Book 21: The Prince and the Dressmaker by Jen Wang

This is a charming and beautifully drawn graphic novel about a prince who actually would rather wear dresses, and the dressmaker who designs them. It's very much 'it is what it says on the tin,' but that's not a complaint or a criticism -- the story hits all of the beats you might expect it to, but so satisfyingly, and the characters really land exactly how you want them to. There's secrecy and budding romantic feelings and a split caused by secrecy not being acceptable, followed by the grand revelation of just about everything all at once. The story floats through a fairy tale Paris that appears to be whatever era it needs to be to support the desired fashion from scene to scene, but the fact that the story doesn't attempt to exist in a real past, but rather the idea of what royalty and the aristocracy used to be, makes the story even easier to drop inside of. A really enjoyable read right before bed.

Grade: B