The Golden Plate

Watts has been illustrating books since the 1960s, and this story’s innocence, its intense focus on domestic life, and its vision of a world in which mothers dependably watch over their children all recall the classics of that era. Isobel envies her friend Elisabeth’s beautifully outfitted dollhouse, especially the small gold plate that hangs in its kitchen. She hides it in her pocket and brings it home, only to discover that its gaudiness mars her own more modest dollhouse: “It was too big! Too, too big... and ugly!” With the support of both mothers, Isobel is able to tell Elisabeth of her wrongdoing and make things right. Watts’s spreads, filled with close-ups of the dollhouses and scenes of European village life, are full of engaging charm, but the artist is also alive to the darker parts of her story. As Isobel worries about the stolen plate in her possession, other golden plate–shaped objects—the moon, the sunflowers in the garden—taunt her with thoughts of her secret. It’s the contrast between the idyllic setting and Isobel’s inner struggle that makes the story memorable. Ages 4–8. (Nov.)