Stanley's Stick by John Hegley and Neal Layton
| Stanley's Stick by John Hegley and Neal Layton | |
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| Category: For Sharing | |
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Reviewer: Luci Davin
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| Summary: A fantastic story of sticks and imaginative play | |
| Buy? Yes | Borrow? Yes |
| Pages: 32 | Date: June 2011 |
| Publisher: Hodder Children's Books | |
| External links: Author's website | |
| ISBN: 978-0340988183 | |
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Stanley loves his stick and carries it everywhere. He loves to play with it and finds all sorts of uses for it. Forget all those expensive plastic toys; the stick is the best toy he could have. (It is nice to see a child in a book playing with something that doesn’t cost money).
John Hegley is a poet, known for his comic work, and he also does a lot of work with children, going into schools. This story is beautifully written, showing his poetic talents off well, and Stanley is a child many parents will recognise very well indeed.
The story is quite simple – it opens at Stockport station where Stanley and his family are waiting for a train to the seaside. We then see lots of scenes of Stanley playing with his stick. Neal Layton’s illustrations work brilliantly with Hegley’s wordplay, presenting Stanley’s imagination with warmth and wit. One of my favourite pictures shows Stanley with his Stickosaurus, against a background of children’s drawings.
On the beach, Stanley lets his stick go, only to find a new one of a different shape which offers new imaginative possibilities.
I like this book a lot and it is fun to read aloud. It scores well on length in our house, with just a couple of lines per page, as the boys expect several stories at bedtime so it is easier if they are not too long. It is probably ideal for children of 3 or 4 rather than toddlers because of the concepts.
Thank you very much to Hodder Children’s Books for sending a copy to the Bookbag.
George and Ghost by Catriona Hoy and Cassia Thomas is another enjoyable tale about an imaginative little boy and his friend. We also have a review of I am a Poetato by John Hegley.
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You can read more book reviews or buy Stanley's Stick by John Hegley and Neal Layton 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 Stanley's Stick by John Hegley and Neal Layton at Amazon.com.
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