The Scallywags - David Melling

No, they're not naughty children: these Scallywags are a pack of wolves. We see all nine of them curving over the double-page spread of the frontispiece in a line. Brooz is pushing Jumble in a wheelbarrow, and they are followed by Earwax and YoYo, each holding onto the tail of the wolf in front with their teeth. Knits, along with her babies, knitting wool and needles has YoYo's tail in her hand while Scribble, behind her, has designs on the banana in Knits' hand. Scribble is followed by Hairball and then Grub, whilst poor Crumbs brings up the rear but is being dragged along the ground. They look friendly but capable of all sorts of mischief.

As the story begins, we see all the other animals: bears, pigs, geese, sheep, foxes, rabbits, meerkats and a moose. They are all lined up ready to have their photograph taken in the light of the full moon, and the photographer decides that he can wait no longer for the wolves or the special silver light will be gone. Turn the page, and the wolves crash in on the scene, sending all the other animals flying, along with the photographer. The following morning the animals are so angry that the wolves ruined the photo that they decide not to invite them to breakfast. They never liked the wolves' bad manners anyway. When the wolves realise they are no longer being asked along to meals, they try playing on their own but come to the conclusion that they need to learn good manners so that the other animals will like them.

After spying on the other animals to see how to do things properly and then practising hard at home, the Scallywags dress in their very best and go to have supper with the other animals. The trouble is, however, they are just too fussy, and the other animals wish they could have the fun-loving Scallywags back. As the full moon comes out the wolves become restless and return to their old ways, and the other animals can enjoy themselves so much more. The photographer even succeeds in getting his photo this time.

David Melling's picture books never fail to delight, in terms of story, characters and illustrations. The Scallywags is full of humour, as Earwax squashes a pea on Jumble's nose or decides to use a toothbrush to clean his ears. Every single page has colour illustrations showing animals wearing silly hats, having a bath on a balcony, or sitting upside-down on a car seat playing with a broken steering wheel. The caricatures are wonderful and the colours very varied but not too garish.

This is essentially a book to be read aloud to a child of perhaps three years old up to five or six. The font is quite large and well-spaced, with just a few lines of text on most pages. Sometimes the text is on a cream-coloured background, but on other pages the text is superimposed on a full-page illustration, on a turquoise or brown background. It is not always in straight lines; sometimes the line of text itself curves, and sometimes a single word, such as 'nipped' or 'popped', has letters that jiggle around. This adds to the fun but might be challenging for a young reader. The vocabulary is varied and would be interesting for a confident young reader to attempt, but words such as 'nincompoops' or 'delicious' will be tricky for children who are just beginning to learn to read independently. They will enjoy the book more when sharing it with an adult.

I have used 'The Scallywags' as a basis for a drama session with a group of four-year-olds. It is an ideal book for a largish group because there are so many characters. But there is also a huge amount of fun to be had while acting it out; most of the children wanted to be wolves, but a few of the quieter ones were glad to take the parts of the other animals. After reading or acting, it is interesting to talk about how it's a good idea to have some manners, but if you take things too far and criticise every little mistake your friends make, they might not enjoy your company so much.

I would say that 'The Scallywags' is a book that can appeal to boys or girls alike, and I'm sure most adults will enjoy reading it aloud and pointing out all the hilarious details in Melling's illustrations. I borrowed a copy from a library, but I think it is a book that will stand a few readings and therefore may be well worth buying.

The Scallywags

by David Melling

Hodder Children's Books, 2007

Paperback, 30 pages

ISBN 9780340884065

Price £5.99 (Amazon £4.49)

Mrs Armitage Queen of the Road - Quentin Blake

I first became acquainted with Quentin Blake through his quirky illustrations for Roald Dahl's novels and books of verse when my children were growing up. Dahl's stories are often hilarious in themselves, but Blake always seemed to capture the essence of Dahl's characters in his drawings and add even more to the humour.

