Pinkies Up! Fancy Nancy Tea Parties by Jane O'Connor

Bonjour, Everybody!

What I love most about tea parties is that you can have one anytime. You don't need to wait for your birthday or Christmas or some other formal occasion (that's a fancy way of saying an important day) whenever you feel like celebrating. That's the time for a tea party!

In her latest "nonfiction" Fancy Nancy book, Jane O'Connor's Fancy Nancy: Tea Parties, (HarperCollins, 2009) Nancy, that hostess with the mostest of the primary crowd, gives tips for planning parties, including chapters on Ensembles and Etiquette, Classic Tea Parties, Buffet Tea Parties, Tea for Two, and Doll Tea Parties. Nancy's actual tips are quite useful--directions for finger refreshments (Nancy's Nibbles. Ants on a Log, Fruit Kabobs, and Festive Fondue), directions for making placemats and folding napkins, and and ideas for centerpieces (Lollipop Bouquet, Blossom Extravaganza).

Nancy even throws in a few felicitous French phrases (S'il vous plait, de rien, etc.) to make the small talk at the party sparkle. Her advice for handling party goers who turn up dressed casually (faux pas of all faux pas)? Have plenty of beads, feathers, and sparkly stuff to fancy them up on the spot! Punch-out recipe cards are included in the back of the book, lushly decorated in the signature Fancy Nancy pink and purple sparkles.

Despite all the frou-frou, however, Nancy's best advice for the tea party hostess is quite simple:

1. Be fancy!

2. Have fun.

3. Don't forget to invite me!

Other Fancy Nancy "nonfiction" titles are Fancy Nancy's Fashion Parade!, Fancy Nancy's Favorite Fancy Words: From Accessories to Zany, Fancy Nancy Loves! Loves!! Loves!!! and Fancy Nancy: Let's Get Fancy Together!

Tempest In A Teapot! Fancy Nancy Tea for Two by Jane O'Connor

BREE SAYS, "CLOSE YOUR EYES AND COUNT TO THREE!"

"UN, DEUX, TROIS." (I LOVE COUNTING IN French.)

WHEN I OPEN MY EYES, BREE IS HOLDING A TRAY WITH A FANCY TEA SET ON IT.

"OOO LA LA!

Bree's mother has finally decided that Bree is old enough to be trusted with the prized toy tea set that she and her sister played with when they were little girls. It's a very fancy china set and it still has all its pieces--the teapot AND lid, the sugar bowl, cream pitcher, and all the cups and saucers--lovingly played with and saved just for her. Bree is thrilled, and she and her Best Friend Forever, Nancy Clancy, can't wait to have their first elegante tea party.

Their dolls, Marabelle and Chiffon, are to be honored guests, and as soon as the proper hour for afternoon tea rolls around, the two BFFs and their dolls are dressed in their fanciest and the table is laid with that special tea set.

At first all goes well. Bree and Nancy take turns serving daintily, and then it's time for Marabelle and Chiffon to play hostess with the mostest.

"NOW IT'S MARABELLE'S TURN TO POUR!" I SAY.

"NO!" SAYS BREE. "CHIFFON IS STILL HOSTESS!"

"THAT'S NOT FAIR!" I SAY. "MARABELLE DESERVES TO HAVE A TURN."

I REACH TO TAKE THE TEAPOT. THEN SOMETHING HORRIBLE HAPPENS!

THE TEAPOT GOES FLYING, AND WHEN IT LANDS, ITS LID BREAKS INTO TWO PIECES.

"MY TEA SET IS WRECKED!" SHOUTS BREE. "GO HOME!"

Bree's heirloom teapot has been ruined, and it seems that the teapot lid is not the only thing broken in this event. Will the forever part of best friends forever be history? Is this the final "Au Revoir" for besties Bree and Nancy?

Jane O'Connor's Fancy Nancy: Tea for Two (Harper, 2012) deals with the emotional fallout from a feud between the two lifelong friends, as Nancy has to face up to the fact that friendship has its trials. O'Connor has a keen insight into the significant transitions of the primary school years, and a serious dispute between close friends is one of those situations that almost all children must work through in that passage. A great friendship can be repaired, but not so easily as a teapot lid, and fans of Nancy Clancy will want to read how this one turns out.

