Tag John Kane

This Book is Pants

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This Book is Pants
John Kane
Templar Books

John Kane seems to have something of a penchant for a certain type of undergarment: I well remember groups of children enthusiastically chorusing, ‘underpants, underpants’ whenever I’ve shared his I Say OOH You Say AAH.

There’s certainly a plethora of pants in this interactive, intergalactic adventure starring a boy narrator and his alien pal, Buzzly, that he meets on the moon.

By donning the appropriate pants – courtesy of the reader aloud who has to wear them – the boy launches his rocket moonwards and having landed, encounters Buzzly who wants to visit planet Earth. Pants alert!

But what pants do you need to beat a hasty retreat,

climb a tree, escape from a dark scary place, warm an increasingly chilly rear,

or sate your hunger? And what are the very BEST PANTS EVER?
That, you’ll need to discover for yourself …

All you need to do is bag yourself a copy of the book, wear the appropriate snazzy pants as required and prepare for action: pantalicious fun assured. I forgot to mention that for the best results you’ll also need an audience of one or preferably quite a few, young listeners. Think of the fun you could have with a class creating their own pants stories using appropriately chuddies shaped books.

I say BOO You say HOO

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I say BOO You say HOO
John Kane
Templar Books

In his previous interactive ‘I say’ offering John Kane had readers shouting ‘underpants, underpants’ at the top of their voices. When you read this one a fair number of ‘stinky poo’ utterances will be required.

So, let’s find out what’s actually between the covers of the book. There’s a little ghost named Boo who (oops, nearly!) lives in a haunted house and is uncharacteristically, afraid of the dark.

Now to tell the story requires the reader’s help, duly prompted by a series of cues – verbal and visual. There’s a tree, dark (which means you must bark as per instructions,) oh yes, and crows – nose holding needed for a sighting of those particular corvids – this picture may prove a trifle challenging …

In fact I have to admit that by the end of the book I really didn’t know whether I was coming or going – barking (mad), shouting or indeed tearing my hair out.

As for the noxious emanations, I’m certainly not owning up to any of those;

and it’s as well Boo is in a hurry to reach home before dark.

However, even after telling us to bid the little apparition a fond farewell, the author has the chutzpah to issue an invitation for a further reading of the book.

The thing is, he knows (should that be hopes, on his part) and I know to my cost, what the answer will be once you’d shared it with an individual, a few children or indeed a whole class. It’s quite simply another superbly ridiculous repartee of to-ing and fro-ing.

I Say Ooh You Say Aah

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I Say Ooh, You Say Aah
John Kane
Templar Publishing

Ooh, aah, you’re really going to have some fun with this one; it’s a very bossy book – John Kane’s first – that keeps on telling you to do things. Daft things like saying ‘aah’ when you hear an ‘ooh’; patting your head when you see red, or saying ‘underpants’ at the sight of an ant (and then proceeding to admonish you for so doing). I ask you.

And there’s this daft donkey in the book, (apparently he belongs to the author) and he’s called, can you believe, ‘Ooh’.
(Did I hear you just say ‘Aah’?)

The stupid creature insists on prancing about with a pair of spotty bloomers on his head; now why would that be?
Apparently they’re the property of someone else, so he says. The creature really ought to know better.

There’s no real story here, nor is it intended for self solo reading: essentially it’s a kind of crazy pantomime of a book that only works if the listener or listeners play along and throw themselves wholeheartedly into the performance.
Thus far, all mine have done so with enormous enthusiasm, and demanded immediate reruns.

I’ve signed the charter