We are big fans of Maverick Books in our house, they publish some fantastic picture books, chapter books and early readers. We have received many over the years and were delighted when we received The Snugglewump, written by Lou Treleaven and illustrated by Kate Chappell.
The Snugglewump (a comfort blanket) is a tale about a child’s toys and which one sees themselves as the most loved, or maybe not!
Molly has lots of toys in her bedroom and she loves to play with them all. While waiting for her to come home and play with them, the toys start talking about which one is her favourite and therefore the most loved. Each toy believes that they are the most favourite and best loved, offering the reasons why. But poor old Snugglewump is just a comfort blanket, with no moving parts or batteries like the other toys, so feels very left out, unloved and unwanted. So feeling down, The Snugglewump quietly sneaks off outdoors as he believes if he were something else he would be much more loved. But will Molly miss Snugglewump and will it find its way home?
The Snugglewump is an engaging story about self-discovery, love and belonging. Written with flowing rhyming text it is an engaging story that children will love.
A comfort blanket is something a majority of children have had, or still have, and is probably their most important possession. The Snugglewump is a sweet story showing just how important that innocuous blanket really is and one that children can relate to and will enjoy.
Lou Treleaven writes a very engaging story that rhymes very well. This 32-page picture book has just enough words on each page to hold any child’s attention. It is easy to follow and is an engrossing story for young readers as we follow Snugglewump on his journey getting stuck to someone’s shoe, falling into a puddle and even being used as a hanky by a rabbit! It has an excellent message of even when you don’t feel loved, wanted and special there is always someone that thinks you are.
It has been beautifully illustrated by Kate Chappell with light and dark colours (some are maybe just a little too dark for a children’s book), complementing the story very well and bringing it to life and helping children to digest and understand the words that they are reading perfectly.
The only small negative about this book in my opinion would be the darker colours used. Whilst some are needed to accentuate the story, the cover could do with being a bit lighter and brighter to grab the attention of children when they see it on a shelf in a shop or library.
Rating: 4/5
RRP: £6.99 (Paperback)
Available to buy from Amazon here.
