Friday 12 October 2012

"Goldilocks and Just the One Bear" written and illustrated by Leigh Hodgkinson (Nosy Crow)














Last week we felt a bit deflated and disappointed with Cinderelephant - a classic children's fairy tale retold with just a few cursory changes in place to mark it out from the original.

This is most definitely NOT the case with "Goldilocks and Just the One Bear" which takes the classic Goldilocks story and muses on what would happen several years later when Baby Bear is all grown up.

We've previously read "The True Story of Goldilocks" which is a neat little prequel to events, and explains how Goldi became so naughty so this is a neat little sequel and a lovely treatment of the characters and situations by Leigh "Sunny McLoud" Hodgkinson.

(No longer Baby) Bear gets horribly lost in the big city amidst the noise and bustle (and some rather amusingly named shops and buildings in Leigh's fantastic cityscapes). Seeking a quiet nook to get away from the hustle and bustle, Bear finds himself in a rather plush apartment and tries to make himself at home.

But there's something very familiar about the situation, and something even more familiar when the apartment's owners turn up and wonder who's been eating their...er...cat food, toast and goldfish!

Leigh's illustrations are superb, the story is excellent fitting snugly in with the Goldilocks tale, and we love the way it ended too (but of course we're not going to spoil that for you).

Charlotte's best bit: "Goldilocks Grown Up is ME!" she said.

Daddy's favourite bit: Leigh's busy cityscape. Must stop by "Wolf's Clothing" for a new jacket sometime!