by Moe Zilla

Created on: September 15, 2010

The Queen of Style rules over "a very small kingdom of farmers and sheep." Unfortunately, there's usually nothing for her to do, because both the sheep and the farmers are very well-behaved. Her jester spends days entertaining her, until he's out of ideas, and "then they were both bored." The jester packs his bags and leaves the queen, telling her that she needs to learn how to do something new.

The book is written and illustrated by a married couple, and I half-wondered if they were working out some issues. Caralyn Buehner and Mark Buehner live in Salt Lake City - population: 183,171 - but the book's jacket assures readers that they're "the happy parents of nine children." The queen's first idea for a new activity is a humble correspondence course from a beauty college. "Learn the art of beautifying in 12 easy lessons!" it promises, and the queen is excited where her beauty supplies arrive.  

By the end of the book, I'd wondered if the premise was just an excuse to draw some very funny drawings of funny hairstyles. One illustration shows a sheep with pink, styled wool, and even lipstick and rouge. Caralyn and Mark Buehner also created the funny "Snowmen at Night" series, and they bring the same slick drawing style to "The Queen of Style." When the jester entertains the queen, he's even shown juggling a rabbit, a snake, and even a green bowling ball.

In the book's first illustration, the clouds take on the shape of elephants, dinosaurs, and of course, sheep, and the other drawings also contain hidden shapes. According to the School Library Journal, each picture supposedly contains a hidden rabbit, cat, and Tyrannosaurus rex. I couldn't find anything in the book which directed readers to look for the hidden animals. But it's another way that the couple seems to be having fun with their drawings.

I'm not sure if young boys would enjoy this story about the queen's efforts in beauty school, and I was a little uncomfortable with the book's emphasis on making people pretty. And in the end, the queen's career as a beautician isn't as important to her as the fact that she's made new friends. The queen orders everyone to come to the castle, where she gives them all haircuts. And "Every night she stayed up late studying the history of beautifying."

If there's anything to learn from this book, it's that you shouldn't tell other people what to do. The next day, the queen curls everyone's hair, and "she didn't notice the grumbling of the men." The next week, she gives everyone a fingernail manicure, and the queen "had never had such fun." She continues practicing her beauty lessons on her kingdom's subjects, until one day there's an angry mob gathered outside the castle doors.

"I don't want to come to the castle every other day," says a large, burly man, "to have my eyelashes dyed or my hair curled!"

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