Jolly Olly Octopus by Tony Mitton and Guy Parker-Rees
| Jolly Olly Octopus by Tony Mitton and Guy Parker-Rees | |
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| Category: For Sharing | |
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Reviewer: Keith Dudhnath
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| Summary: A bright and energetic counting book set underwater. Whilst there's nothing particularly wrong with it, it doesn't really offer anything above and beyond the other counting books out there. Worth a look, particularly for fishy fans. | |
| Buy? Maybe | Borrow? Yes |
| Pages: 32 | Date: January 2010 |
| Publisher: Orchard | |
| External links: Author's website | |
| ISBN: 978-1846166860 | |
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Jolly Olly Octopus is giggling underneath the sea. He's soon joined by two tickly turtles, three smiley seahorses, and so on through the numbers. The large cast of underwater animals are having a jolly ol' time, until a shark appears...
Jolly Olly Octopus is a high-energy counting book. The rhyming is direct and simple - children will be able to join in with the rhymes even if they've never read the book before. It's punchy and dramatic, all laced with light-hearted silliness. The plot is fairly thin, as in most counting books, so they won't be crying out to read it again and again. Everything ticks along nicely, though, and it's a nice book to have in the mix.
Guy Parker-Rees' illustrations are as bold and, dare I say, brash as usual. They're bright and cartoony, with plenty of happy characters awash with glorious colours. The underwater seascapes set the scene nicely and add to the upbeat atmosphere. It's a bit harder to add a depth of character to fish than, say, the farmyard creatures in Farmer Joe and the Music Show, but it all works nicely.
Whilst there's nothing especially wrong with Jolly Olly Octopus, it's one of those books that didn't entirely click with me. There are a lot of counting books out there, so the standard needs to be a bit higher to stand out from the crowd. It's fun, it's a nice introduction to counting, it's bright. It's worth a look, especially if you love all things fishy.
My thanks to the publishers for sending it to Bookbag.
For excellent underwater tales, check out One Smart Fish by Chris Wormell and The Shark In The Dark by Peter Bently and Ben Cort. Our favourite counting books include What's in the Fridge? by Gaby Goldsack and Jo Moon, Ten Friendly Frogs by Sally Hobson, The Number Garden by Sara Pinto, It Was Bedtime In The Jungle by John Butler and The Selfish Crocodile Counting Book by Faustin Charles and Michael Terry.
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You can read more book reviews or buy Jolly Olly Octopus by Tony Mitton and Guy Parker-Rees 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 Jolly Olly Octopus by Tony Mitton and Guy Parker-Rees at Amazon.com.
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