Mum's Late

It’s a common dilemma in nursery school or reception class: what happens when a mum or dad is late collecting their child? The child worries, of course. In this busy, happy classroom, the children leave one by one, and still Jerome’s mum doesn’t come. The teacher is supportive: ‘I expect she’s on her way,’ she says. But Jerome is seeing pictures in his mind. Maybe she is having ice cream with his toddler brother, or perhaps she is working at home and has forgotten about him, or maybe she has gone away forever, or been squashed by an elephant, or, saddest of all, perhaps she has gone to choose another little boy because she’s decided she doesn’t like him. Jerome’s thoughts are all too realistic, and we are relieved and happy for him when mum turns up, running because she is so late. The illustrations, in realism mode, are a treat. The children are very much individuals in this multi-cultural classroom, and when we get to Jerome’s secret thoughts, the facing pages showing what he thinks may be happening are in a soft blue, very reminiscent of his sadness at being left. This would be an excellent book for either nursery schools or primary classes where a late parent is likely to be a common occurrence.