The 5 Misfits

If ever there was a cast of diverse characters it’s the five who reside together in a large, dilapidated house in this somewhat surreal tale. So let’s meet them.

The first has four huge holes in his tummy. The second is a folded up female resembling a letter awaiting sending; the third resembles a flaccid, lumpy sausage and given to sleeping at every opportunity. The fourth seems permanently in the inverted position so clearly, she sees the world differently from the rest, while the fifth is, quite clearly, catastrophic. All though live an uneventful existence, give or take the arguments about who is the most ill constructed.

Into their lives one day breezes an extraordinary fellow, Mr Perfect you might say.

He seems bent on a mission to give them a purpose in life, but when he fails totally to convince them of their good for nothingness he’s at a complete loss. Unable to see that they’re quite happy with the way they are, the intruder is floored – literally. And that’s where we readers leave him, as do the five.

Quirky? Yes most definitely, but the ‘be true to yourself’ message comes through loud and clear. Quite apart from the story, there is much enjoyment to be had from the intriguing details in Beatrice Alemagna’s illustrations: the wonky dwelling of the Misfits seemingly constructed around a kettle, trying to decipher the print on second Misfit’s outfit and who is in the framed photograph and what is the occasion?

The choice of the cream paper on which to lay out her idiosyncratic images gives the book a distinguished quality that adds to the pleasure of the reading.

I can imagine a great classroom discussion as to which Misfit is the nearest fit for each of member of the group.