In this sequel to A Gold Star for Zog, Pearl (a princess) and Gadabout (a knight) become traveling doctors. Pearl's only misdiagnosis is thinking that her uncle, the king, will welcome her ("Princesses can't be doctors!"). But when he falls ill, Pearl finds the cure. Donaldson's text contains near-faultless rhymes and plentiful humor; Scheffler, whose characters exhibit cuddlesome lumpiness, finds the comedy in every scene.

Dynamic duo Donaldson and Scheffler (Superworm, 2014, etc.) are back with a tale full of high drama, medical emergencies, and dragon crash landings in this sequel to A Gold Star for Zog (2012). In this outing, the pair reintroduces readers to the trio of traveling doctors: Gadabout the Great is an expert surgeon, Pearl has the distinction of being both a princess and a physician, and dragon Zog is a fire-breathing ambulance—albeit one that has some trouble with his landings. Flying from kingdom to kingdom and curing the maladies of the magical and nonmagical hoi polloi, the threesome passes Pearl's uncle's castle and decides to make a social call. Unfortunately, Pearl's kingly uncle does not approve of a princess with outside employment. In a page turn, Pearl is transformed from medico to captive in a frilly dress, forced to embroider cushions and arrange flowers. As Gadabout and Zog try to save their friend, the king becomes ill with an unknown ailment. Teamwork saves the day (and cures the king of his misogynist attitude) thanks to Pearl's medical research and Gadabout's and Zog's abilities to gather healing ingredients from past patients. Donaldson's rhyme scheme is sharp, and fans will immediately recognize Scheffler's distinctive style. Zog steals the show every time he quietly recovers from his bang-crash-thump landings in the background. The message is noble, but the lack of diversity—all the characters are white—tarnishes the crown. A solid storytime and lap-read that will amuse with each repeated read. (Picture book. 6-8)

PreS-Gr 2Princess Pearl, a doctor with a knack for medicines, and Gadabout the Great, both a knight and expert surgeon, fly across the kingdom on Zog, their trusty dragon steed, bringing medical care to creatures of all kinds. With a "Bang-crash-thump" (Zog is good at flying, but not really at landing), they bring relief to a sunburned mermaid, remove a unicorn's extra horn, and care for a sneezing lion with the flu. But the generous Flying Doctors are halted by Pearl's patriarchal uncle, a king who proclaims, "Princesses can't be doctors, silly girl." Pearl is locked in a tower, until her uncle comes down with orange fever. The court doctors are stumped, but the Flying Doctors work together to gather ingredients from their former patients to cure the king. The king is so happy, he apologizes and frees Pearl. Rhyming text makes for a jaunty read-aloud in this predictable yet satisfying story of an empowered princess. The narrative, a well-balanced mix of dialogue and description, flows along at an even pace. The cartoonish mixed-media illustrations set the story in a classical, forested, European-inspired kingdom. The humorous details and amusing facial expressions provide much to explore on first and subsequent rereadings. Although the female character is still stereotypically the caregiver while the male character is the surgeon, it's still nice to have a strong, resourceful female protagonist whose intelligence helps her prevail in a man's world. VERDICT Bouncing read-aloud text, delightful illustrations, and a modern girl power plot make this a fine general purchase for libraries.Amy Seto Forrester, Denver Public Library