This book was absolutely delightful! The lively illustrations are full of amusing details and pair perfectly with the rollicking text. The back includes an author's note with a picture of Queen Victoria's actual bathing machine, along with annotated suggestions for further reading that hint at the range and complexity of her life. This could be used as a fun introduction to Queen Victoria and her times, otherwise it can (and should) be thoroughly enjoyed on its own! ( )

This delightful picture book recounts the true story of how Queen Victoria was able to go swimming in the ocean at a time when it was considered indelicate for her to be seen in a bathing suit. The lively verse and charming illustrations (and authentic photo) add to the fun. Author’s Note, List of Related Books & Websites.

I enjoyed this book because of the style of the writing and its historical depiction of the Queen. The book used rhyme in order to create a flow and rhythm while reading. This book did have a lot of text on each page, but the rhyme made it easy to go through. This book was especially fun to read aloud because of the fun rhymes and different characters creating dialogue. While Queen Elizabeth may not have had a bathing machine, other aspects of the story were true to the time. For example, there were certain expectations of her in public or the people who worked for the queen. There were also multiple perspectives present in the book such as the queens subjects or the prince. Therefore, this book can serve as a great historical fiction option. ( )

I enjoyed reading the book. Understanding the historical element. The story was very interesting because I never knew about Queen Victoria and her desires to swim in the ocean. The author was able to describe the process that Queen Victoria and her husband was able to facilitate the queen swimming. The illustrations helped the reader to visually imagine the bathing machine which is important because it was hard to understand why and how a " bathing machine" would work, but the illustration solidified the idea. ( )

I really enjoyed this historical fiction children’s book. I enjoyed it for the storyline, it made me aware of a true story that happened in history that I never learned. I also liked the use of rhyming which makes the story more fun, and entertaining. For example, “No one will get so much as a peep… except for the creatures down in the deep.” Finally, the images are very beautiful and historical. We can see through the images what the actual bathing machine looked like and the expression of happiness on Queen Victoria’s face. The main message to be taken away from this story is, to learn about the longest reigning monarch in British history.