out, Wanda's transformation is aided by a magnificent, magic kite. (A kite, I might add, with bright pink lips and large, expressive eyes.)

As soon as Wanda spies the kite in the kite shop, she wants it. When the shopkeeper declares that the kite is not for sale, Wanda has a tantrum. Wisdom perfectly captures the intensity of a child's emotions. Wanda's face turns as red as a summer pepper, and she practically sprouts horns. But although she gets her way, this time Wanda gets more than she bargains for. The kite whisks her off and deposits her on a deserted tropical island, where she must learn to fend for herself.

Faced with isolation on her tiny tropical island, Wanda soon realizes the error of her ways. It's not things she misses most, of course, but her mom and dad. When she confides her sorrow to the only friend she has ever been able to make, a whale named Bill, he's able to set things to right, and Wanda returns home at last. "There's more to life than things!" she declares in the end.

And so, as the artist makes clear, the conclusion of this delightfully illustrated story is really just the beginning of Wanda's new life.

Deborah Hopkinson's newest book for children is Under the Quilt of Night, (Atheneum) illustrated by James E. Ransome.