January 2017 Debut of the Month | The opening lines are clear: this is a serious book, nothing silly is allowed. Hmmm. Try telling that to the donkey who appears on the first page and immediately sets out to upset all the rules set by the oh-so-serious narrator. Before you can say, ‘Ridiculous’, the donkey is pulling faces, wearing pyjamas, riding a unicycle, and then introducing an equally silly zebra. There’s nothing the narrator can do and he finally gives up, handing control of the book to the now excited and large band of animals who are rampaging across its pages. Like recent bestsellers such as The Book With No Pictures, this works on lots of different levels. Children will love the donkey’s naughtiness but the laughs come too from readers’ understanding of how a book works, and it’s sophisticated as well as comic. ~Andrea Reece
A serious book is black-and-white, and it informs the reader. So why are a donkey in a flowered hat, a laughing zebra, a hissing snake, a marching penguin and cavorting monkeys in this book?
Join the fun as the animals take control, effortlessly and with great style and humour, in this new picture book that is both very silly and very sophisticated, to be enjoyed by all ages...
Besides being a writer of children's books, Jodie Parachini is a nonfiction editor who has worked in London, New York and Washington, DC. She has edited and produced titles such as 1001 Children's Books You Must Read Before You Grow Up. She has two daughters and currently lives in North London.
