The Incredible Book Eating Boy

Author: Oliver Jeffers
Publisher: Harper Collins Children's Books
RRP: £10.99 (Hardback)

'Henry loved books.  But not like you and I love books, no.  Not quite...'

  This is the story of Henry, a boy obsessed with eating books.  He soon discovered that the more books he ate the smarter he got.  He ate a book about goldfish and then knew how to care for his pet.  Soon he became exceedingly clever.  But he kept on eating and eating and eating.  Soon enough he realises eating books probably wasn't that good for him after all and things suddenly take a turn for the worse...don't worry though there's a happy ending.

  This book is uniquely illustrated using a range of paper textures throughout.  Behind each painting, text from all different types of books is traceable, it really adds to the book-mad theme of the story.  The illustrations are simply designed but beautifully executed in a combination of paint and pencil line.  The characters themselves have very expressionate faces which add an extra depth to the humour of the story.  The text appears to be typed using a typewriter, again adding to the overall style and charm of the book. A wonderful disclaimer on the back and a big chomp taken out of the back cover really make this book stand out from the norm.

  This is definitely the best Oliver Jeffers book available, it's witty, individual and has a good message to children.  It stresses the need for time and care when reading to fully appreciate what's written in front of you, rushing gets you nowhere and can often leave you confused.  A real stroke of genius, this book not only promotes a love of books but gives useful guidance and food for thought (haha!)  in a fun and exciting way. This is a must-read for everyone out there, young and old alike.


Rating: 9/10

Tuesday

Author/Illustrator: David Wiesner
Publisher:  Clarion Books
RRP: £5.99

  This is a picture book of very few words...twelve in fact.  The words in this book exist only to tell the time, the rest of the story is told through dazzling and humorous images.  The story itself begins before the inner title page, upon opening the book a sequence of images shows how frogs relaxing on their lily pads begin to levitate.  The rest of the story follows the frogs' journey as they fly around town on their lily pads.  Along the way they startle a man having a midnight snack, get caught in washing on a line and watch T.V in the house of a sleeping elderly lady.  As the night begins to fade and day breaks however their lily pads gentle fall back to land and the frogs hop off to the nearest rivers, lakes and ponds.  When the town awakes they are left wondering how on earth all these lily pads ended scattered around.  The following Tuesday night brings an even greater surprise...

The action is captured in hues of green and blue beautifully depicting not only the light at that time but also the mystery and magic of the story.  Every frog is unique and able to express a variety of facial expressions which greatly amplifies the humour of the tale.  It is easy to get sucked into the images with the amount of detail that Wiesner has included.  More notably what sets this book apart is the way images are laid out on the page.  Wiesner uses a range of comic book style boxes to sequence events and larger pictures are painted from a variety of interesting angles that help you see the action differently.


  This book won the 1992 Caldecott Medal and it is clear from it's uniqueness and imagination why that is the case.  The book has a lot of scope for exploration, it doesn't have to be read conventionally, children can study individual pictures, the book can even be read backwards.  I tend to prefer books with more text although I imagine if text were to be added to this book some, if not all, of the magic would be lost.  Having said that books to me contain words.  Without words it's art.  Art can tell stories, but art is never as great when it has been printed in a book.  It needs to be seen face-to-face to fully appreciate it.


Rating: 8/10

In Search of the Thunder Dragon

Authors and Illustrators: Sophie and Romio Shrestha

Publisher: Mandala Publishing Group

RRP: £11.99

  This is the tale of a girl named Amber (based on the daughter of the authors) who takes a journey to Bhutan.  She meets her cousin and together they listen to the tales of their grandfather.  He tells them of the dragons who create the thunder up in the sky and the children are determined to find them.  Along the way they meet the oldest Monk in Bhutan, a flying tigress and the dragons themselves.  They ride on the backs of the dragons as they create the thunder for the land below.