Quentin Blake has more recently illustrated stories he has written himself that are wonderful to read and enjoy. Most of them centre on a particular, sometimes eccentric, character. 'Mrs Armitage Queen of the Road', for example, is a bespectacled, grey-haired lady whom we first meet in striped pyjamas and a brown dressing-gown, sitting opposite her smiley dog at the breakfast table. Who would imagine that she later teams up with a Hell's-Angel-style group of motorcyclists who dress her up in a leather jacket and studded collar? This is the fantastical reality of Quentin Blake's world.

Mrs Armitage's outing begins when her Uncle Cosmo hands his old crock of a car to her as he now has a new motorcycle. She is not impressed with it but nevertheless sits Breakspear, her dog, in the back and sets off. Various mishaps occur that involve parts of the car falling off, but Mrs Armitage is not fazed; she throws them on the scrapheap each time and continues her journey, eventually arriving in the countryside. Things reach the point where the car has lost all its doors, as well as the bonnet and various smaller parts.

By coincidence she then encounters Uncle Cosmo and his friends coming the other way on their motorbikes. They are so impressed by Mrs Armitage's strange-looking 'machine' that they invite her to go with them to the Crazy Duck Cafe for billiards and banana fizz. This, then, is how Mrs Armitage becomes Queen of the Road.

The illustrations obviously count for a great deal in any book by Quentin Blake. We see poor Mrs Armitage with a succession of glum faces as she disposes of various car parts on the scrap heap, but the builders watching her throw the roof away seem pretty amused. She looks so much happier when she meets Uncle Cosmo and his gang, a motley crew of bearded, booted or in one case big-busted bikers. Breakspear looks delighted as he sits behind Mrs Armitage and they speed off down the country road, followed by the rest of the gang, all beaming amongst clouds of exhaust fumes.

There is a lot of fun with onomatopoiea in this book, with Blake inventing words such as beoing and kerrunch when the car comes to grief. There are generally about three or four lines of text per page in a large font on a white background, so reading is made easy. I have heard of this book appealing to children as young as three and as old as nine, by which age of course they should be able to read it themselves.

'Mrs Armitage Queen of the Road' is a wonderful read-aloud book, but may not appeal to children much younger than four-years-old. There are apparently at least two other books in Blake's series about Mrs Armitage, 'Mrs Armitage on Wheels' and 'Mrs Armitage and the Big Wave'. I shall definitely be looking out for these. Quentin Blake's books are a lot of fun to read, not least because his drawings add so much to the humour of the story.

Mrs Armitage Queen of the Road

by Quentin Blake

Paperback, 32 pages

Red Fox, 2004

ISBN 0099434245

Price £5.99 (Amazon £4.49)

Not Now Bernard - David McKee

Masquerading as a children's book, Not Now Bernard might perhaps be seen by many as one for the parents who read it aloud as a bedtime story to their little babes. The front cover acts as an introduction to the story, setting the scene. We see a small boy whom we presume to be Bernard, gazing wide eyed at what is obviously a monster, and a fearsome one at that, baring his teeth from on top of a mound. The monster is about as broad as he is tall and is almost all face, with short limbs attached.

Opening the cover, we see the monster again, but this time he has his index finger on his mouth and looks as though he thinks he has done something wrong. On the title page we see a full-figure picture of Bernard, wide eyed again and with a minute dot for a mouth. Turn the page, and Bernard is saying hello to his Dad, pictured here banging a nail into a wall. Bernard is standing behind him, and Dad doesn't turn round but merely replies 'Not now, Bernard.' At the same time he hits his finger with the hammer and appears to cry out in pain. A similar episode occurs with Bernard's Mum on the next two pages; she is busy in the kitchen and ignores Bernard's hello just like Dad did. Bernard seems to be seeking attention when he persists by telling Mum that there is a monster in the garden that's going to eat him. Mum obviously thinks this is a tall story and continues to give the standard 'Not now, Bernard' as a reply.

