Natalie loves the books and stories her parents read aloud and she looks forward to being able to read to herself and her little brother Alphonse joyfully anticipates her reading to him too. But when she starts school she is disappointed to discover that letters and words look like ‘prickles or birds’ feet’ and ‘scuttling insects’. What’s more, the reading books she’s given don’t seem to have stories in them…
This picture book about how Natalie learns to love books again with the help of her family and her own imagination demonstrates with great humour that learning to read is about so much more than decoding print.
Natalie and Alphonse really like books and stories ... and now it's time for Natalie to learn how to read all by herself!
In the second title featuring favourite monster siblings, Natalie and Alphonse, Natalie is learning to read. "Now I can read all the stories in the world," she says. "And you can read them to me!" adds little brother Alphonse. But when Natalie tries to read all by herself for the first time, the letters look like squiggles, and she isn't so sure any more. With her unique humour and bold, brilliant art, Daisy Hirst celebrates the joy of sharing stories, and perfectly evokes those feelings of frustration and pride that come with learning something new.
A wonderfully observant picture book, ideal for sharing with children learning to read. - Emma O'Donovan, BabyLondon
A heart-warming tale of the rewards of perseverance and a love of stories. - Louise Stothard, Carousel
Praise for Alphonse, That Is Not OK to Do!: A delightfully original work, worth every penny The Independent
Author
About Daisy Hirst
Daisy Hirst studied English and Creative Writing at Warwick University and Illustration at the Cambridge School of Art before becoming an author and illustrator. She won the Lara Jones award in the Macmillan Prize for The Runaway Baby and her debut picture book, The Girl With the Parrott on Her Head, was selected as The Times' children's book of the week. Her second book, Alphonse, That Is Not OK to Do!, has been translated into nine different languages worldwide. Daisy lives Worcester.
