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From Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)

“My princess boy is four years old. He likes pretty things. Pink is his favorite color.” A quietly pointed and affirming text in a mother’s voice describes a little boy who loves wearing dresses and playing princess. The acceptance of the little boy’s family—his mom, dad, and older brother—is not always matched by the acceptance of children and adults around him. “But a princess boy can wear a dress at his school and I will not laugh at him ... Will you laugh at him? Will you call him a name? Will you play with him? Will you like him for who he is?” Cheryl Kilodavis’s story was inspired by one of her own children. Suzanne DeSimone’s fanciful illustrations about a brown-skinned boy lack realism but capture the boy’s joy and pleasure in being himself. (Ages 3–7)

CCBC Choices 2012 © Cooperative Children's Book Center, Univ. of Wisconsin - Madison, 2012. Used with permission.

From Horn Book

July 1, 2011
"If you see a Princess Boy...will you laugh at him?" A boy who likes "pretty things" and wears "girly dresses" stars in this treacly lesson in acceptance. Though addressing gender identity in young children is admirable (and challenging), Kilodavis--whose own son was her inspiration--doesn't prevail over taboo due to her text's oversimplification and didacticism. Pink-heavy illustrations showing featureless characters are off-putting.

(Copyright 2011 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

From School Library Journal

June 1, 2011

K-Gr 2-Kilodavis introduces the difficult themes of bullying and being different, based on the experiences of her four-year-old son. The book tells of a boy who "plays dress up in girly dresses" and is laughed at when he wears them to school but has the support of his family. It is tenderly written and simple enough to be understood by young children. Readers learn about the child's experiences, good and bad. At the end, powerful questions are directed to them for thought and discussion: "If you see a Princess Boy....Will you call him a name? ...Will you like him for who he is?" DeSimone's illustrations are colorful, bright, and positive. Children may ask why the people depicted have no faces, which may spark discussions about how we are all the same. This is a book about unconditional love, social acceptance, and a strong family. It is also a call for diversity, tolerance, and an end to bullying and judgments. It will be well placed in elementary school counseling offices as well as in school and public libraries.-Alison Donnelly, Collinsville Memorial Public Library, IL

Copyright 2011 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.