Where the Wild Things are - Maurice Sendak

'Where the Wild Things are', written and illustrated by Maurice Sendak, must be one of the most popular picture books of the last fifty years. Winner of the Caldecott Medal for the Most Distinguished Picture Book of the Year in 1964, it doesn't seem dated at all forty-five years later and maintains its appeal to children of a wide age range.

Max, not a big boy by any means, dresses up in his white wolf suit and gets into so much mischief that he is sent to bed with nothing to eat. First a forest grows in his bedroom, and then an ocean appears with a private boat for Max to sail in. After a year he comes to the place where the wild things are. Unabashed by their roaring, gnashing of teeth and showing of claws, he tames them and becomes their king. Having had fun with them, he sends them to bed without any supper. Max then realises how lonely and hungry he is and insists on sailing home. Back in his room after another long journey, he finds his supper there, ready and waiting for him.

Does Max fall asleep for a while and dream about the wild things? Or does his imagination simply run riot? Whatever the answer may be, almost every child can identify with Max. The urge to dress up and be naughty, the defiance on being sent to bed without supper: Max will arouse sympathy. He becomes a hero when he shows no fear on encountering the wild things and is crowned as their king. He is then the all-powerful one who can send them to bed hungry. What a position to be in. Or is it? He is a little boy after all, and adventure is a wonderful thing but when it's over he wants the comforts of home. It's all so reassuring; you can go home when you're ready and food will be there.

Maurice Sendak's illustrations for 'Where the Wild Things are' make a huge contribution to the book. Before the story begins, the title page shows a valiant Max chasing two wild things that are much bigger than him. One of them has a stripy jumper, scaly legs, long claws, a ridiculously long tail, and horns. The jumper just takes the edge off his potential to scare. Max is seen sailing the ocean and encountering a sea dragon, dancing in the moonlight, hanging from a tree alongside the wild things. Colours are muted pinks, browns, yellows, greens and blues. The brightest thing is Max's sailing boat with its red hull and yellow sails. Many of the pictures feature painstaking cross-hatching, including the entire double-page spread of jungle flowers at the beginning and end of the book.

The design of the book as regards the balance of text and illustrations is particularly fascinating. On the first eight double pages, the text appears on a white background on the left-hand side whilst the picture is on the right. The first picture takes up less than half a page, but the size of the illustrations increases gradually until on the eighth page it covers the whole of the right-hand side as well as about a third of the left-hand side. On the following three double pages, the picture spreads right across the width and the white border at the bottom becomes narrower and narrower. The text appears in this border on both sides of the page. There are then three double pages that consist entirely of illustrations that show Max and the wild things enjoying their rumpus. These present an ideal opportunity for the child that has been listening thus far to fill in this part of the story or talk about it to the adult who has been reading. The last few pages of the book reverse the process of the first section, until we have a white page with text on the left and a whole-page picture on the right. The final page of the story has just a half sentence of text and no picture at all, as if to finish on a teasing note.

'Where the Wild Things are' is a wonderful story to read aloud to children from the age of three upwards, and by the time children are able to read themselves it is likely that they will still have an interest in this book. The fact that the text is printed throughout on a white background in a bold font makes it very clear to see. There are never more than three lines of text per page, so a young reader will not be discouraged by large blocks of text. There are, however, some extremely long sentences that run from one page over to the next.

Maurice Sendak's story can also lend itself readily as a resource for drama sessions with groups of young children. They will delight in pretending to be wild things that roar, roll their eyes and show their frightening claws. They can bow to Max, dance and play with him, then try to scare him again as he prepares to sail home.

Children who enjoyed this book when it was first published in 1963 have no doubt taken pleasure in reading it again to their own children, and perhaps even one or two grandchildren by now. The combination of fantasy, adventure, mischief and finally seeking home comforts have made 'Where the Wild Things are' a classic picture book that is likely to remain a favourite for many generations yet to come.