Having had no joy with his parents, Bernard decides to go into the garden and say hello to the monster. Perhaps it will take some notice of Bernard. This is what he in fact does, but not in the way Bernard had hoped. He eats Bernard up, and we see the monster left holding just one shoe. The monster then decides to go indoors, and lets out an almighty 'ROAR' behind Bernard's mother as she is painting a wall. Thinking once again that it is just Bernard, she gives the usual reply 'Not now, Bernard.' The monster then finds Dad sitting in an armchair, hidden behind the newspaper, and on biting Dad's foot, the reply is merely repeated, as Dad doesn't actually see what is happening. When Mum puts Bernard's dinner on a table in front of the television, she calls her son but doesn't wait to see if he comes to eat. The monster eats the dinner and continues by amusing himself with a comic and the television. After a while, Mum calls to Bernard, telling him that he should go to bed and that she has taken his milk upstairs. We see the monster on his way up with teddy in tow, and then settled in bed with teddy. At this point he objects, 'But I'm a monster.' Mum is in the doorway, but rather than take a look or say goodnight, she switches off the light and for one final time says, 'Not now, Bernard.'

Do we interpret this as a message concerning the terrible consequences for parents who persistently ignore their children and never spend any time with them? Or do we assume that everything was a figment of Bernard's imagination because of his boredom? Did he convincingly take on the role of a monster, roaring, biting, and breaking one of his toys? Such deep questions. Perhaps the most interesting point is that young children don't seem to find this story frightening; they usually love it and have a great laugh over it. This could be partly because of the illustrations. They fill most of the page, and the monster looks rather comical just after he has supposedly eaten Bernard: his tongue hangs out as he holds up a shoe. He holds up a dinner plate and lets the food trickle into his mouth; when he watches television, he stands on top of the set (before the flat-screen era) and peers down from above. Colours and patterns are bright and cheerful, giving a definite friendly feel.

As well as being a popular bedtime story, this is an excellent reading book for children between the ages of four and a half and seven. It fits the National Literary Scheme's requirements in England and Wales of being a story with a familiar setting, a story with patterned language, and a story by a significant children's author. For these reasons there is also an accompanying teachers' resource book available. The fact that phrases such as 'Not now, Bernard,' are repeated would of course make it easy for very young readers to recognise words that appear every now and again throughout the book. There are never more than fourteen words on a page, and in fact the word count on most pages is only about six.

Not Now, Bernard has delighted children for more than twenty years now; some that heard or read the first edition are now nostalgically reading it to their own children. I would definitely recommend it either for reading aloud or for early independent reading. It is attractive both visually and in terms of a story that captures the imagination of a child who can identify with Bernard's boredom and loneliness.

Not Now Bernard

by David McKee

Red Fox, 1984

Paperback, 26 pages

ISBN 0099240505

Price £4.99

The Ghost Library - David Melling

I remember as a child how much my imagination was stimulated by C. S. Lewis's 'The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe': the idea of walking through the back of a wardrobe into a fantasy world where you met fauns and had to fight against a wicked Queen was enough to relieve the boredom of any school holiday. As my sons were growing up, it was the novels of Road Dahl that captured their imagination. Fancy being able to point your finger at people and turn them into birds, as the furious little girl in 'The Magic Finger' does. The idea of mixing up a glorious concoction to deal with a despicable person, as in 'George's Marvellous Medicine,' seems almost within your own reach.

Lewis and Dahl are still tremendously popular today, but what of younger children whose imagination needs stimulating? 'The Ghost Library' by David Melling seems to be just the answer.

Having been impressed by Melling's 'The Kiss that Missed' and used it successfully as the basis for a drama session with a group of four-year-olds, I asked if I might be the first to borrow his picture book 'The Ghost Library' when I spotted it amongst a pile of new books at my local library. The cover, which has 'glow-in-the-dark' appeal, shows three strange creatures peering down at a book that a little girl in dressing-gown and pyjamas is trying to read. It gives the impression that there will be plenty to stimulate the imagination inside.

