Miss Fanshawe and the Great Dragon Adventure

This lavishly illustrated tale of Miss Harriet Fanshawe, great explorer, and her parrot, Cedric, is certainly a sophisticated form of picture storytelling. The style and content will appeal to an older age group, readers who (wrongly) might not naturally look to this format; teachers should try to ensure that it does not miss its potential market. There is a touch of 'spot the parrot' about the illustrations, which I personally could have done without, and is perhaps a tactic more appropriate to younger readers. That said, the illustrations are very lavish, there is lots happening, and the cut pages create a nice 'keyhole' effect which both teases and helps the continuity of the story.