Where the Wild Things are

Maurice Sendak (Author, Illustrator)

Paperback, 48 pages

Red Fox, 2000

ISBN 9780099408390

Price £5.99 (Amazon £4.49)

Splat the Cat - Rob Scotton

Splat the Cat wakes up early on his first day at Cat School. He is worried about starting school and makes all sorts of excuses for not going: he's having a bad hair day, or the gate won't let go of his fingers. Mum, however, has an answer for everything, so he makes sure he has his pet mouse, Seymour, in his lunch box for company, and off they go.

Arriving at school, Splat is welcomed by his teacher, the buxom Mrs Wimpydimple, another feline of course. The other cats in the class (who all seem to be grey whilst Splat is black) give Splat a friendly welcome. Mrs Wimpydimple begins her lesson about cats – what else? - on the blackboard. When she mentions that cats chase mice, however, Splat wants to know why but doesn't let on that he has a pet one in his lunch box. Splat asks why so many times that Mrs Wimpydimple sighs and announces that it is time for lunch.

When Splat opens his lunch box and his classmates notice Seymour, they immediately start to chase the poor mouse. Seymour frightens them by hiding behind a glass bottle that magnifies his face and makes him look like a monster. They flee, Seymour chases them, and they all knock poor Splat flat on his back. To calm them down Mrs Wimpydimple declares that it is milk time, but she cannot open the milk cupboard. Seymour saves the day when he finds a tiny hole through which to enter the cupboard and is able to open the door from inside. His skill and resourcefulness prompt Mrs Wimpydimple to write on the board 'Cats don't chase mice', which rouses a cheer from the class.

Mum comes to take Splat home and on the way he tells her that he has made lots of friends. The following morning when he wakes up his tail is wiggling with excitement rather than the worry of the previous morning.

Rob Scotton, of 'Russell the Sheep' fame, has created another character and story full of delight and humour in 'Splat the Cat'. Whilst not being the first book on the trauma of starting school, this is an original take on the idea. The cats behave like typical cats in some ways, but Scotton depicts them as people who wear clothes, ride bikes and walk on two legs. Strangely enough, Splat himself doesn't wear anything, except that he has a small red helmet when he is on his bike.

Scotton's illustrations are charming. Splat has a lovely furry body and head but his legs are like matchsticks and his tail is extremely long and wiggly. We see his classmates welcoming him with big grins, some with missing teeth, some wearing glasses, and one hugging a Russell the Sheep toy. There are lots of little amusing details, such as a notice attached to a drainpipe that states 'Strictly no dogs', and many others that do not require any reading. My only criticism would be that not many bright colours have been used; there is rather too much grey, and even the clothes of the cat pupils are mostly dull turquoises, greens and mauves.

The font used for the text is large and clear. It usually appears on a white background other than a few pages where it is superimposed on a light grey area of an illustration. Sometimes a very large font is used for one or two words, for instance when the cats all shout “Mouse!” or “Hurray!” The amount of text on each page is never so much that a young child will get bored and want to turn over too soon.

This is of course an ideal book for a four-year-old who is approaching the time to start school, as the story is intended to make children feel that school is a place to have fun and make friends rather than a place to cause worry. Because of the humour, however, a three-year-old could also get a lot of enjoyment from 'Splat the Cat', and I'm sure a five-year-old would not find it too babyish. A young independent reader with some degree of confidence might enjoy reading the book alone; the illustrations will provide encouragement as well as clues to what is going on.

The story itself may not be wildly exciting, but I would recommend 'Splat the Cat' as an entertaining read-aloud book. The humour and illustrations make it a book that most young children would enjoy listening to and looking at again and again. I borrowed a copy from the library, but Amazon's price of £3.69 could make this well worth buying.

Splat the Cat

By Rob Scotton

Paperback, 32 pages

Harper Collins, 2008

ISBN 9780007284542

Price £5.99 (Amazon £3.69)

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)