You Can’t Take an Elephant on the Bus

Patricia Cleveland-Peck, ill. David Tazzyman, Bloomsbury, 32pp, 978-1-40884-982-8, £6.99 pbk

David Tazzyman’s scatchy style is a great match to this scatty, surprising picture book. There are ridiculous rhymes and daft ideas aplenty in this chaotic series of animals in transit – don’t put a whale on a bike, a pig on a skateboard– … There’s lots of sage advice here and no one will guess the wacky conclusion. Tazzyman’s illustrations are a joy so it’s great to see him have fun with these silly situations. The text could be stronger so might not stand up to as many repeat readings as Kes Gray’s similar but superior texts in Oi Frog! and How Many Legs?, but this is bound to get a few laughs and highlights what a great illustrative talent Tazzyman is. Let’s hope he picks up a few more picture book deals as a result!