The Biggest Hole in the World

Those who know Manning and Granström’s superb picture book What’s Under the Bed? might feel a sense of déjà vu on picking up this book. But the setting is quite different here: the journey into the depths of the earth starts at the seaside where Charlie, his pet dog and his Dad are enjoying being on the beach.

Even the more reluctant young reader will want to join Charlie as he falls into the hole he has dug and right through the earth, to the centre and out the other side! Young readers will manage to suspend disbelief to enjoy the sheer exhilaration of a fantasy journey which imparts useful information. The paper engineering works on a simple notion: a hole gets narrower and narrower as you turn the pages to give a sense of falling rapidly. It is a most effective way of virtual travelling through layers of earth containing historical and archaeological evidence if a little dizzying: you have to keep turning the book to read the circular text. The writing – large print for the main story and smaller print for more detailed information – winds round the hole on each page. For some children this will be a particularly helpful way of understanding how fossil fuels like oil are formed over time. I like the questioning approach – ‘Will our footprints also be fossils eventually?’ There are plenty of the sort of facts, figures and measurements children like: a five kilogram dinosaur egg would make an omelette big enough for thirty people.

Playful in text and illustration, this book would make a welcome gift to enjoy at home or it would feed into key stage 1 science and geography topics.