Although entitled 'The Gruffalo', the star of Julia Donaldson's story is actually a tiny, but very clever little mouse. This mouse seems capable of outwitting any creature in the wood who has designs on making a meal of him.
As mouse takes a stroll through the wood, he meets a fox, an owl and a snake in turn. Each of them invite him back to their lair for either lunch, tea or a feast. Mouse knows full well, however, that they intend to eat him up, so he tells each one that he is meeting a gruffalo for a meal. The other creatures have never heard of a gruffalo of course, so mouse gives them a few details about his appearance to frighten them. Amongst the gruffalo's features are terrible claws, a poisonous wart on the end of his nose, and purple prickles on his back. When each animal is sufficiently scared, the mouse says what the gruffalo's favourite food is. It is not always the same, according to mouse: to fox he says it is roasted fox, to owl he says owl ice cream, and to snake he says scrambled snake. Each time this produces the desired effect of making the animal in question flee and leave little mouse alone.
As mouse continues his stroll, however, he comes face to face with the gruffalo! He is initially panic stricken, but when the gruffalo says the mouse is his favourite food, it doesn't take our tiny hero long to come up with a plan. He tells the gruffalo that everyone is terrified of mouse, and that he can prove it if the gruffalo would care to walk behind him through the wood. The gruffalo, apparently not the brightest creature, is completely taken in and follows mouse back through the wood. When they encounter snake, owl and fox, each one is alarmed by the sight of the gruffalo and disappears in a flash. The gruffalo is convinced that they are afraid of mouse. When mouse eventually announces that his favourite food is gruffalo crumble, the gruffalo cannot get away fast enough. Mouse is all by himself in the wood, having escaped his enemies, and he finds a great big nut to eat.
The charm of 'The Gruffalo' is not just in the story itself but in the delightful verse that Julia Donaldson has used as a means of imparting it to her readers. Almost the entire tale unfolds in rhyming couplets with a strong rhythm that is particularly well suited to reading aloud. As well as alliteration, there is plenty of repetition of phrases used each time mouse meets a different animal. Young children will find it easy to join in here and there as they get used to hearing the same line every so often. The font is very clear; although there is some use of italics, most of the text is printed on a white background to allow for easy reading. There are just a couple of instances where the text is on a yellow-orange background.
Axel Scheffler has provided wonderful illustrations for the story. There are several double-page spreads, including the one where an astonished mouse encounters the fearsome gruffalo, and three full-page pictures. The remaining pages have smaller illustrations, but all are in full colour. Young children will find the expressions of the animals delightful. As well as the main characters, there are a woodpecker, a kingfisher, a frog, a squirrel, a dragonfly and others to look out for.
'The Gruffalo' is intended mainly as a read-aloud picture book for children of three upwards, but could also be suitable for young independent readers. The vocabulary is varied but not too challenging, and the repeated phrases will encourage those who still lack confidence. Although the gruffalo is a large, scary animal, Scheffler depicts him in such an appealing way that young children are unlikely to be genuinely frightened by him. It might, even so, be advisable to read this during daylight hours rather than introducing it as a bedtime story.
Julia Donald has created a masterpiece of a story in 'The Gruffalo', and the book was winner of the Smarties Book Prize Gold Award for children aged 0-5 in 1999. Axel Scheffler has obviously played an important part in the success of this picture book as well. 'The Gruffalo' is a must in any household with young children, as it is likely to appeal equally well to boys and girls. Preschool classrooms are sure to have a copy for reading aloud as well as to provide inspiration for drama sessions. Highly recommended.
The Gruffalo
Julia Donaldson (author), Axel Scheffler (illustrator)
Macmillan 1999
Paperback, 32 pages
ISBN 0333710932
Price £5.99 (Amazon £3.59)
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