Michael Scott Parkinson, The Great and Wondrous Storyteller, Five Mile Press, 1 August 2015, 32pp., $19.95 (hbk), ISBN 978 1 76006 662 8
Norbert the frog who boasts that he has read myriad books on every imaginable subject to countless listeners soon turns out to be a storyteller himself, holding the book upside down then looking for the ON button. However his father comes to the rescue, explaining that Norbert is only four years old and that in time he will learn to read. Moreover he realizes there is no shame in saying that he cannot yet read.
Children eager to conquer the mystery of reading will identify with Norbert and his keenness to learn. The text is set in a variety of type sizes (with a double page spread printed upside down) and similarly the illustrations vary in size and shape thus complementing the story’s sense of fun. Ages 3-6.
Reviewed by Elizabeth Douglas