"Floof is floofy. Floof is very floofy. Floof is the floofiest!
Good morning, Floof."
Floof (the book and the character) is so much fun. I am not at all a cat person but little Floof has brightened my day and captured my heart. I love her personality including her treachery when she takes the dog’s ball and gets up to all sorts of night time mischief. The style used for this book is simple and uncluttered keeping the focus firmly on Floof. Her name is just perfect and so much fun to say over and over.
The illustrations are so effective making Floof look so fluffy and her eyes are perfectly placed to convey her cheeky behaviour. This book has a delightful balance of words which say one thing and a text which goes so much further. You young reading companion is sure to laugh at all the naughtiness.
We never meet her family but we feel their exasperation with this naughty cat in the background of so many pages. The mood is light and joyful. Of particular note are the illustrations where we just see a paw or the tips of her ears, but even these tiny glimpses of Floof say so much.
This book will fully engage any young reader or preschool group, it is written with a minimal but very effective text, and the layout of the illustrations is varied and interesting. Heidi McKinnon is not afraid to continue an illustration over centre of the page and she includes just the right amount of white space too. The end papers are a closeup of Floof's fluffy fur.
Take a close look at the text quote at the start of this post. Notice the invented words, the repetition and the use of direct speech - the off stage narrator is speaking directly to Floof.
You should also look for an earlier book by Heidi McKinnon - We found a Cat.
No comments:
Post a Comment