The Queen Next Door

Marcela Ferreira

Sally Agar

Orchard, 2023

32pp., pbk., RRP $A16.99

9781408366134 

In a faraway land, a happy queen rules over the happiest of kingdoms, bouncing around the town on her sparkly space hopper,. When a new queen moves in next door and starts showing off, beginning with her ginormous bedroom and her shiny new crown, the happy queen wasn’t bothered too much but when the new queen sends her a photo of her brand-new, super-duper throne, the happy queen can’t help feeling a little jealous and decides she MUST have a throne of her own . . . 

This is a charming story with an underlying message about valuing material objects and whether having the latest, the brightest, the biggest or the shiniest actually gets you what you want.   Are there more important things that will give you greater happiness and more fun?  Written for early childhood, it could spark a discussion about wants versus needs as children start to be impacted by advertising and current fads and learn the art of pester power.