Drew, Moo and Bunny, too
Owen Sheers and Helen Stephens
Walker Books

In this magical tale three endearing characters, a boy Drew and his companions Moo and Bunny take off on a red rug for an adventure that sees them travelling around the world. They find themselves aboard a pirate ship whereon they encounter Captain Jacqueline (Jack for short) and her piratical crew – a scary meeting if ever there was one.

When they’re confined to the space below deck they are astonished to discover all kinds of caged creatures; these so the captain informs them, have been captured thanks to her ‘rare-o-scope’, an instrument she produces and proceeds to demonstrate how it works. However instead of being impressed, Drew is horrified the animals have been removed from their natural habitats as trophies, ‘rarer than any of the jewels on Earth.’ and increasingly precious. When Drew goes on to mention that he and his friends too have something uniquely special, in the form of their flying rug, the Captain is eager to add it to her treasure collection and tries to take possession of the rug. In so doing she makes a startling discovery causing her to utter a word that’s never before passed her lips. ‘L_ _ E’.

This is a story that ends happily: Drew proffers some wonderfully wise words that have the desired effect on the pirate captain and her crew; and the three adventurers return to the warmth and safety of their bedroom.

With Owen Sheers’ longish poetic text and Helen Stephens’ richly imagined illustrations, this is a wonderful book to share over several bedtimes. The story was inspired by the true story of Drew Barker-Wright, who aged just four, lost his life to paediatric chordoma – a rare form of childhood cancer. Sales from this book go to raise funds for The Drew Barker-Wright Charity