Bo, the little girl on the cover, is reading her favourite book about a witch with smelly feet. It's bedtime, and the lights suddenly go out. Bo feels a hand grab her book, and before she knows it she and the book are jerked into the air. She soon finds herself in the ghost library, and the three ghosts from the front cover introduce themselves to her as Magpie, Twit and Puddle Mud. The ghosts explain that they wanted Bo's book, but she came too because she was holding it so tightly. Bo angrily accuses them of stealing, but they claim that they always give books back to children after they have read them. They ask Bo to read her book to them, and when she agrees ghosts fly out from all over the library to listen.

The ghosts enjoy Bo's book so much that they ask her for another story. She says it's their turn, but they protest that they don't know any stories. Bo says she will help them to make one up; they shout out their ideas, but they want Bo to tell the story because she is so good at doing different funny voices. After all the story-telling Bo eventually returns to her bedroom to find a little surprise on her pillow.

Melling's books are always so beautifully illustrated in a way that would appeal to any young child. Each of the ghosts is quite different from the next and most look very friendly rather than scary. One page opens upwards to show a tall tower with the ghosts and Bo swirling past in the night. There is a fair amount of text on many of the pages, so this is a book for reading aloud rather than one for independent young readers. Sometimes italics are used, and sometimes individual lines of text swirl around the page, in tune with the illustrations. All of this adds to the visual appeal.

The unusual thing about this book is that when Bo is reading her book to the ghosts or telling them a story, you see merely a series of pictures without any text. This is in fact an ingenious way of stimulating a young child's imagination and encouraging them to tell the story as they see it through the pictures. When Bo is reading her own book to the ghosts, the double-page spread shows around thirty-six small pictures, mostly in light blue on a yellow background. This would necessitate some quite detailed story-telling, and might be suitable for a child of six or seven. When Bo is telling the story that she and the ghosts have made up, however, there are two double-page spreads in comic-strip style with very colourful and bold pictures that a slightly younger child could follow and tell the story that the illustrations show.

This is a story that successfully combines fantasy with the reality of story-telling ideas. Although about ghosts, they are friendly ghosts and all ends happily, so it should not be too scary as a bedtime story. I would recommend this for children aged three up to either six or seven; with David Melling, I think it is hard to go wrong.

The Ghost Library

by David Melling

Hodder Children's Books, 2005

Paperback, 34 pages

ISBN 0340860898

Price £5.99 (Amazon £4.99)

The Magic Finger - Roald Dahl

If I had to pick one single writer whose books a child should read, it would have to be Roald Dahl. I spent many fun-filled hours reading his books aloud to my children when they were very young, and they read them again for themselves as soon as they were able to. The perfect one to begin with, as it is not overly long, is 'The Magic Finger'. The heroine is a girl who can zap people with her finger with drastic results.

We are never actually told what the girl's name is, but that doesn't seem to matter. She discovers early on the special power that she has in one of her index fingers which comes into force when she gets particularly angry. She uses it at school one day, when her teacher, Mrs Winter, asks her to spell 'cat' and she spells it 'k-a-t'. Her teacher may have regretted calling her stupid and asking her to go and stand in the corner, as she grows whiskers and a tail after the girl turns the Magic Finger on her. The girl vows that she will never use her Magic Finger again after this episode, as Mrs Winter is never quite the same after her transformation.

It proves too difficult, however, for her to stand by her decision. Worse than Mrs Winter's is the fate of the Gregg family, who live in the farm adjoining that of the girl's family. There are two boys, Philip who is eight (the same age as the girl), and William who is eleven. The girl often goes to play with them, but she strongly disapproves of the fact that they go hunting with their father. At various times they are caught shooting deer and ducks by the girl. She is so incensed that she puts the Magic Finger on them, and this affects the whole family, even though Mrs Gregg was not out hunting. The ducks that Mr Gregg and his sons were aiming at turn round and fly towards them; they continue to circle around in a menacing way.