  Bhutan is a tiny Himalayan kingdom with a strong heritage and a rich Buddhist way of life.  This book is beautifully illustrated with art based on traditional Bhutanese style and captures some of the mysticism of the folklore and religion of the country.  Each image is wonderfully detailed and there are hidden translucent dragons peeking out from the edge of each page (you'll need to catch the light to see them).  The book captures the Bhutanese way of life fantastically and gives you a good insight into this unique culture.  Although the text itself contains important cultural references such as the flying tigress (the hidden form of the wife of Padmasambhava or Guru Rinpoche), in my opinion it's not particularly well written.  Some of the sentences feel clunky and overlong, possibly as a result of trying to add more description than is actually necessary.  At times this detracts from the otherwise delightful storyline.  This is such a shame, especially when the images are so clear.  What is useful though, particularly as it is set in such a little-known place, the final page has some useful information about the country.

  This book gives a useful insight into another culture far different from my own.  The mythical adventure is mesmerising but equally not as inspiring as I feel it should be.  It is the only picture book from Bhutan I could find when studying the country with my class, and although not perfect, the images themselves reveal a lot about the country they are from.  I really want to visit this country, it has such a rich culture of music, dance, art and peace...maybe one day!

Rating: 6/10

The Rabbit Problem

Author: Emily Gravett

Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books

RRP: £12.99 (Hardcover)

  Follow the journey of two rabbits throughout the course of a year as they do what rabbits do best...increase the population to almost breaking point.  The pair live in Fibonacci's field and each month their numbers multiply following the famous sequence and leave the with a range of seasonal dilemmas- from running out of food, to over-crowding witness how these clever bunnies deal with their daily battles.   

  The book is beautifully presented with astonishingly detailed illustrations and quirky little trinkets to explore on each page, including recipes, birth certificates and more!  Witticisms are hidden on every page and it had me chuckling more and more with every page turn. The dilemmas faced by the rabbits get more extreme until the final page which reveals a fabulous pop-up which had me in hysterics.  What is fantastic about this book is although the plot is simple it is not constructed in the "Once Upon A Time..." way, instead you explore the story from the evidence on the page, details in the calendar and from the actions of the rabbits in the drawings.  It is completely interactive and the reader is completely drawn into it.  I think this method of storytelling will really appeal to children as it enables them to get carried away and is more of a novelty than other 'normal' books.

  I bought the hardback version for a friend who is obsessed with bunnies and although I haven't seen the paperback version in real life the front cover at least is not as grabbing.  I'm also not sure how the pop up would work with paperback, or if it is in fact included, I can't see how it would withstand the obvious attraction and use it would receive.  I love the fact that this story is based on a mathematical sequence, how often does that happen?  A great tool for the classroom but also an enchanting book for children and adults of all ages.  I know my friend went all gooey when she saw it!

Rating: 9/10

The Wolves in the Walls

Author: Neil Gaiman
Illustrator: Dave McKean
Publisher: Bloomsbury
RRP: £5.99

    Lucy hears noises coming from the walls of her house and her claims that wolves are living in the walls are quashed by the other members of her family.  That is until wolves do suddenly burst from the walls of their home and take over.  The family are forced to flee to the bottom of the garden and Lucy tries to come up with a plan to get back their house. 

      This is a picture book like few others.  Aimed at older readers the images are dark and sinister and the plot gradually builds a sense of imminent dread which is suddenly released with a barrage of humour.  The art works within the book are stunning, a blend of collage, paint, photography and drawing create an eerie and unique feel to the book.  There are lots of hidden details etched on the walls of the house which add another dimension to the images created.  The storyline is highly original and the references, jokes and familiar family characters all add to the appeal of older readers of all abilities.  The character of Lucy is strong willed and relentless, children I have read the book with find it funny how submissive and weak her parents are portrayed.  Although there are some notable features of common picture books, such as the repetitive phrases and the use of font size to add emphasis, this is no fairytale.  There is no knight in shining armour.  Instead the book screams to me “If you want something, go get it!”

    I have read this book with several classes of children and every time it has been a huge hit.  I have great fun building up the suspense and horror elements and really going to town with the humour, the kids all end up enthralled and/or in hysterics.  Some reluctant readers have even asked if they could borrow it to read themselves.  This in itself speaks volumes.  Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean have completed several books together and although this is my favourite, they are all well worth exploring.

Rating: 10/10