From birth, the little prince really is utterly charmless. Absolutely nothing pleases him, and the royal attendants from the nursery maids to the butler to the chauffeur are fed up with the little horror. When they walk out en masse, the King and Queen are worried. What will they do? Perhaps, thinks the King, he needs to learn to look after himself. When the prince makes his own breakfast, the corn flakes taste good; when he dresses himself, he is pleased he can do it; and when he plays in the garden by himself, he learns to get dirty and have fun. I don't know that difficult children can necessarily be cured by learning to do everything themselves, but this is a lesson for over-indulgent parents who do everything for their children and then expect them to behave properly. The pictures and text, as always with Willis and Ross, are superb, and lots of the action and, indeed, the story line are to be seen in the anarchic illustrations. Huge fun, and it just might convince spoiled children that doing things on their own is a good idea.