Last week while on holiday I was part of the How Messy! Book tour over on Instagram
Edie and I have fallen in love with Dot and Duck. They are exactly like Bea and Edie in the way they are inseparable and want to be together but sometimes infuriate one another.
I was not at all sure what to expect from this series for littlest readers but I adore Clare’s other books so was intrigued to read How Rude!, How Selfish! and How Messy!
The books are written by the wonderful Clare Helen Welsh and illustrated by the amazingly talented Olivier Tallec
These are not wordy books. Every word written is carefully chosen and brilliantly executed and accompanied by wickedly funny illustrations.
There is so much more going on in these books than you imagine there possibly could be.
Edie finds so much on every page to point out and discuss.
These books are a celebration of family and friends getting along even when they are different from one another. They offer ways to talk to young children about manners, dealing with big feelings, caring for others, tolerance and compromise.
Dot and Duck are incredibly engaging characters for children. Edie revels in their misunderstandings, the way they fall out and make up again just as friends and siblings do.
In How Messy! Duck seems to have no idea how their messy ways are annoying Dot. Duck causes accidents and mishaps for Dot and carries on completely unawares. Duck shows no consideration for Dot’s feelings through the beginning of the story. He just carries on doing things in his own haphazard, messy way. The facial expressions of the characters through the story are just brilliant.
Dot and Duck’s beach art led Edie and I to a discussion about people being different and how it is important to accept and respect the different ways people do things. We talked about life in our house and how all the children do things in slightly different ways when it comes to drawing or playing in the garden or eating food. Everyone has their own ways and for the house to run smoothly we need to accept each other’s differences and also find ways to work together or play together when we want to.
This story also spoke to me as a mummy who does not like mess. It reminded me that not all mess is bad especially when the children are lost in their play or busy creating. What I see as mess they see as their amazing creations and play worlds. I must try harder to remember that and see their mess how they see it. Just for a while!
There are so many talking points that come from this story. It would be wonderful to read with a group of very young children and see how they responded to the story and linked it to their own lives and relationships.
Edie’s favourite page of How Messy! Has no words but it tells a wonderful story of true friendship. After their beach activities Dot and Duck get an ice cream. Duck appears to have dropped his, making a mess on the floor. Dot instead of being angry at the mess offers Duck some of their ice cream. This made Edie smile. She knows that it is exactly what her big siblings would do for her.
This series of books is brilliant. Seemingly simple stories that get children and their grown ups thinking and talking about behaviour and feelings. They are also incredibly funny and written with heart.
We LOVE Dot and Duck and hope that there will be more books in this wonderful series for little bookworms.