Oi Duck-Billed Platypus!

October 9, 2018jillrbennett Leave a comment

Oi Duck-Billed Platypus!
Kes Gray & Jim Field
Hodder Children’s Books

Seemingly Frog’s work is never done, at least when it comes to finding suitable places upon which animals can rest their situpons.

Now he’s faced with not just the creature from the title but a whole host of other animals all wanting to know upon what they can sit and even worse, each one has a name that’s impossible to find a rhyme for – try hedgehog, say. Well perhaps the spiky creature could sit upon er, Frog. Ouch! I suspect that’s completely out of the question though. And kookaburra – hmm! Surely there must be another way of approaching this impasse. And happily there is!

Frog is a genius! “… what’s your first name?” he asks the duck-billed platypus. “Dolly,” comes the reply. Easily sorted.

Then, with moral support from his pals – the dog and the cat, our amphibious friend rapidly comes up with places upon which another twenty or so animals can park their bottoms.

That leaves just the matter of Geraldine the kangaroo …

I think this book has ousted any of the other Oi titles to become my very favourite of the seemingly effortless, utterly priceless. rhyming gems Kes Gray produces. Brilliant as they are though, they wouldn’t be quite so fantastic without Jim Field’s side-splitting illustrations.
Unmissable!

Oi teachers, think what terrific fun you could have with your classes …

Pirate’s Perfect Pet

September 19, 2018jillrbennett Leave a comment

Pirate’s Perfect Pet
Beth Ferry and Matt Myers
Walker Books

Having performed a dare-devil dive to procure a small blue bottle he spies bobbing on the ocean waves and read the letter and accompanying Perfect Pirate Captain checklist torn from a pirate magazine, Captain Crave discovers he doesn’t quite measure up.
Yes, he fulfils most of the requirements: Ship – tick, Courage and daring – two ticks, Treasure – tick; in fact he meets most of the other must haves too, but there’s one thing missing – a pet.

Captain and crew leave their ship and sally forth up the beach in search of an animal of the perfect kind. Crabs, octopuses and clams are not right so the pirates continue looking. They leap the fence into a farm where too everything falls short of their ideas of pet perfection.

The zoo proves equally useless in the pet search although thanks to a hungry lion, the Captain is able to upgrade peg leg from pending to ‘check’ on his checklist.

Finally they come upon a pet store: surely since, as the Cap’n says “Thar be piles of pets!” something suitable must lie therein.
As luck would have it, a brightly coloured, pooping bird draws attention to itself: could this be the one perhaps …

Replete with buccaneering lingo, repetition aplenty and the occasional dig at the piratical tradition, Beth Ferry’s telling is likely to result in an enormously enjoyable, raucous read aloud.

Matt Myers thick oil and acrylic paint illustrations are a riot showing nipped earlobes, a strangle-holding octopus, pants consumption,

bum prodding and much more: make sure you keep a watch on Cap’n Crave’s hat with its oft changing skull face expressions.

ARRR! Land-lubbers, Ferry’n’Myers ‘ave a salty winner ‘ere.

Oi Dog!

July 29, 2016jillrbennett Leave a comment

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Oi Dog!
Kes & Claire Gray and Jim Field
Hodder Children’s Books
My delight on opening the parcel containing this was indescribable: could it possibly be as side-splittingly good as its predecessor Oi Frog! though? That was the burning question in my mind as I began reading and it certainly gets off to a good start – for the dog that is. He has a squishy, squashy PLURPPPPPPPPPPP-producing cushion beneath his rear end: the frog of course is far from happy. The cat is quick to remind them of the rules: “Cats sit on mats, frogs sit on logs, and dogs sit on FROGS!” Whereupon the frog announces a rule change (can you blame him?) “From now on dogs sit on logs not frogs!” he asserts and thus he starts off a hilarious concatenation beginning thus …

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of assigning sit-upons in response to dog’s seemingly endless questions, for in turn, bears (that’s stairs); slugs – errm: “Slugs will sit on plugs (not on mine they won’t!), … “Slugs will sit on plugs, flies will sit on pies, crickets will sit on tickets and moths will sit on cloths.” (watch out for eggs then!)

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Next come leopards – I’ll leave you to guess that one on the frog’s behalf and pass on to cheetahs – tuck in everyone – unless like me you’re a veggie …

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At this stage the dog somewhat condescendingly announces “You’re really getting the hang of this,” giving the frog fresh impetus to pronounce on pigs, gnus, boars (a terrific Jim Field boating scene); then whales – brilliant dialogue here: “Whales will sit on nails,” said the frog. “I’m not sure the whales will like that,” said the dog. “They don’t have to like it,” said the frog, “they just have to do it.”
The dog then enquires about dragons and off the frog goes again … (there’s a tasty bit of word play on the vehicle upon which they must sit).

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Clearly he’s on a roll as there follow pronouncements on mice, kittens and puppies. Whereupon the dog wants to know about crabs and here we go again, this time with a glorious musical seat being assigned to hornets which after more banter leads to,
“and elephants will sit on smelly pants!” and the dog’s instant gasping rejoinder, “Elephants aren’t going to sit on smelly pants!” at which the frog merely smiles and states, ”They are now.”
That seems to bring the discourse to a halt momentarily; and then the cat comes in reciting the whole litany of seating arrangements only to be brought to a halt by the dog’s question …

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And the frog’s answer? That’s yours to work out (hint: it doesn’t rhyme with frog); or better still, get your own copy of this cracking book and discover what he says. Suffice it to say that frog really does have the last laugh (and the best seat!).
STU-PEN-DOUS! I think perhaps the Gray/Field team have, between them, managed to out-dog Oi Frog with Oi Dog! It’s absolutely un-missable and another splendiferous send up of the prevailing phonics obsession in infant classrooms; or looked at another way: a brilliant lesson in rhyme.