My friend Maggie, another school librarian, turned me on to Holly Hobbie’s Toot and Puddle books. So when I saw Fanny at the bookstore recently, I read it. And I loved it.

Fanny wants a Connie doll for her birthday. But her mother thinks the dolls are just a little too over the top (they are very reminiscent of Bratz dolls). So when Fanny can’t get the doll she wants, she decides to make her own and call her Annabelle. Her friends disapprove of the doll, which looks nothing like a Connie. But Fanny loves Annabelle, most of all because she made it.

As a crafty person, I thought this book was delightful. It comes with a paper doll pattern, but I would have loved if it had a sewing pattern for a doll instead. Then it would have made a fun mother/daughter gift.