Books show feisty, spirited girls

At a recent conference, several editors of children's books made up a panel to advise wannabe authors. They cited all the discouraging statistics about how many thousands of manuscripts are rejected for every one manuscript that's accepted. We knew that.

What I didn't know was that editors are looking for picture books about girls who are feisty, full of spirit, independent and strong-willed. Sugar is off the table. Spice reigns supreme.

New picture book titles reflect this trend. "Harriet's Had Enough!" by Elissa Haden Guest is described as "a charming story of misbehavior, fury, and forgiveness that will be very familiar to anyone who has ever gotten into an argument with a loved one."

This book is bursting with love and could serve as a model for what to do in the unhappy wake of a family blow-up.

"Beatrice Doesn't Want to" by Laura Numeroff is the story of a little girl who refuses to be interested in books. Her brother plunks her down in story time at the library and leaves her fuming. She glares out the window until the story catches her attention, and then she's hooked on books.

In "Martha Doesn't Say Sorry" by Samantha Berger, the youngster does a lot of the right things, but apologizing isn't one of them. Her patient parents don't give cookies or piggyback rides or hugs to children who don't say, "I'm sorry."

At first, Martha decides that she doesn't need any of those things anyway. Then she thinks it over and makes the right decision. "Martha's family is glad Martha says sorry. Deep down, Martha is glad, too."

"Maggie's Monkeys" by Linda Sanders-Wells is about the youngest child in a family. Her parents and older sister cater to her vivid imagination. When Maggie announces that a family of pink monkeys has moved into the refrigerator, only her brother is frustrated by this disregard for reality. Even when the brother gets fed up with the charade, sibling love and loyalty triumph.

In another era, Harriet, Beatrice, Martha and Maggie probably would have been labeled stubborn and intractable.

I think that now these girls (I started to write "young ladies") are admired for knowing their own minds. To paraphrase the bumper sticker, well-behaved girls don't make history. For whatever that's worth.

Reach Fran Hawk at fran books@yahoo.com.