Sally's Secret - Shirley Hughes

Sally's Secret has everything that is magical about Shirley Hughes books. The story is about a little girl who makes a den one day & has a friend round to play tea parties with her, & this simple little tale manages to pinpoint just what is important when you're small & for an afternoon your whole world is in your back garden: the excitement of of a picnic & what a big thing it is when a cat comes to visit, & the serious business of dressing up like a real lady. The illustrations are an absolute joy: not only are the main pictures charming & evocative but there's so many intricate borders & incidental detail that the more you look ...  Read the complete review

Sally's Secret is a perfect book for young girls aged between 2 and 6. Sally, like all little girls, likes to make houses, and she makes them in lots of places, behind curtains, under tables and in boxes. She also takes little snacks to eat in her houses. Her secret house is in the garden, under a bush, which she has furnished with a chair and her special tea set. She invites Rose, the girl next door, to her tea party. Rose comes over in her dressing up clothes and they have tea and chat, 'They talked about babies just like grown-up ladies.' Sally also has other garden visitors to her secret house, and has a thoroughly enjoyable ...  Read the complete review