I Want Two Birthdays!

There is so much to be got out of this book, thanks to the cleverly executed detail in Tony Ross’s distinctive illustrations and super storytelling.

I love the minimalist calendar (a simple 12 by 31 grid with just the initial letters of the months down one side and some shading at the other end to indicate the squares pertinent for each month) as it offers a wealth of possibilities. Only a red circle marks the Little Princess’s second ‘birthday’ in February but what’s the actual date? We might make an estimate, then count the squares to find out. And we’re told her actual birthday is in autumn but is it marked? Wait a minute! There’s the edge of another red circle just behind the Little Princess’s crown! We can track that row to discover the month begins with O. Similarly, when her third and fourth ‘birthdays’ (spring and summer) are added to the calendar these months are obscured – giving us a little puzzle to solve en route. There are a number of ways we might arrive at the answer. Great fun and great learning opportunities in that calendar alone, never mind the rest of the story.