Soon-to-be 8-year-old Juliette has recently started developing an interest in long chapter books that push her reading ability to the limit so we've just finished reading Operation Bunny. Looking at the press release that accompanied the book, it was released at the start of October, which shows how long it's taken her to read it ! It targets readers aged 8+ so was ideal for her.
The text is widely spaced so it's not too off-putting for young readers, but we did take it in turns with me reading large chunks at bedtime, otherwise we'd still have been reading it this time next year ! There are also lots of full page black and white drawings interspersed with the text to help young readers imagine the characters and scenes from the story.
Ah yes, the story. Well, where to begin?! Operation Bunny is the first book in a magical new series about a fairy detective agency called Wings & Co (which kept reminding me of Legs & Co, the dancing troupe on Top of the Pops back in the 70's !). It's got everything from a wicked witch, zombified triplets, dancing magical keys, a talking cat and a British Rail ticket inspector turned into a bunny ! The plot reminded me of listening to a 5-year-old explaining a weird and wonderful made-up story and wondering where they get all that imagination from !
The tale features Emily Vole, a little girl who made the headlines in the first weeks of her life when she was found in an abandoned hatbox at Stansted Airport. Kept as a modern-day Cinderella in an abhorrent family's laundry room, she befriends the neighbour, Mrs String, who is knocked down and killed, leaving Emily a mysterious inheritance - an old shop, a small bunch of golden keys and a cat called Fidget. It's up to the little girl to reopen the shop and recall the fairies of the old Fairy Detective Agency to duty. Together they must embark on their first mystery and do battle with their great fairy-snatching enemy, Harpella.
Juliette frequently snorted with laughter and listened, spell-bound, to the exciting story that is filled with wacky characters. It's ideal for pre-teens who want to start reading long, chapter books, with or without a little help from mum and dad at bedtime.
star rating : 4/5
- Paperback: 192 pages
- Publisher: Orion Childrens (4 Oct 2012)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1444003720
- ISBN-13: 978-1444003727
- Product Dimensions: 19.4 x 12.8 x 1.8 cm
RRP : £5.99
Disclosure : We received a review copy of the book.
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This sounds like a fab book, it's something I would have liked as a child
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