I'M A GIRL! by Yasmeen Ismail. New York: Bloomsbury, 2015. 32p. ISBN: 978-1619639751 hc. $16.99    PreS-Gr.1    E PIC

"Be yourself-there's no better!" proudly exclaims this book about being happy with who you are.  The little girl donkey repeatedly asserts that she is a girl as various animals assume she is male based upon her activities and interests.  She is messy, loud, goes fast, is brave, and plays the drums as the animals refer to her as "him," "boy," "sonny," or "young man" requiring her to let them know she is "a girl!"  Towards the end of the book, she meets a little lion declaring that he is "a boy!"  The two become friends and celebrate that there's no one else they'd rather be than themselves.  This book works hard to establish that it is not the activities or ideas that ascribe gender and that gender stereotypes should be broken.  The illustrations are colorful and done in beautiful watercolor brush strokes, which help to enhance the activity and message within the book.
Emily Cummings, Children's Specialist, Dickinson County Library, Iron Mountain, MI