The following morning, the Greggs awake and find to their horror that they have dwindled in size and grown wings. William and Philip are delighted that they can fly, but they don't fancy the idea of eating worms of course. The Greggs have to spend the stormy night in a nest that they build themselves, as the ducks, who are now enormous, take over their house. The girl feels guilty when she realizes what has happened, as William and Philip are after all her friends. Only when the ducks threaten to shoot the Greggs do they have the chance to return to their normal human selves by promising never to shoot birds or deer again.

The Greggs are in fact transformed after this horrifying experience; they even change their name to Egg. Mr Egg destroys his guns, and William and Philip are seen feeding birds of all kinds. I will leave you to guess whether or not the girl ever uses her Magic Finger again.

This story is a wonderful blend of fantasy and the idea that people who are cruel might actually get their just desserts and change their ways. The thought of a little girl having power over those in authority or bigger and stronger than herself is a delightful one. Quentin Blake captures the essence of Dahl's characters in his line drawings and caricatures; children are always depicted with beaming smiles, other than when the girl tries to phone William and Philip and feels guilty when she is answered by a quack!

A child who enjoys 'The Magic Finger' will almost certainly delight in another of Dahl's novels, 'Matilda', once again centring on a girl with magic powers. These stories will keep children absorbed for hours on end. The font is quite small, but there are so many illustrations that reading the text will not seem like a chore to a young child who is an independent reader. 'The Magic Finger', not being too long a story, could also be suitable for reading aloud but perhaps not all at one sitting. I would definitely recommend this novel as an introduction to Roald Dahl, or as an extra one to read if you have already discovered his most famous stories through books or films.

The Magic Finger (Young Puffin Developing Reader)

by Roald Dahl and Quentin Blake

Puffin Books, 2001

Paperback, 67 pages

ISBN 0141311290

Price £3.99 (discounted at Amazon)

Harry and the Dinosaurs say 'Raahh!'

Taking a young child to the dentist for the first time could prove to be a frightening experience for them, having to encounter complete strangers and deal with the prospect of pain, but Ian Whybrow comes to the rescue with his story 'Harry and the Dinosaurs say “Raahh!”'

Little Harry with the big fringe takes his bucket of dinosaurs everywhere with him in Whybrow's series of picture books. At the start of 'Harry and the Dinosaurs say “Raahh!”' Harry is busily cleaning his teeth in preparation for his first visit to the dentist. He is a little afraid because elder sister Sam has shown him her filling. His dinosaurs are hiding but they all jump in the bucket when he calls them, except for Tyrannosaurus who has so many teeth he is worried that the dentist might have to drill them. Harry reassures him by telling him that he will press the magic button on the bucket to make Tyrannosaurus grow big, and off they go on the back of mum's bike.

When Harry goes into Mr Drake the dentist's room, he isn't convinced about the promised ride in the chair that goes up and down. Mr Drake lets him put Tyrannosaurus in the chair, and while his back is turned Harry presses the magic button to make Tyrannosaurus bigger. As the dentist turns round again, Tyrannosaurus lets out a tremendous roar that scares Mr Drake into hiding behind the door and asking for Harry's help. Harry quickly presses the button again to reduce Tyrannosaurus to his bucket size.

Harry now feels much more confident about sitting in the dentist's chair, and Mr Drake assures him that there is no need to use the drill; he will just have a look at Harry's teeth and give him a mouthwash to rinse with. Of course the dinosaurs have to rinse as well, and one of them disrespectfully spits the mouthwash right in Mr Drake's face to Harry's great amusement.

On the way home Mum lets Harry choose a book from the library, and the dinosaurs are delighted that he chooses one about sharks because there are plenty of sharp teeth involved.

This story is much more fun than the usual kind of book about going to the dentist. It would probably encourage a child to feel more confident about going if they took a favourite toy along. The episode where Mr Drake is frightened of the Tyrannosaurus shows that adults, even dentists, are vulnerable too and get scared sometimes just like children. Rinsing with the mouthwash is shown to be great fun, and drills are unlikely to be needed for very young children. The double-page spread at the beginning and end of the book showing dinosaurs of all shapes and sizes wielding toothbrushes and squeezing toothpaste is a great way of showing children that brushing teeth is just like a game.

