Belle & Boo and the Birthday Surprise by Mandy Sutcliffe
| Belle & Boo and the Birthday Surprise by Mandy Sutcliffe | |
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| Category: For Sharing | |
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Reviewer: Ruth Ng
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| Summary: Beautiful artwork and a lovely story that reminded me a little of Winnie the Pooh. | |
| Buy? Yes | Borrow? Yes |
| Pages: 32 | Date: May 2012 |
| Publisher: Orchard | |
| External links: Author's website | |
| ISBN: 978-1408316085 | |
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What a lovely story! Belle and Boo are always together. Belle is a little girl and Boo is her rabbit. One day Belle is very busy preparing for a birthday. Together they make a card, and some cakes, and set up a picnic in the garden. But whose birthday is it?
I really like the way this story is told. It's done very simply, with humour, and reminded me at times of the feel of Winnie the Pooh. For example, when Belle and Boo are cooking together Belle says Are you very hungry, Boo? and the speedy response from Boo is Not pie and potatoes hungry! There are some little rhymes included (or 'hums' as Pooh bear would probably have it) so when Boo gets all sticky from making the card Belle helps him to wash his paws and sings Soap and bubbles and splish and splosh! Boo the rabbit is having a wash!
The Belle and Boo characters already feature on a wide range of home and party goods which are sweet and pretty, but it's nice to see that Mandy Sutcliffe is able to translate these images into a wonderful story too. The colours are quite delicate, and it does have a very girly feel to it, but I'm sure you could get the more sensitive boys to sit still for this rabbity story! Belle is very sweet as a character, and the relationship between Belle and Boo is lovely. The pictures are charming, sweet to look at and full of happy playtimes for a little girl and her bunny. Poor old Boo ends up having a bit of a balloon adventure, having to be rescued by Belle, and the final picture of Belle holding Boo over her shoulder is quite enchanting.
It's not too long a story so little ones will enjoy it, but it's also funny and sweet so there will be plenty of younger school-age children who'll happily snuggle up to read the story with you. I found it delightful, and it certainly won't be a chore to read and re-read again!
Rabbit fans might also enjoy reading The Velveteen Rabbit by Marjery Williams and Little Rabbit's Christmas by Harry Horse. At Christmas, you might enjoy Belle and Boo and the Very Merry Christmas by Mandy Sutcliffe.
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You can read more book reviews or buy Belle & Boo and the Birthday Surprise by Mandy Sutcliffe 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 Belle & Boo and the Birthday Surprise by Mandy Sutcliffe at Amazon.com.
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