Age: 2nd-4th grade, but good for reading aloud

Annabelle is restless. She has always been stuck in her house with her family and she yearns to explore the outside place she constantly stares upon. But with The Captain cat guard and the fear of being immobile for 24 hours or for eternity. Her adventures would go against the Doll Code of Honor and put her whole family at risk. Annabelle's parents have successfully kept her in place, until Annabel finds her Auntie's diary who disappeared 55-years-ago. When a new doll family moves in, Annabelle finds a friend, Tiffany, and they set out to find Annabelle's aunt.

The drawings by Brian Selznick are a great way to entice readers into the story, especially boys who've read Hugo Cabret. The story seems to drag on by providing pointless plot description. Perhaps its purpose was to give the reader a solid understanding of the time gone by, which may or may not be beneficial to the intended audience.