A sculptor named Pyg carves a statue of a goddess so beautiful, so perfect, that he falls head over heels in love with her. He buys her gifts, tells her stories, and wishes with all his heart she were a real, live woman. The trouble with wishes is . . . sometimes they come true! Diane Stanley's lively prose and vivid illustrations bring this funny and warm tale of misguided love to life as Pyg learns what a true companion is really made of. Grade 2–4—This light reinvention of the myth of Pygmalion gives the ancient Greek sculptor access to French perfumes, a modern-day spa, and an apprentice named Jane. Pyg is obsessed with his masterpiece, a sculpture of a goddess so beautiful that he wishes she were real. Jane finds her hard, flawless beauty a little off-putting, somehow, but he sees only perfection. Then he gets his wish and his work of art comes to life, but she turns out to be vain, humorless, demanding, and disloyal. As the end of his unhappy day with the "perfect" girl comes to a close, Pyg goes home to find Jane waiting for him with a blazing fire and a game of Scrabble. The pleasing, painterly cartoon illustrations combine ancient and modern elements. This fairy-tale/nursery-rhyme spoof, one of several by Stanley, has its own personality, tone, and palette, all of which work together toward a happy ending for everybody.— Catherine Threadgill, Charleston County Public Library, SC Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Stanley has written and illustrated several previous fractured fairy tales, including Rumpelstiltskin's Daughter (1997). Now, in a mischievous turnaround on the Pygmalion myth and The Sorcerer's Apprentice, she blends the classical and the contemporary with sly exaggeration. Jane, who wants to be a great sculptor and carve creatures from hunks of stone like her best friend, Pyg, becomes Pyg's apprentice. One day Pyg carves a masterpiece, a beautiful goddess, absolutely perfect. To Jane, however, the goddess statue seems heartless. When the goddess comes to life, she does, indeed, prove to be self-centered and mean, and she eventually leaves Pyg and his "dump" for the prince's palace. Then, to help Pyg get over "the girl of his dreams," Jane carves him the perfect pet companion. Stanley's fresh artwork, which mixes the grandeur of old classical forms and the absurdity of the new, is in perfect balance with the parody. Children older than the target audience may also enjoy this. Hazel Rochman Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved A sculptor named Pyg carves a statue of a goddess so beautiful, so perfect, that he falls head over heels in love with her. He buys her gifts, tells her stories, and wishes with all his heart she were a real, live woman. The trouble with wishes is . . . sometimes they come true! Diane Stanley's lively prose and vivid illustrations bring this funny and warm tale of misguided love to life as Pyg learns what a true companion is really made of. Diane Stanely is the author and illustrator of beloved books for young readers, including The Silver Bowl , named a best book of the year by Kirkus Reviews and an ALA Booklist Editors’ Choice; The Cup and the Crown ; The Princess of Cortova ; Saving Sky , winner of the Arab American Book Award; Bella at Midnight , a School Library Journal Best Book of the Year and an ALA Booklist Editors’ Choice; The Mysterious Case of the Allbright Academy ; The Mysterious Matter of I. M. Fine ; The Chosen Prince ; and Joplin, Wishing . Ms. Stanley has written and illustrated numerous picture books, including three creatively reimagined fairy tales, The Giant and the Beanstalk , Goldie and the Three Bears , and Rumpelstiltskin’s Daughter , and an award-winning series of picture book biographies. She lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico. You can visit her online at www.dianestanley.com.