Adrian Reynolds's illustrations for the book are big, bold and colourful. Expert young children can have fun identifying the different types of dinosaur, or just enjoy the unexpected incidents in Mr Drake's room.

The text is in a large, clear font and only in a few instances are there more than three lines to a page, superimposed on the pictures. This is obviously intended to be a picture book to read aloud to very young children, but young readers who are gaining confidence might enjoy having a bash at it too. They might need help reading the names of the dinosaurs, or of course they might just surprise you!

There are a few parents who feel that mention of the dentist's drill in the story is too frightening for the very young, but the fact that Harry does not need it helps to reassure them that they are unlikely to either. Children are probably going to hear and see the drill at the dentist's, and it is better to have discussed it beforehand rather than having to come up with a last-minute explanation.

Harry and the Dinosaurs say 'Raahh!'

by Ian Whybrow and Adrian Reynolds

Board book, 24 pages

Puffin Books, 2005

ISBN 141381299

Price £4.99

Five Minutes' Peace

Jill Murphy's 'Five Minutes' Peace' is a charming picture book for very young children. The story centres around a family of elephants (Mum and three children) and begins as they are having breakfast. This is not a pleasant sight. The baby elephant has a cereal bowl upturned on his head, and there is a mess all over the floor. Mum, who charmingly has curlers in the few wisps of hair on her head, sets a tray and puts the newspaper in her pocket. She tells her offspring that she is going to the bathroom to get five minutes' peace from 'you lot'. The children immediately ask to come along, but she firmly tells them to stay downstairs.

Mum runs herself a bath and pours a cup of tea. She is in heaven, soaking in the suds, but it doesn't last for long. Her son Lester barges in and asks if he can play her a tune on his recorder. Mum is not amused, but of course she gives in and Lester plays 'Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star' more than just the once. He has established a precedent, and the daughter Laura is upset when Mum initially says she may not read aloud to her. Mum realises she is being unfair, so she allows Laura to read from 'Little Red Riding Hood', and naturally Laura takes advantage of the situation and reads more than just the one page.

Baby is not to be outdone, so he comes up and throws all his toys in the bath. The three children bombard Mum with questions: Laura wants to see the cartoons in the paper, Lester wants Mum's cake, and baby wants to get in the bath with Mum. That seems like a signal for all three to jump in, and poor Mum groans. She decides to get out of the bath, and announces that she is going back down to the kitchen for her five minutes' peace. Do you think she gets it? You'll have to read the book to find out.

This is a picture book for very young children who are highly unlikely to understand that Mum needs a few minutes to herself now and again, and it might just do the trick of helping them to realise this. Although she is thinking of herself, the mother elephant here does encourage her children, allowing one to play a musical instrument and another to read to her. We feel that these are things that they often do together. Mum doesn't shout at her children and lose her temper with them. She leaves them to get on with what they are doing and takes herself off somewhere else. She is a great Mum with children who obviously are very attached to her, and she understands that if she is good to herself every now and then she will be better geared towards giving her children her best when they need it.

The illustrations accompanying the story are delightful, including those of the family parading one behind the other for the frontispiece and again after the story finishes. We can appreciate Mum's feelings when we see the mayhem at (and under) the breakfast table, and identify with her when we see her briefly relaxing in the bath, reading her paper and enjoying a cuppa.

Although first written more than twenty years ago, 'Five Minutes' Peace' is still tremendously popular today. It is one of those stories that can appeal to adults just as much as to children, and as such makes itself a perfect book for reading aloud. Dad does not appear in the story; he may of course be at work, but it may be that this is a single mum struggling to cope with the demands on her time. I would suggest that it is suitable for children aged between three- and six-years-old. It might also be suitable for confident young readers to have a bash at themselves. It's definitely the perfect book for demonstrating that Mums give their children their all, but there comes a time when they need to pamper themselves just a little.

