Alexander McCall Smith (text), Kate Hindley (illus), Freddie Mole Lion Tamer, Bloomsbury/Allen & Unwin, May 2016, 144pp., $21.99 (hbk) ISBN 9781408865859
All kids love circuses, right? The excitement of the big top, the clowns, the trapeze artists, the rides, the animals – and don’t forget the fairy floss. Freddie Mole, age 10-ish would love to see it all, but his family doesn’t have much money. His mother works away for months at a time, leaving his father to care for Freddie and his younger twin brothers. But, with a stroke of luck, Freddie’s classmate invites him to see the circus with his family. It’s amazing.
Freddie spends the school holidays helping out his dad, a washing machine repairman, and is with him when they’re called to fix the circus’ washing machine. As it turns out, the ringmaster is looking for a helper to do odd jobs. Freddie lands the job. He gets to live at the circus! He starts off cleaning the circus tent and washing dishes but, he’s a hard worker, one thing leads to another, and he quickly becomes the understudy for the trapeze artists. And then for the lion tamer. It’s an outlandish story, but that’s the fun of it. And the narrator says it happened so long ago, perhaps it wasn’t so unlikely back then.
The book is aimed at 5-7 years-olds and is perfect for new readers, with larger text and black and white illustrations scattered throughout to help them visualise the characters. The story is divided into eight chapters, so readers can read a chapter a night, or more if they can’t put it down. Freddie Mole Lion Tamer is a fun read, with positive messages about working hard, helping others and never giving up hope.
Reviewed by Carissa Mason