A Plethora of Pets! Fancy Nancy: Oodles of Kittens by Jane O'Connor

As Bree and I split the last pastry, suddenly we hear crying. It's coming from outside!

EE-yewww! EE-yewww!

On a dismally drenching day, Nancy Clancy and her best friend Bree are drowning their sorrows at a tea party in Mrs. DeVine's parlor when they hear an arresting sound. The two throw on their raincoats and dash outside to investigate. The sound is coming from inside Mrs. DeVine's doghouse, Chateau Jewel.

And inside there is a cat! A fluffy orange cat--and oodles of teeny-tiny kittens....

1, 2, 3, 4, 5!

Mrs. DeVine opines that the cat is a stray, with no home, and as she helps the girls carry the little feline family inside, she tells them that a new mother cat is called-- A QUEEN!

"OOH-LA-LA! How fancy!" says Nancy!

Nancy and Bree spend a lot of time after school at Mrs. DeVine's house with the kittens as their eyes open and they begin to chase each other and explore all over. Mrs. DeVine names the mother cat "Maj," short for "Majesty," and Nancy and Bree claim the little white and black kittens--which they name "Sequin" and "Rhinestone," for their own.

Nancy absolutely dotes upon her new pet.

"I shower Sequin with oodles of affection. Taking care of a kitten is a full-time job!"

Nancy is so taken with her new kitten that she has no time for her "old" pet, Frenchy! Frenchy begs and begs, with her food bowl and then her leash in her mouth, but Nancy is to absorbed in kitten care to notice.

But Frenchy is clearly not pleased with the new pet. She growls and barks at Sequin. Nancy can't understand why her dog is not happy with the new member of the family.

Maybe Frenchy is jealous," says Mom. "She sees you giving Sequin so much attention!

You don't remember," Mom adds, "but after JoJo was born, you were very jealous."

Even grown-up dogs get jealous, and Nancy gets it that even "mature" pets need their share of loving care, and when Sequin escapes from the house and can't be found, it's Frenchy's turn to show what good grownup dogs do best, in Jane O'Connor's newest full-format picture book, Fancy Nancy: Oodles of Kittens (Harper, 2018). With a cover that is lavish with glitter and with the chichi and charming-as-ever illustrations by artist Robin Preiss Glasser, this one will please Nancy Clancy fans and pet lovers of both the canine and feline persuasions.

Two for Tea: Tea Time for Sophia Grace and Rosie by Orli Zuravicky

SOPHIA GRACE AND ROSIE JUST LOVED HAVING TEA PARTIES. IN FACT, THE TWO COUSINS HAD ALREADY THROWN SEVERAL OF THEM.

BY NOW THE GIRLS WERE EXPERTS IN EVERY KIND OF TEA PARTY IMAGINABLE.

Well, not exactly. The cousins can't wait to do it again--to tea-par-tay hearty in their best shindig ever.

Will there be invitations? YES! With plenty of pink stickers!

Will it be a fancy dress affair, with tutus and tiaras? Well, of course, dahling!

Will there be a fairy theme with lots of PINK fairy dust? Will there be chocolates and pastries? You know it!

Not much suspense here.

In fact, the only unknown factor in this scenario is whom the cousins will invite to the tea party. They come to an agreement that each will invite one special guest, and the suspense builds to see which special persons will show up on the afternoon of the big soiree'.

Light and slight, Orli Zuravicky's Tea Time with Sophia Grace and Rosie (Orchard Books, 2013) serves up a frothy confection of a story based on the cousins who have appeared on the Ellen show, charming that audience with their oh-so British accents and teatime talk. While the pink-tinged solipsism of Zuravicky's story-time party girls (who, of course, invite only each other to their fete) seems to stress exclusion over inclusiveness, little girls who go for spangled tutus, sparkly tiaras, and of course, rainbow-sprinkled sweets will likely want to be virtual guests at this party.

For a more realistic look at the deeper point of the tea party trend, pair this one with Jane O'Connor's little treatise on friendship, Fancy Nancy: Tea for Two for more substantial tea party fare (see my recent review here).