I’ll Believe You When…Unbelievable Idioms from around the World

An entertaining and unusual picture book, which illuminates the humour and delight to be found in idioms from various countries around the world. When a child points to the sky claiming to have seen a dragon, a variety of characters express their disbelief by using an idiom from their own language and culture.

Each double page spread gives us a different response from a different part of the world, starting with ‘When Pigs Fly’ from the UK, and, continuing with 10 other similar sentiments from countries as far apart as Latvia and Nigeria. We learn that in Russia the flying dragon sighting is met will the idiom, ‘When the Lobster whistles on top of the mountain’. In Spain the response would be ‘When Frogs grow hair’.

This is a book that offers plenty of fun for both home and school. It would be a great starting point for a classroom project, with a wealth of opportunities to explore diverse cultures, languages and identity. Equally it would be hugely enjoyable as a book to share and giggle over at bedtime. The end of the story features a simple explanation of what an idiom is, and a world map showing where the idioms in the book are from and displaying them in their original language. Raquel Bonita’s illustrations are colourful and simple and the typeface bold and uncomplicated, both perfectly complement the enjoyment of the story.