Bloomsbury ISBN: 9781408873953. £6.99
This third book in this popular series sees the welcome return of Malcolm, his friend Crackersnacker the genies and the weasels in a new battle against Uncle Gobb and his relentless pursuit of fact-driven education and ‘rich knowledge’. Dad is over temporarily from America with Lizard, half sister to Malcolm. She, along with cousin Wenda, is a clever foil to Uncle Gobb and his nasty genie and enable Malcolm to feel better about situations which often worry him. Clever plotting over the disputed plot of land sees Uncle Gobb finally defeated and then rather diminished by his genie. Luckily, Malcolm has a kind heart and gathers him back into the family. This anarchic series with its comic characters, word-play, tangential asides, running jokes and a wonderfully silly appendix, provides a very appealing bridge from picture books and reading schemes into chapter books – especially for reluctant readers. Layton’s hilarious cartoon- style illustrations, the font changes and speech bubbles all help to make the pages appealing and easy to navigate. Warmth, the value of family love and themes of loyalty and friendship underpin the story, which along with a slightly vulnerable hero add to the non-threatening aspect of the book. Perhaps now, though, Mr Rosen could use his prodigious talent to write something new and slightly more challenging to take these readers to the next stage rather than offer more of the same, however successful the formula.
Sue Barrett