How to make a birthday special – for a Panda! Sunshine is worried that no-one will remember that tomorrow is his birthday. He is sure it is going to be a very disappointing day. But he didn’t know about Sweetie’s very clever surprise! Sunshine is in for a very happy – and noisy – birthday after all!
Sunshine, the giant panda, is grumpy. His birthday is coming and he's sure no one will remember. But his best friend Sweetie has a plan. She sneaks around the zoo at night, asking all the other animals whether they can sing. The lion roars, the python hisses and the chimps say OO OO OOO! But which zoo animal has the best singing voice? Will grumpy Sunshine get a giant birthday surprise? Gill Arbuthnott's hilarious story of animal hijinks and Joanne Nethercott's endearing and lively illustrations combine for an entertaining romp set in Edinburgh Zoo! From the team who brought you Lost at the Zoo.
Gill Arbuthnott lives in Edinburgh and has been a published author since 2003. She writes fiction and non-fiction and reckons that being a children's author is probably the best job in the world. Her recent books Dark Spell, Beneath and What Makes You You? have been shortlisted for major UK book awards. A former science teacher, she loves mixing scientific fact with wonderful anecdotes of people and places.
GILL ARBUTHNOTT Q&A:
What is the maddest thing you have ever done?
Nothing very mad… I went once to buy a black kitten and came back with a deaf, one-eyed white adult cat. (It wasn’t my fault though: he chose me.) Oh, and there was the time at the fun fair when I went on a roller coaster even though I knew I hated them. It felt like the longest two minutes of my life.
Which of the mad scientists would you have liked to meet and why?
Rita Levi-Montalcini. Not only did she do important work under very difficult conditions, she lived through amazing times. She alsohad great style in the way she dressed and looked, and she was a fabulous cook. What a woman!
Which discovery would you have liked to have made?
I’d love to have been part of the discovery of the structure of DNA (the chemical that controls most of what we are). It’s so beautiful, and it unlocked so many ideas in Biology. AND I would have to go to work with some incredible people. Maybe I’ll tell you about them in another book!
What do you think is the best discovery made by a scientist?
It’s not an important discovery, but it has made a lot of people very happy… The discovery of how to make chocolate so that it starts to melt at the temperature of the human mouth!
