Jefferson Ponsonby-Smythe is a dapper, modern (he has a mobile phone) hedgehog. He is looking forward to his visit to Cut n' Dye - his hairdresser. It is time to have his quiff trimmed.
On the way into town, however, a speeding car almost knocks him over. The car is driven by a pair of shifty looking humans. What are they doing in Animal Kingdom when they clearly come from The Land of the Humans? This is the first in a series of events, none of which Jefferson or indeed you, the reader, could possibly anticipate.
"That was life: one minute you feel light, joyful and carefree and then, in a split second, everything changes. Happiness is so fragile, he said to himself, and tried to think about other things."
On arriving at Cut n' Dye, Jefferson makes a gruesome discovery. His hairdresser Mr Edgar, a badger, is on the floor of the salon, with a pair of scissors in his chest. He has been murdered. Jefferson reaches down to help his friend and at that very moment the only other customer wakes up from her doze under the hairdryer. It looks as though Jefferson himself is the murderer. He tries to explain but the nanny goat, Mrs Kristiansen, has run out into the street screaming. Jefferson reacts by running - running away as fast as he can.
With the help of his best friend Gilbert, a young pig, the race is on to find the real culprit, to clear Jefferson's name and solve the mystery of those human drivers who almost knocked him over earlier in the day. Sophie, niece of the deceased hairdresser, gives Jefferson and Gilbert a odd postcard sent by her uncle Mr Edgar. It has been sent from Granville. Gilbert's cousin is a driver with Globetrotters. He tells Jefferson that they should join a tour to Granville in The Land of Humans so they can continue their investigation.
"You want us to conduct our investigations on a package tour? 'That's right! You go around in a herd, and no one pays any attention to you, you take as many photos as you please. It's ideal."
The tour leaves in three days. Jefferson stays in hiding, Gilbert packs their bags and the pair of friends set off to uncover the truth about the murder of Mr Edgar and along the way this very special pair of friends will also discover so much more about some truly big issues.
There are parts of this story that are laugh out loud funny; there are madcap chase scenes; heroic deeds; and really wonderful characters but I also need to explain that Chapter 11 is very disturbing which is why I think this book is really for mature readers aged 10 or 11+. In Chapter 11 Gilbert visits an abattoir and his descriptions of the animal cruelty are quite graphic. I imagine this chapter will raise a lot of important questions for young readers and adults too.
On a lighter note I especially loved all the tourists on the Globetrotters tour - animals of all shapes and sizes and with truly quirky personalities. There are also terrific black and white illustrations scattered throughout this book:
In this video the translator, Ros Schwartz, reads from the first chapter of Jefferson which was originally published in French with the same title - Jefferson.
In summary this is a book I loved, I raced through it desperate to solve the crime BUT this is not a book for every child. Many young readers will love this book but I do suggest you (the adult reader) should check it out first just to check it is a good fit for your child or class.
Here are some reviews so you can read more plot details:
Jean-Claude Mourlevat is the author of nearly thirty books and he has been nominated for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award several times.
1 comment:
Great anthropomorphic read bringing to light the serious issue of animal abuse but in a very unique way.
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