Who Knows Best? (I'll Show You, Blue Kangaroo - Emma Chichester Clark)

Member Name: belfin

Product:	I'll Show You, Blue Kangaroo - Emma Chichester Clark
Date:	29/07/09 (53 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Shows children what can happen when they misbehave

Disadvantages: none

***Background***

Emma Chichester Clark is both the author and illustrator of this lovely book about a little girl called Lily and her well-loved toy. As well as the Blue Kangaroo series, she has written many other books including the ones all about Melrose and Croc.

***The Story***

The story starts with an exasperated looking mother telling Lily to stop doing what she is doing.

"Blue Kangaroo belonged to Lily.
He was her very own kangaroo.
Sometimes, when Lily was showing off
and not doing as she was told, she would say,
'I'll show you, Blue Kangaroo!'
And Blue Kangaroo watched. What else could he do?"

Throughout the book, Lily sees things on television or on stage that she thinks she will be able to do and although various family members tell her not to do it, she tries and then fails, causing upset wherever she goes. All through it, she implores Blue Kangaroo to watch her.

Eventually Lily's mother has had enough of her bad behaviour and sends her off to bed. Unfortunately Blue Kangaroo has been left outside clinging up in the branches of a high tree and takes a tumble to the ground. His tail is torn and he is losing stuffing but luckily Lily's mother finds him and sews up his tail.

Lily's mother tells her that she can't have him back until she has shown them that she can be good and that day she does everything she is told and doesn't show off at all. The book ends with her mother asking her if she has turned over a new leaf.

"'YES!' said Lily. 'I'm going to be good and
new and do as I am told! I'll show you.
And I'll show you, Blue Kangaroo!'
And Blue Kangaroo believed her.
What else could he do?"

***The Illustrations***

The pictures in this book are wonderful with bright colours and realistic expressions on faces. There are plenty of things to see in the picture boxes and I like the way that a close up picture is often shown of Blue Kangaroo when he is worried about Lily. The writing is black on a white background outside the picture box and really stands out well. There are also some speech bubbles in a few of the pictures.

***My Thoughts***

My son has really taken to these stories and he seems to thoroughly enjoy them because Lily always ends up realising that Blue Kangaroo is the most important thing to her and ends up giving him a big cuddle. Although he had just turned six when he found this book, he still had a favourite toy that sometimes doesn't get treated as well as it should, but he was very attached to it and got upset if it couldn't be found when he was unhappy.

I love this book because it shows children that they must learn that parents say no for a reason and most of the time it is to stop an accident occurring. My son has always been very headstrong and many a time he has continued to do something when told not to, only for it to end in tears with him hurting himself. Like Lily, he's a good kid really but does sometimes needs the threat of his favourite toy being made unavailable to get him to think about his actions.

All the books in this series have important behavioural issues in them and although told in a fun way, it does seem to help to get the messages across that being honest and listening to what you are told is a good thing. Showing Lily trying to ride her bike downhill with her feet on the handlebars when she sees older children doing so, may seem extreme but showing her crying with a grazed knee when she falls over is a good reminder to young children that although they might think that exciting things look fun, they can be dangerous too.

What is lovely though is that this book shows the special bond that a child can have with a certain toy and how friendship and caring can be encourages through that.

***Other Blue Kangaroo Books***

What Shall We Do, Blue Kangaroo?
Merry Christmas, Blue Kangaroo!
Just For You, Blue Kangaroo
Where Are You, Blue Kangaroo?
Happy Birthday To You, Blue Kangaroo
It Was You, Blue Kangaroo!
I Love You, Blue Kangaroo!

***Price and Availability***

The price on the back on this large paperback is £5.99 but you can get it for only £4.49 from Tesco.

ISBN No. 0007178948

Summary: Lovely book with beautiful illustrations