LLEWELYN, Chris (text) Scott Tulloch (illus.) How does the Giraffe get to Work? Scholatic (NZ) 2014 unpaged NZ$19.50 pbk ISBN 9781775432463 SCIS 1678928
As you may well know, it is important to keep a work-life balance so that good health is maintained. But you may not know that animals at the zoo are working animals and so, they too have to go home and have some fun. And so the question arises, how do zoo animals get themselves to and from work? Zebras and antelopes cram on the bus whilst the emu and rhea jog to work; the grizzly bear drives to work whilst the skink and the snake hitch a ride in the boot. But how does the giraffe get to work? A tiger is revving his bike by the track as the metro rolls by jam-packed with mandrills and macaques. A crocodile has the pleasure of a helicopter ride (as befits a gentleman) whilst two red kangaroos get a taxi ride. So how does the giraffe get to work? Delightfully illustrated, the animals are represented in a realistic fashion whilst at the same time blended in with the fantastic. Quirky and fun. This text explores reversal thinking where the anthropomorphic animal as ‘Other’ is integrated into the world of ‘us’ in novel and amusing ways.
reviewed by John McKenzie