The Super Swooper Dinosaur by Martin Waddell and Leonie Lord

The Super Swooper Dinosaur by Martin Waddell and Leonie Lord
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Category: For Sharing
Reviewer: Jo Heffer
Summary: It's not every day that a dinosaur comes flying into your garden and asks to play but that is exactly what happens to Hal and his little dog, Billy, at the start of this entertaining story. Hal is only too happy to let the super swooper join in but there is just one problem. Just what can a boy, a dog and a dinosaur play together?
Buy? Yes	Borrow? Yes
Pages: Orchard	Date: May 2012
Publisher: 32
ISBN: 9781408307809
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One day, Hal and his little dog, Billy, were out playing when the sky darkened and...

The next thing Hal knows is that an enormous winged super swooper dinosaur has landed in his garden and wants to play. Well, you don't really want to argue with a dinosaur that you have only just met so Hal agrees. The first game that the super swooper suggest is Hide-and-seek but it soon becomes apparent that it won't be very successful as the dinosaur is too big to hide anywhere in the garden and is easily found by Hal every time. It's time to think of something else but the next idea, dino-dancing, is equally unsuccessful when Hal's new playmate ends up dancing on the roof. Paddling is equally problematic when the super swooper lands in the little paddling pool with an enormous splash which completely soaks Hal's mum.

Mum is so cross that she tells the super swooper that if he can't play nicely, he'd better go home. This produces a monumental tantrum that even the most terrible two year old would be proud of! It obviously works though as he is given one more chance but is there anything for a boy, a dog and a dinosaur to play? Let's hope so!

This book tells a very funny story both through the words and the illustrations. Small children will love the idea of a dinosaur suddenly appearing and wanting to play and it's funny to see what happens when he tries to join in conventional games. My daughters really enjoy trying to think of any games that the super swooper could possibly join in with but they are often as stumped as Hal. They also like the way that the pictures really illustrate how difficult it is for the dinosaur to join in the games. There are some very amusing examples of the super swooper unsuccessfully attempting to hide in sheds that are smaller than him or under benches. However, they think the best illustrations are the ones where he is getting in a temper and throwing himself on the floor – just like a two year old!

We love the way the story is written too with many words in bold or in capital letters for emphasis. There are also lots of lovely bits of description such as this:

The super swooper was VERY upset.
His bottom lip wibbled and wobbled and he started to sob.

making it very enjoyable to read aloud. The super swooper a fantastic character who my daughters have decided they would love have to play in their garden. But, if they can't have that, they are very happy to read about his antics in this fabulous book.

Dinosaur fans may also want to take a look at I'm Sure I Saw A Dinosaur by Jeanne Willis and Adrian Reynolds or The Littlest Dinosaur by Michael Foreman

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You can read more book reviews or buy The Super Swooper Dinosaur by Martin Waddell and Leonie Lord at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
You can read more book reviews or buy The Super Swooper Dinosaur by Martin Waddell and Leonie Lord at Amazon.com.

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