I've never met a child who has never in their life wanted a pet. Have you? But what if ... the pet isn't a cat or a dog or even a rabbit, but a buffalo?I absolutely loved Arundhati Venkatesh's brand-new Hook Book, I Want a Pet. Without any drama or explanation, we are sucked right into the tale. Jasbir wants a pet, he wants a pet, he wants a pet! And on cue, a talking buffalo storms into Jasbir's house, making his wish come true ... sort of.I chuckled and wondered at the hilarious story as I read page after page. Can a child really hide a buffalo in a house? The answer - a child can do anything, especially when it comes to keeping secrets from the adults of the house. And Jasbir is no different. As the his adventures proceed, though, I love how Jasbir discovers that siblings may not be better than pets, but they are certainly useful!Also, like every other Hook Book I've … [Read more...]
Two Hook Books
Somewhere between picture books and chapter books are the Hook Books, and books for this age-group are so important! One step up from the 'Read It Yourself' series, they are slightly more complex than picture books, but still have full-colour illustrations right through.I remember reading hundreds--well, dozens--of Noddy books at an age when I could have read books like this. I loved Noddy because of the familiarity of a series. Characters I know, settings I love - these appealed to me, like they appeal to most children.The Hook Books aren't a series in quite the same way. Like the hOle books, they're clubbed together in terms of readership, rather than characters and setting. I finally got around to reading a couple of them - The Sweet Shop Wars and A Birthday Present for Aaji. I LOVED the illustrations in both books! I've always enjoyed Rajiv Eipe's work - Ammachi is one of my … [Read more...]