I Can Do It Myself!

Emily Pearl can do lots of things by herself. But sometimes even resourceful little girls need help.

Emily Pearl is a very big girl. She can pour her own juice. She can feed her goldfish. She can even curl her own hair. Whenever her mother tries to help, Emily says, "I can do it myself!" Emily Pearl's creative approach does sometimes lead to results that are not quite what anyone expected.

But even a very big girl like Emily can sometimes feel a teeny bit small, especially at bedtime when dark shadows creep across the walls of her bedroom. Luckily for Emily, her mom understands and gives her a helping hand.

Diane Adams' delightful, rhyming story of one child's determined quest for independence is complemented by Nancy Hayashi's charming illustrations that colorfully capture the chaotic ups and downs in the life of a preschooler."The interplay between art and text will work well for the group reader who can enjoy the spontaneous giggles that will erupt at storytime."—Kirkus Reviews

"With rounded forms and muted hues, the watercolor, ink, and colored-pencil artwork illustrates the story in pleasant, sometimes witty pictures."—Booklist

"Both for storytimes and one-on-one sharing, this tale is told in a fresh, yet familiar way."—School Library JournalA graduate of the University of Redlands, Diane Adams has is the author of several picture books and a professor of children's literature and expository writing at a university in Southern California

Nancy Hayashi grew up in Ohio, graduated from Denison University, and worked as a designer and art director. The illustrator of several picture books, she lives in California.