Rollo and Ruff and the Little Fluffy Bird by Mick Inkpen
| Rollo and Ruff and the Little Fluffy Bird by Mick Inkpen | |
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| Category: For Sharing | |
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Reviewer: Ruth Ng
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| Summary: A sweet story of friendship that lives up to Mick Inkpen's usual style and charm. | |
| Buy? Yes | Borrow? Yes |
| Pages: 32 | Date: March 2011 |
| Publisher: Hodder Children's Books | |
| ISBN: 978-0340989586 | |
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Somebody has been chewing Rollo's mat...and somebody has taken Rollo's little red ball...and somebody has been leaving wet footprints all over the floor. But who could it be? Mick Inkpen's latest book introduces us to three new characters: Rollo the cat, LFB (as she's referred to in the book, standing for little fluffy bird) and Ruff the rat.
The mystery thief turns out to be Ruff the rat who has also fallen asleep in LFB's nest. When Rollo and LFB discover him there they declare him to be stinky, but that just makes him cry and he runs away to hide. After luring him out with a trail of sweeties, and making him his own cosy little nest to sleep in, they finally all become friends. Although Ruff does sneak out in the night to take a quick shower under a dripping tap, so that nobody will ever call him stinky again!
Mick Inkpen's drawings are as charming as ever. They're always simple but work so well. Rollo is a sweet little cat and the LFB is cute bird (some sort of robin/chicken hybrid I'd guess!) whilst Ruff really made me smile with his overly long nose, large worried-looking eyes and big floppy pink ears. My daughter really liked the page with the trail of sweeties they use to lure Ruff back out of the drain whilst my favourite picture was the discovery of Ruff sleeping in LFB's nest, gripping the slightly chewed red ball tightly in his paws.
The pace of the story is very gentle and, as I've often found with his books, it pays if you take your time and really savour the words. I love at the beginning where it says The sun dawdles into the sky. The yard tap drips. Plink. Plink. Plink. It's a lovely way to show small children the joy you can find in words and the sounds they make. I like ending too, which echoes the start with Ruff taking his shower under the same dripping tap. It's easy to follow the hunt for the intruder, to understand Ruff's fear, and then identify with Rollo and LFB's attempts to befriend him. The book is a lovely introduction to these three characters, and hopefully we'll see more of their adventures soon!
I'd like to thank the publishers for sending a copy to The Bookbag.
Further reading suggestion: If you're new to Mick Inkpen then run along and read Kipper and Don't Lose Pigley, Wibbly Pig! straight away!
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You can read more book reviews or buy Rollo and Ruff and the Little Fluffy Bird by Mick Inkpen 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 Rollo and Ruff and the Little Fluffy Bird by Mick Inkpen at Amazon.com.
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