In our experience, most 'early readers' are absolutely appalling, lathering horrid moral lessons in twee illustrations - the very point when a child is looking to maintain their engagement with reading is the point where they are totally switched off by the sort of books they're given in school or often at home (Biff, Chip and Kipper are not in our Keepers list for a reason - though I still admire the subversive streak in the art in those books and maintain that's where their true worth lies).
We were lucky though - we had these fantastic books, the "Murilla Gorilla" series by Jennifer Lloyd and Jacqui Lee as our early readers for C and I can't shout loudly about how great these still are even today.
We first met Murilla back in 2013 when C was just about to start "Big School" for the first time. Back then there weren't very many books that properly embraced the 'chapter' format, but with full colour illustrations and a completely hopeless but utterly engaging lead character, these books were worth their weight in gold for ensuring C became more interested in solo reading.
Murilla is a Gorilla, working as a Jungle Detective in the wilds of Africa. Number one in a field of one, Murilla's slightly haphazard detective methods seem to happen more by accident than design. She's a bit scatterbrained, and before each case her biggest problem is usually finding where all the bits of her detective kit have got to in her rather messy house.
With every case, Murilla is brought in by other animals to solve strange mysteries, disappearances, and even outright theft. She takes her time, is often governed by her rumbling tummy, and quite often likes a snooze in the middle of cases - much to the exasperation of her customers.However she proves just how smart she is in the end, solving the case with a deft bit of observation and copious notes in her little notebook.
The setting for the books is gorgeous, depicting a junior view of what life might actually be like in an African township where the hustle and bustle of activity around the markets is depicted in these books quite beautifully.
The diverse animal characters are also nicely written but it's Jennifer's humour, alongside Jacqui's brilliant illustrations that mark these out above other early readers. They're genuinely funny (pant-wettingly so for their younger audience but also enough to make us cynical old adults crack a wry grin too).
I used to perform stupid voices when reading these aloud. Murilla as a slightly sonorous sleepy kind of soul, with Mrs Chimpanzee being quite loud and brash and outspoken, and the crocodiles being slightly snappy too.
I always wished these books would turn into a massively successful series (we only have three of them - and never got sent "The Missing Mop" for review sadly, but I can't find any mention of more, which is a real shame as they're utterly brilliant!) But it's my duty while we're still here to raise their profile a little bit. Honestly, if you're looking for a far better alternative to those detestable kids in the Biff Chip and Kipper books, you really ought to seek these out, they're just fantastic!.
Original Review Links:
Murilla Gorilla - Jungle Detective by Jennifer Lloyd and Jacqui Lee (Simply Read Books)
ReadItDaddy's FIRST Book of the Week - Week Ending 12th September 2014 - "Murilla Gorilla and the Hammock Problem" by Jennifer Lloyd and Jacqui Lee (Simply Read Books)
ReadItDaddy's Book of the Week - Week Ending 6th December 2013 - "Murilla Gorilla and the Lost Parasol" by Jennifer Lloyd and Jacqui Lee (Simply Read Books)