WHEN YOU ADOPT A PANDARINA

Mrs. Paws’s Haven for Magical Pets comes through again.

Having in previous outings—When You Adopt a Starwhal (2020) and When You Adopt a Pugicorn (2021)—paired animals with children in need of life lessons, the perceptive proprietor of Twinkleton-Under-Beanstalk’s pet emporium has just the right companion to help clumsy, pale-skinned Princess Skye find her dancing feet before light brown–skinned Queen Elsie’s Birthday Ball—to wit, a rainbow-eared panda kitted out in ballet shoes and a pink tutu. Despite the outfit, though, Pandarina proves a total klutz both in and out of dance class…at least at first. But as Skye watches the persistent panda pick herself up after each spill and keep practicing, her despair changes to a matching determination to do likewise, and by the time the ball rolls around, she’s feeling good enough about her efforts that she’s even able to take a tumble in stride. Rose’s twinkly conclusion that “when you try your best and have fun, you’ll always be the star of the show” finds tonal equivalent in Budgen’s pastel-hued gatherings of cute magical creatures (including Starwhal and Pugicorn, in cameos) and ballet students who are not only racially diverse, but include a dancer who uses a wheelchair. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

A sweet, self-esteem–building pas de deux.