Fantastic Mr Wani, The

This artist/author is one of a growing number of graduates of British art schools from the Far East. Kanako Usui’s first book successfully combines Japanese graphic traditions with English nonsense, and tells of the eventful journey of Mr Wani the crocodile as he hurries to a party in town. The various encounters along the way make this an entertaining version of a familiar formula. A generous landscape format gives us a dynamic left to right pull and the sheer vigour and bold execution of the images lift this book above the norm. How good it is to see colour that is rich and satisfying without being garish or primary, and typography that complements the simple graphic strength of the pictures.

The various unlikely accidents and versions of extreme sports that make up Mr Wani’s journey ensure that each page is full of movement and sound (in the form of chunky and variably sized fonts), all of which should guarantee plenty of fun for the younger child and reading parent. MS