Pricklepaper’s Letter Magic

Pricklepaper the Hedgehog lives in Regent’s Park in London and every night when the park is closed, he ventures out to collect the paper bits left beyond by the daily visitors. Theatre tickets, wrappers and other scraps of paper are all pricked onto his spines as he proudly tidies away the rubbish and he especially loves it when these scraps spell out a word that makes him feel warm and snuggly. As he heads home for the night, he meets a few of his friends with a variety of problems, each of whom he is able to help by sharing some of the letters collected that night. When he finally reaches his home, he realises that he can no longer spell the special word that he was hoping for and the letters left don’t seem to make sense. However, all is not lost as he discovers that he can still spell out one very special word that is even better than the original and actually sums up his actions that day, which were all done out of… L.O.V.E.

This is a unique, warm and clever picturebook, with a delightful rhyming story that begs to be read aloud. I think it might appeal more to a slightly older audience, due to the clever word-play in force, but all children will enjoy the tale of the litter-picking hedgehog and his park friends, with its gentle message of friendship and kindness.This is author Read Wilson’s first venture into the world of children’s picture books, although he is well known for being a wordsmith, which is evidenced throughout the book. Bagley’s beautiful illustrations bring the park inhabitants to life in a wonderfully vibrant yet cosy way, with many fun extra bits to spot on each re-reading – watch out for Pricklepaper’s snail friend’s antics on each page!