Hodder Children’s Books ISBN 9781444945300 £6.99
Agent Weasel, legendary super spy, is taking part in an Alpine sporting event, The Winter Whopper Games with his woodland friends. Always on duty, he discovers strange disappearances taking place, of hot chocolate and competitors too. He discovers this is the work of arch villain Dr Snow who is seeking woodland – wide domination by turning everyone into zombies using mind-controlled chocolate activated by flash camera. With the help of his trusty team, Agent Weasel quickly pursues the villain and rescues his captives managing to cope with a sudden avalanche at the same time.
Second in the series by the author who is well known as an illustrator, this is a zany adventure story suitable for independent reading in years 3 or 4, (aged 7-8 years). Occasional asides to the reader pointing out this is what you’d expect to happen in a story like this may prompt thoughts or conversations about other books, characters, story lines and outcomes. The cast of characters, who are all woodland creatures, may prompt interest in British wildlife. The illustrations are fun and match the story style well, the map of the story world at the beginning of the book is a nice touch.
Sue McGonigle