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Claude All at Sea by Alex T Smith (view source)
Revision as of 10:11, 19 August 2020
, 10:11, 19 August 2020no edit summary
Claude has been painting so now he needs a bath. Unfortunately, Claude leaves the taps running and the water causes a wave so huge that he’s swept down the stairs, along the street and into the deep blue sea. Sailing the ocean in a bathtub is stonking good fun until Claude and Sir Bobblysock are gobbled up by a gigantic sea monster called Nigel. Luckily Claude has a whole assortment of useful items stored in his beret. But is there one that can help them escape?
Hopefully , this brief summary is enough to give you a good indication of the tone of this story. It is deliciously silly in every way from the characters to the plot. Children will love the strange things that Claude keeps under his beret (which, like the things in Mary Poppins’ carpetbag, would, of course, be impossible to fit in). Adults will enjoy the stylised language and who can resist a spotted sea monster called Nigel? I especially adored the whole page of warning signs including slogans such as ‘Watch out Nigel’s About!’
Claude and Sir Bobblysock are, of course, not new. They’re best known as the characters of Alex T Smith’s hugely successful series of chapter books for young readers. It is, however, a real joy to find them in their first picture book adventure. (There’s a helpful, fully-illustrated, 3-page introduction to the characters before the title page for those who haven’t met Claude before).
The text is often integrated into the pictures (the advantage of the author also being the illustrator) and the use of large and gigantic words adds to the flow. Children are likely to love this, relishing the opportunity to shout out the large words.
Overall this is a picture book not to be missed and I suspect existing fans of Claude’s adventures will be as keen to get hold of a copy as the traditional picture book audience. We also loved [[Claude: Lights! Camera! Action! by Alex T Smith|Claude: Lights! Camera! Action!]] by Alex T Smith If you enjoyed this, you might want to check out the Claude stories for older readers – try [[Claude in the City by Alex T Smith|Claude in the City]] and [[Claude Going for Gold! by Alex T Smith|Claude Going for Gold!]]. Or, for another, slightly wacky, picture book why not try [[Aerodynamics of biscuits by Clare Helen Walsh and Sophia Touliatou]].
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