From School Library Journal
Kindergarten-Grade 3–It's 1942 and William's mom has just confirmed that a real queen has moved into an estate near their New England farm. Much to his older brother's amusement, William imagines the woman doing her errands in cape and gown. He also frets over his inability to contribute anything to the war effort, so when Dad suggests that picking blueberries is equally important as "peace work," William decides to try and chase some of the queen's worries away by presenting her with a basket of his most impressive berries. A kind lady (Princess Juliana of the Netherlands) invites him into the house and agrees that he should meet the queen. The grandmotherly woman (Queen Wilhelmina) is not what William expected, but he is delighted with the gracious reception he receives and returns home bursting with excitement. Based on John Paterson's actual experience (described in a historical note), this lengthy picture book draws a rather romanticized vision of farm life in the '40s and presents a hopeful story that mitigates the despairing events of the times. The banter between William and his supercilious older brother rings a bit more true than Dad's homespun philosophizing, but the innocence and naïveté of the place and time shine through. Jeffers's watercolor-and-ink illustrations perfectly juxtapose scenes of domestic reality with the boy's wistful daydreams of knights and heroic quests. Pair this earnest tale with Shulamith Levey Oppenheim's The Lily Cupboard (HarperTrophy, 1995) as they both share the same time period and rural locale, but are two fascinatingly diverse experiences set on opposite sides of the Atlantic.–Carol Ann Wilson, Westfield Memorial Library, NJ Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.


From Booklist
K-Gr. 3. In the summer of 1942, William learns that World War II has forced Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands to move to an estate near his New England home. He longs to see a real queen and fanaticizes about meeting her, but his only sighting is a glimpse of her limousine. When he decides to be neighborly and take her a basket of fresh-picked blueberries, he finds himself presenting the berries to the queen herself. This literary tale began as a Paterson family story; the appended note explains that John Paterson met Queen Wilhelmina under similar circumstances in 1942. Jeffers' skilled pencil drawings, brightened with color washes, contrast John's dreams of himself as a knight in armor and the queen in medieval robes with scenes of New England in the 1940s. Though the interplay of medieval dreams and twentieth-century reality seems forced at times, this unusual picture book will satisfy many children with its pleasing story and artwork. Carolyn Phelan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved


Book Description

In 1942 Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands, living in exile after the Nazi invasion of her country, spent the summer in Lee, Massachusetts, with her daughter and granddaughters. The following is based on a true story....

It’s summertime in New England during World War II, and a boy named William likes to imagine at bedtime that he is a brave knight fighting great battles to end the war. But in the morning he is always just William again, not big enough to contribute to the war effort like the rest of his family.

Then a real queen moves in just down the road: Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands. William’s parents explain that the queen has been forced out of her country because of the war. Now William has his chance to do something. It may not be “war work” -- it’s more like peace work -- but that makes all the difference.

Susan Jeffers’s dramatic illustrations portray the compelling contrast between William’simagination and the real events in the story, which are based on an actual incident in John Paterson’s childhood. Visually stunning, with an evocative, poignant telling, this is the picture-book art form at its finest.


About the Author
Katherine Paterson is one of the world's most renowned children's book authors. Ms. Paterson has received the National Book Award twice and has won the Newbery Medal for both Bridge to Terabithia and Jacob Have I Loved. She is also the author of two other I Can Read Books featuring Marvin, The Smallest Cow in the World and Marvin's Best Christmas Present Ever. Ms. Paterson lives in Barre, Vermont.

ANNOTATION

In the summer of 1942, when Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands lives down the road from his family's house in Massachusetts, young William decides to take her some of the blueberries he has picked. Includes historical notes.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

It's summertime in New England during World War II, and a boy named William likes to imagine at bedtime that he is a brave knight fighting great battles to end the war. But in the morning he is always just William again, not big enough to contribute to the war effort like the rest of his family.

Then a real queen moves in just down the road: Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands. William's parents explain that the queen has been forced out of her country because of the war. Now William has his chance to do something. It may not be "war work" - it's more like peace work - but that makes all the difference.

Susan Jeffers's dramatic illustrations portray the compelling contrast between William's imagination and the real events in the story, which are based on an actual incident in John Patterson's childhood. Visually stunning, with an evocative, poignant telling, this is the picture-book art form at its finest.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

John and Katherine Paterson, who previously collaborated on Consider the Lilies, and Jeffers (Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening) offer a sweet, fictionalized account of an episode from John Paterson's childhood. William, who lives in the Massachusetts countryside, is still young enough to imagine that knights and magic wands might help defeat Hitler. Then William learns that Queen Wilhelmina and her family, who "had to leave the Netherlands because of the war," have taken up residence nearby. He wonders endlessly about her ("Did she always wear her crown? Or did she have to go about in disguise so her enemies wouldn't know who she was?"), and he envisions himself as a pint-size knight in her service. He asks his father eagerly if picking blueberries is war work. "No," his father replies kindly, "I think it's more like peace work." But William triumphs when a gift of hand-picked blueberries earns him a reception with the Queen. "It will make your mouth rejoice," William tells her, and she agrees. Jeffers switches deftly between William's daydreams and real experiences. As William is about to meet Wilhelmina, a double-page boxed spread imagines her on a throne in splendid raiment, her hand on a pet jaguar. The next page reveals the truth: she's a grandma, with sensible shoes and a black cat, yet just enough details remain the same to tie the scenes together. Only the hardest-hearted will fail to be moved by this skillful presentation of a timeless theme. Ages 4-8. (June) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

School Library Journal

K-Gr 3-It's 1942 and William's mom has just confirmed that a real queen has moved into an estate near their New England farm. Much to his older brother's amusement, William imagines the woman doing her errands in cape and gown. He also frets over his inability to contribute anything to the war effort, so when Dad suggests that picking blueberries is equally important as "peace work," William decides to try and chase some of the queen's worries away by presenting her with a basket of his most impressive berries. A kind lady (Princess Juliana of the Netherlands) invites him into the house and agrees that he should meet the queen. The grandmotherly woman (Queen Wilhelmina) is not what William expected, but he is delighted with the gracious reception he receives and returns home bursting with excitement. Based on John Paterson's actual experience (described in a historical note), this lengthy picture book draws a rather romanticized vision of farm life in the '40s and presents a hopeful story that mitigates the despairing events of the times. The banter between William and his supercilious older brother rings a bit more true than Dad's homespun philosophizing, but the innocence and naivet of the place and time shine through. Jeffers's watercolor-and-ink illustrations perfectly juxtapose scenes of domestic reality with the boy's wistful daydreams of knights and heroic quests. Pair this earnest tale with Shulamith Levey Oppenheim's The Lily Cupboard (HarperTrophy, 1995) as they both share the same time period and rural locale, but are two fascinatingly diverse experiences set on opposite sides of the Atlantic.-Carol Ann Wilson, Westfield Memorial Library, NJ Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews