We are so excited to join the tour celebrating the release of The Robber Raccoon by Lou Kuenzler and Julia Woolf. This is all about the antics of a rascally little raccoon called Rosie who appears to be 'up to no good' in a 'grand neighbourhood' but all is not as it seems. There's so much to love about this book but here are our top five reasons why you need to add it to your bookshelf...
It's narrated through a marvellous rhyming text I love how this book is written. The rhyming flows perfectly and bounces along beautifully, enlivening the story and making it even more enjoyable to read aloud. It's incredibly
difficult to write successfully in rhyme, so I'm always in awe of writers like Lou Kuenzler who have mastered this.
It has gorgeous illustrations Julia Woolf's artwork is fabulous! As this is mostly set at night, there's an unusual colour palette and I love all the blue hues. Light is also used in interesting ways, as we see what is illuminated by Rosie's torch. In one of my favourite images, the book turns on its side to reveal Rosie climbing a skyscraper as the sun begins to rise. All of the animal characters are adorable and I love their big eyes and cute smiles. We're especially fond of the little builder beaver and my girls and the flower-picking porcupine. Also, many of the images tell a slightly different story to the text (a narrative technique that always appeals to little readers), so pay attention!
It plays with readers' expectations This story is enormously entertaining because of the wonderful rhyming text and illustrations and also because there's a subversive twist. It's so much fun to read a picture book like this that challenges our assumptions. We enjoyed going back through the story and examining the illustrations to spot everything we missed the first time around.
It has a subtle but powerful eco-message
This book cleverly uses an engaging tale and endearing characters to gently encourage children to think differently about waste and recycling. Rosie's story is an excellent way to introduce important topics from an early age.
It promotes creativity
The Robber Raccoon provides so much scope for arts and craft activities at home or in a classroom setting. This story will motivate children to get creative and give old toys, and items previously considered to be 'rubbish', a new lease of life. We loved reading the dedication and learning how the book was even inspired by children (the pupils of Sheldwich primary school). This is another aspect that will incite young readers to make up their own stories.
The Robber Raccoon is a charming and thought-provoking story with a lasting message and fantastic illustrations that is certain to delight the very young. My five-year-old, my seven-year-old and I have been quite taken with Rosie and we hope there's a sequel as we'd love to see what she does next. Thanks so much to the lovely people in Faber for sharing this book with us and inviting us on the tour. Don't forget to visit all the below stops and brilliant blogs to learn more about this terrific new book:
The Robber Raccoon was published by Faber on 2nd June 2022 - see this book on the publisher's website We received a gift of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are our own.