Five Minutes' Peace

by Jill Murphy

Walker Books Ltd, 2006

Paperback, 32 pages

ISBN 1844285391

Price £5.99 (Amazon £4.99)

That Rabbit belongs to Emily Brown

Emily Brown loves her grey rabbit, Stanley, to bits, even though he is old. Together they have adventures around the house and garden, imagining that they are going up into space, crossing the Sahara on a motorbike, climbing through the Amazonian rainforest or diving off the Barrier Reef.

At the start of 'The Rabbit Belongs to Emily Brown' life seems wonderful until the Queen notices Stanley and decides she wants him for herself. She sends envoy after envoy: her chief footman, the captain of the army, the admiral of the navy and the wing commander of the air force. Emily is offered a brand new teddy bear and a tempting lists of toys in return for Stanley, but she refuses them all. She becomes even more angry when the envoys refer to Stanley as Bunnywunny. Eventually she pins a large notice on her back gate stating in no uncertain terms that Stanley is not for sale and that his name is not Bunnywunny.

This seems to work for a few months, but unfortunately the Queen has not given up. Eventually she send her special commandos in the middle of the night to steal Stanley. Emily is distraught when she wakes up, and she marches up to the palace to confront the Queen.

The Queen has done unforgiveable things to Stanley and is in tears. Poor Stanley has been through the wash, stuffed, and stitched up. He just isn't right any more. The Queen begs Emily for help. Emily says she will take Stanley home, and she tells the Queen to play with the brand new golden teddy, take him to bed at night, hold him very tight and have lots of adventures.

Two years go by until Emily and Stanley hear from the Queen again. One day they are exploring the Milky Way when they hear a knock on the door. This time it's the postman with a letter from the Queen that simply says 'Thank you'. At the top, in the middle of the royal crest, is a portrait of the Queen and her golden teddy, both smiling.

It is not hard to see why 'That Rabbit Belongs to Emily Brown' was a Nestle Book Prize Gold Award Winner. Cression Cowell has given us an original story chock full of imaginative adventures and a brave little heroine who defends her beloved stuffed toy to the end. What's more, she knows much more about playing with toys than the 'silly naughty Queen'. This is a story that has plenty in its variety of situations and characters to appeal to both boys and girls alike.

Neal Layton's accompanying illustrations have a comparable amount of originality. Layton combines photo-montage with his colourful drawings to create the environments where Emily and Stanley have their imaginary adventures. There is plenty of scope here, from sea life and treasure chests at the bottom of the ocean to toucans and monkeys in the canopy of the rainforest. Such pictures could inspire plenty of discussions and provide opportunities for counting or spotting little details.

The text is in a large, clear font and almost always on a light background. Sometimes there are a few words in a larger font than the rest or in capitals. Speech bubbles add variety on several pages. The vocabulary Cression Cowell uses is rich and laced with humour. There is a certain amount of repetition, with phrases such as 'there was a Rat-a-tat-tat! at the garden door' or 'And his name isn't Bunnywunny. It's Stanley' occurring each time an envoy visits Emily. Children listening to the story are likely to be able to join in with these, as well as items in the list of toys such as the ten talking dolls that say 'Mama Mama'. A confident young reader might enjoy the challenge of this story, and the repeated phrases will give them encouragement along the way.

This is a wonderful book to read aloud, as it gives the reader the opportunity to take on several very different types of voice: Emily's, the captain of the army's, the Queen's, as well as those of the other envoys. I have also used it as the basis for a drama session with a group of bright four-year-olds. They loved acting it out and pretending to be an admiral or a wing commander. I can imagine it would work equally well with a group of five- or six-year-olds.

As there is quite a bit of text and not the simplest vocabulary, I would say that this is a read-aloud book for children of three-years-old and up. Both the story and the characters are wonderful, and I can't think of any other story book that resembles this one in any way. I borrowed a copy from the library, but 'That Rabbit Belongs to Emily Brown' would be a book worth having to keep, I'm sure; one that would certainly make an ideal present.