Dogged Devotion: Princess Zelda and the Frog by Carol Gardner

"WHAT WILL YOU GIVE ME, SILKY PANTS," CROAKED THE UGLY FROG, "IF I GET YOUR GOLDEN BALL?"

"I'LL GIVE YOU MY CROWN, MY DIAMOND CHOKER, AND A GIFT CARD FOR A MASSAGE," SAID PRINCESS ZELDA.

"NO, THANKS, SWEET CAKES," HE SAID. "IF YOU WILL LET ME EAT FROM YOUR GOLDEN BOWL, DRINK FROM YOUR GOLDEN GOBLET, SLEEP ON YOUR GOLDEN PILLOW, AND PROMISE TO BE MY BFF, I WILL GET YOUR BALL."

In Carol Gardner's and Shane Young's just-published Princess Zelda and the Frog (Feiwel & Friends, 2011), the frog drives a hard bargain with his princess just as in the classic fairy tale, The Frog Prince. But in this breezy modernized version, the beautiful and delicate princess role is played by Zelda, in all her bulbous bulldog beauty, gussied up in perfect pink princess style in silk gown and lavender tiara, while her rescuer/BFF wannabe, the Frog in the well, is played by an equally photogenic bulldog, attired in what is obviously a green velveteen costume which leaves his mutt's mug exposed beneath the froggy hood.

In cleverly staged photos, Shane Young has his super-model bulldogs replicate the classic story fairly faithfully, while Carol Gardner's witty modern text ("See you later, Sweetums," croaks the Frog after slurping up the banquet's fine dishes from Zelda's golden bowl) gives this retelling the delicious flavor of full-blown parody.

The Frog is persistent in enforcing Princess Zelda's promise, and that night, when he gains entrance to Zelda's bedchamber, he settles down to snore rather grossly, and Zelda, already an insomniac, fears that she will never sleep again in close quarters with such a bedfellow.

But after all, this is a fairy tale.

A FEELING OF PEACE WASHED OVER HER.

AND BEFORE LONG THE THE PRINCESS WAS LULLED INTO A DEEP SLEEP HERSELF.

"A promise is a promise"--even for petulant princesses--is the evergreen theme of this humorous reprise of the old tale, and in true virtue-rewarded form, Frog is restored to his true nature by the keeping of the promise to be the princess' best friend. And--you guessed it--by morning's light he is transformed into, well, as handsome a prince as a boy bulldog can be, complete with his own crown and silken threads in a happy, BFFs-forever ending in the best fairy tale tradition.

Photographer-designer Young stages the book's illustrations in a charming grade-school play format, with poster-painted-style backdrops and cut-out clouds hanging down on wires in the outdoor scenes, while posing his patient pooches in all sorts of hilarious vignettes in their improbable costumes. It's a rollicking romp through the Brothers Grimm's tale that is sure to tickle the giggles of the picture book crowd, especially those who have already met the traditional tale. And for those who prefer their fairy tales on the fractured side, pair this one with Jon Scieszka's very funny {THE FROG PRINCE, CONTINUED BY Scieszka, Jon(Author)}The Frog Prince, Continued.[paperback]Puffin Books(Publisher).