Sarah Speedie (text) and Kruti Desai (illustrator), Wild About Book Week, Larrikin House, July 2024, 24 pp., RRP $24.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781922804754
It’s only one sleep until the Book Week Parade but the young protagonist has so many special books she can’t decide which character to dress up as. She runs through the options with the help of her family – should she be a pirate, unicorn, dinosaur, monster? When she just can’t decide, she comes up with a new trend. Her family soon join in with their own creative costumes. Sarah Speedie’s Wild About Book Week a fun, rhyming story which is sure to be a hit with classes in the lead up to Book Week each year. Young readers will enjoy spotting the nods to classic books, such as a fed-up crayon and a caterpillar eating fruit and chocolate cake.
Kruti Desai’s illustrations are dynamic, bursting with fun and colour. With all the different costumes, there is interest on each page. It’s sweet that the whole family gets involved in finding the right costume, and their love shines through the illustrations. A wordless last page leaves readers with a final surprise.
This picture book is most suitable for children aged 4-7.
Reviewed by Laura Holloway
