Tag: Katz Cowley

All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth

Since 1944 children around the world have sung – and lisped – this classic Christmas song. This Christmas it has been brought to life in picture book format illustrated by Katz Cowley. The protagonist is a delightfully cheeky monkey called Danny who is, of course, missing his front teeth and is pictured envying those who DO have their front teeth, as well as imagining ways he can get some for himself…

All I want for Christmas
is my two front teeth,
My two front teeth,
See my two front teeth.

Since 1944 children around the world have sung – and lisped – this classic Christmas song. This Christmas it has been brought to life in picture book format illustrated by Katz Cowley. The protagonist is a delightfully cheeky monkey called Danny who is, of course, missing his front teeth and is pictured envying those who DO have their front teeth, as well as imagining ways he can get some for himself. The final illustration shows the new teeth just starting to peek through his guns.

The book is accompanied by a CD with performer Craig Smith (of Wonky Donkey fame) singing the song, as well as a second song “Toothless” and a Monkey version of the title song – that is, the tune is ‘sung’ with monkey noises, which adults may find slightly grating, but kids will love.

An excellent Christmas gift.

All I Want for Christmas

All I Want for Christmas, by Don Gardner, illustrated by Katz Cowley
Scholastic Australia, 2011
ISBN 9781741697841

This book can be purchased from good bookstores, or online from Fishpond. Buying through this link supports Aussiereviews.

The Fidgety Itch, by Lucy Davey & Katz Cowley

Down beneath the fru-fru trees
Timpkin was gleefully
gobbling his cheese,
when something began to bother his knees.

Poor Timpkin! When a mouse finds some cheese, he doesn’t want to put it down, not even to scratch the most fidgety itch. So he calls for help. Feather McDoo flies in to help. Now Timpkin is feeling better, but not poor Feather. She has an itch that ‘jiggles and tickles like porcupine prickles’. Next comes Possum. And…you guessed it…he develops an itch too! But when Fuzzy O’Hare arrives and develops an itch of his own, who will scratch it? Illustrations are in ‘watercolour and mosquito sweat’! The animals have very expressive faces and body language, reflecting the irritation and the relief of terrible itches.

There’s nothing worse than an itch that’s inconvenient to reach to scratch. And there’s nothing like the relief of having that itch scratched. The Fidgety Itch grows a chain of cooperative scratchers all happy to be helping out. Readers will enjoy finding the itch-maker on each opening. The text is in rhyme and cumulative, and full of interesting words, just made for repeating. As well as the rhyme, there’s repetition and alliteration. Recommended for pre-schoolers and early primary readers.

The Fidgety Itch

The Fidgety Itch, Lucy Davey, ill Katz Cowley
Scholastic NZ
2010 ISBN: 9781869439675

review by Claire Saxby, Children’s Author
www.clairesaxby.com

This book can be purchased in good bookstores, or online from Fishpond.