The Smartest Giant in Town - Julia Donaldson

The Smartest Giant in Town - Julia Donaldson This was the first of Julia Donaldson's books that I read. It wasn't straight away a favourite but it has definitely grown on me. It's a story about a friendly giant who one day decides that he doesn't want to be scruffy anymore so visits a new shop in town and kits himself out with a whole outfit. Unfortunately on his way home he meets a series of animals that have problems which he finds he can solve with the help of him new clothes. By the end of the book he has almost none of his new clothes and he makes his way back to the shop to get some more. But the shop is closed... It is a tale of kindness ...  Read the complete review

The Smartest Giant in Town is another story by the popular duo of Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler, the people who brought us the Gruffalo and Stick Man. This book tells the story of George, a giant, and the scruffiest giant in town. One day, George decides to smarten up his act, and visits new shop which has opened up in town. George purchases a whole new outfit of smart shirt, trousers, belt, tie, socks with diamonds down the sides and shiny new shoes. He declares himself to be the smartest giant in town! As George heads home however, he meets many animals who are in need of his help including a giraffe with a cold neck, a goat who is in need of a new ...  Read the complete review

I am always looking to add to my little girl's book collection, as although she is too young to fully understand the story being told I feel that it is good to encourage reading as a hobby and I enjoy the bonding that comes from sitting down and looking at a book together. Having already purchased 'The Gruffalo' and 'Room on the Broom' (and loving them both), I decided to order 'The Smartest Giant in Town' from Amazon, as it is written and illustrated by the same team - the very talented Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler. 'The Smartest Giant in Town' tells the story of George, who at the beginning of the book carries the unfortunate title of 'the scruffiest ...  Read the complete review

'The Smartest Giant in Town' is a children's picture book written by Julia Donaldson and illustrated by Axel Scheffler, the team behind The Gruffalo books and many other popular picture books. They are a hit with children and parents alike, mainly due to their humour, simplicity and rhythmic verse. This book tells the story of George, 'the scruffiest giant in town', but George is fed up with being scruffy so he visits a shop and buys some smart new clothes. Here we are treated to the first example of repetition as George has become 'the smartest giant in town.' George makes his way home but on the journey he meets a number of animals, all of whom are in ...  Read the complete review

***Background*** Nick Sharratt has illustrated quite a lot of Julia Donaldson’s books that I’ve reviewed, but in this one, it is Axel Scheffler who joins her. He was also the illustrator for her best selling book The Gruffalo. ***The Story*** The story starts, “George was a giant, the scruffiest giant in town. He always wore the same pair of old brown sandals and the same old patched-up gown. ‘I wish I wasn’t the scruffiest giant in town,’ he said sadly.” He then finds a new shop that caters for giants and he bought a whole new outfit for himself so that he was the now the smartest giant in ...  Read the complete review