Caterpillar Books (the Little Tiger Group) ISBN 9781848575882 £6.99
Imagine the children of picture book monsters such as dragons, yetis and dinosaurs. Well, this is a story about what those children get up to at nursery, known as Stomp School. Rikki is a little kaiju (Japanese for strange beast), who is starting nursery for the first time. Familiar feelings of anxiety, frustration and anger are shown, which young children will enjoy recognising. Like many children, Rikki loves building tall towers and, with Miss Bronte’s help, he comes to terms with the fact that most other young beasts also love to knock them down. There are several peek-through holes and pull-out pages in this book for 3 to 6-year-olds, which add to the liveliness of the bold, vibrant illustrations. At the beginning of the book, there are character summaries of the nine little kaiju characters who make an appearance in the story. There is a refreshing disregard for gender stereotypes as the male characters are often the sensitive, daydreaming ones while the females are athletic, thrill-seeking and cheeky.
Emma Andrew, teacher, Law Primary School, North Berwick and SCEL Associate member
