The Slightly Annoying Elephant

To say that the large blue pachyderm that pays a visit to Sam’s house one day is ‘slightly annoying’ is a gross understatement. Thanks in no small measure to the animal in question, the whole house is very quickly in utter chaos with the bathroom flooded, every scrap of food consumed, precious objects smashed and Sam’s bike completely destroyed. But there’s worse to come. Not only has Sam failed to realize the implications when he signed that ‘Adopt an Elephant’ form at the zoo some while ago, but much worse, he neglected to read the small print at the bottom of the adoption certificate. ‘Knock , knock, knock.’ …

David Walliams’ first foray into the picture book is treated very much like a stage production with crimson-curtained end papers, star spangled, large lettered title pages and prominent billing to the author. Old Hand, Tony Ross has great fun with Walliams’ outrageously over the top script, piling absurdity upon anarchy in his scenes of the large blue elephant’s antics. Hilarious though it all is, I’m not sure that Sam’s interloper(s) will achieve the classic status that Sophie’s much more genteel house visitor has done in The Tiger that Came to Tea.