The Bumper Book of Betsey Biggalow

Betsey’s back. This collection brings together stories from books we first saw in the 1990s, and they’re worth another look. They are simple, family stories set in the Caribbean with a cast of characters that gives them a distinctive charm. Everyday things happen in the Biggalow home, as they cope with Dad’s absence studying away from home and money troubles with resultant choices between party dresses and presents. In a manner similar to Shirley Hughes’s homely tales, the dilemmas are simple and never laboured.

Instead they get their drama from the way the characters become known to us and interact. The stories allow the young reader to observe where Betsey is going to come unstuck, or they can be one step ahead of Betsey in a moral dilemma. Though I’d never want to turn these stories into morality tales, there is a lot to think about and plenty to discuss.

There’s magic in these stories too, made all the more precious because it’s the magic of real life. In one story Gran’ma Liz knows Betsey’s secret and handles it with sparkling tact; in another Desmond’s magic running shoes work – though they are just plain trainers. Bit like the stories really – plain ordinary life made magical.