The Big Jungle Mix-Up

‘If it lives in a bog,

And it croaks and it jumps,

Then it MUST be a…’

A rhyming text drives along this jungle adventure which is a follow-up to The Big Animal Mix-Up. The split-level device works beautifully again: Father Bear gets hilariously confused as he introduces young bear to each creature. We see the playful result if a monkey’s features are mixed up with a parrot’s or a bat’s with those of a rhinoceros. Then, with the help of the rhymes, children can shout out the name of the ‘right’ animal lurking under the flap. Intense colour combined with a strong black line makes the animals shine out as they feed, leap and fly. The clear, differentiated print also makes for lively pages. The under threes will look, listen and laugh while children of about five or six will be able to read the text themselves.

The book has huge entertainment value, but it also encourages children to think about creatures’ physical features and how these are a function of where they live and what they do. An uncluttered feel, quality paper and attractive end pages make this a book to treasure and return to.