Right or Left? (Alfie's Feet - Shirley Hughes)

Member Name: juicy_lucy

Product:	Alfie's Feet - Shirley Hughes
Date:	07/02/06 (148 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Story by well known children's author

Disadvantages: A bit dated

Another story by the quite prolific story writer, Shirley Hughes.
This book once again focuses on Alfie and his little sister Annie Rose.

**The Story**

The story starts with Alfie and Annie Rose comparing feet and describing the difference in size. Alfie knows a song he can sing whilst counting his sister’s toes, and there it is on the facing page- This Little Pig went to market”.
The story goes on to describe how Annie Rose can move about the place-crawling forwards and backwards, and skidding and sliding about on her potty.
“Annie Rose had some new shoes”. She has obviously started walking because there she is pushing her little cart; Annie Rose wears her new red shoes whn they go out and about, and poor old Alfie has to wear his old brown shoes.
Alfie likes to splash in the rain “splish, splash, SPLOSH!” Unfortunately, then his shoes get all wet, and so do his socks and his feet.
Then one day, mum takes Alfie shopping and buys him a pair of Wellington boots which Alfie carries proudly home. Once home, he puts on the Wellingtons and walks about in them “stamp! Stamp! Stamp!” They feel all wrong.
Alfie is keen to try out his new boots, so dad takes him to the park where Alfie walked through the puddles, sploshed through the mud, and chased the ducks.
Alfie looks down at his Wellingtons, and suddenly realizes why they feel all wrong- they are on the wrong feet.
I wonder at this stage why his parents didn’t notice or if they did, didn’t bother to tell him. Quite bizarre.
When Alfie gets home, mum puts a R for right on one Wellington and a L for left on the other, and from that moment on, when Alfie went walking, he felt much more comfortable.
I really hope he knows his right from his left or the R and the L are not going to make any difference.

(That really is the whole story…no part of the story has been omitted)

**Illustrations**

In true Shirley Hughes style, the illustrations look llike line drawings filled in with water colours, and the pictures are all of “real” people.
In fact, it’s the same characters as in the other Alfie books so at least, if children have read the other Alfie books, they can identify with the characters.
The pictures complement the text…when Annie Rose is skidding round the floor there are a series of small pictures. When mum and Alfie go shopping to the “big shop in the High Street”, it is a double page spread, which is very busy, to emphasise the size of the shop in comparison to Alfie.
This is a real skill I have seen in many of the Shirley Hughes books- being able to use the illustrations to help to tell the story-look through the book and you could tell a very similar story without the text, and with only the illustrations.

**My Copy**

Publisher- Collins Picture Lions 1984
ISBN- 0 00 662161 9
Price- #2.99

That’s the information on my copy but it has been published by other publishers including the Bodley Head Ltd.
Prices vary but it can be purchased cheaply from sites such as amazon.

**How can it be used?**

The book is another one of those which is usually to be found in Key Stage 1 classes, and can be used to introduce or consolidate a range of topics.
• Use the very first page to look at sizes- bigger/smaller
• Shoe prints
• Shoe topic- link the story with books such as I forgot my shoes by Jessica Harper, My best Shoes by Marilee R. Burton and rhymes such as “There was an Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe”, “One, Two, Buckle My Shoe”
• Encourage learning to tie shoe laces- look at the page where it says that Alfie needs help because he can’t tie his laces. It’s surprising how many children think he should subscribe to the great Velcro institution.
• Use the way Alfie runs in the park and the way Annie Rose moves about, to emphasise and interpret movement
• Alfie likes to splash- ask the children to draw something they like to do

Lots of ideas if you want to explore themes with your child/class of children, and all which can be easily linked in with the National Literacy Strategy.

**Other books by the author**

Alfie Gets in First, 1981
Alfie Gives a Hand, 1983
Alfie’s Numbers, 1999
Angel Mae, 1989
Big Alfie and Annie Rose Storybook, 1990
The Big Concrete Lorry, 1989
Bouncing, 1993
Chips and Jessie, 1985
Stories by Firelight, 1993

Lots and lots of books by Shirley Hughes.


**Verdict**

Does it sound as though I just LOVE the book?
That’s not the case. I have read this story to my own three children and when they were very young, the eldest two did enjoy it,but the latest addition has heard it once, and it has never made it onto the favourite story list. A lot of that is probably to do with the fact that there are so many more books for children now, and the storyline is a bit slow, and, in my opinion, the illustrations are a bit dated and just not especially appealing for children who have such a selection.
With my teacher head on, I can appreciate that it will be available in most schools, and that it can be used as a starting point for many activities; I have used it on many occasions, just not as frequently in recent years.
Shirley Hughes books are very well known, and as such, will be read to many many more children; I am just not a fan of the Alfie stories…this is with apologies to the many people who think the stories are the best. It’s merely my opinion.
Read it to your child but there are books he/she will gain more enjoyment out of.

Thanks for reading.

Daniela x

Summary: Well known story featuring Alfie and his sister Annie Rose