Hide! The Tiger's Mouth is Open Wide!

My first reaction to this book was that it would be yet another animal book. But within a few pages I was completely hooked. Two children have a mother who is a vet at London Zoo, and although Tom is not at first overly inclined to go to the dentist, to the extent that he will not even open his mouth (does this sound familiar?), the dentist has a way of persuading him to co-operate… so off they all go to see the animals and to find out how animals’ teeth get treated. As well as plenty of facts about animals’ teeth, there are the details as to how the animals are treated, related accurately but most interestingly by Frost. Not only will this book have its fans among animal lovers, but the whole area of teeth will open up the book to many other children. Frost’s humour and usage of irony is an additional bonus in helping the story along (the very idea that a child might WANT root canal work will have adults appreciating his wit, for example); I would strongly recommend this book for any classroom where care of teeth is taught. Very well worth reading.