'The Prince of Pants' by Alan McDonald

Prince Pip loves pants...who doesn't. But when he wakes up on the morning of his birthday he is devastated to discover that all of his pants have gone! He then rushes around the palace asking everyone he meets whether they have seen them. Will he ever find his pants??

The first thing to say about this book is that it's about pants and what child doesn't relish in an adult saying the word 'pants' aloud. You are sure to have your child in fits of giggles with this book...because pants are mentioned over and over again...did I say this book was about pants? (Hehe!)

The second thing to mention with this book are the illustrations. They are by Sarah McIntyre an illustrator and children's author in her own right. She wrote the Dinosaur Police book. They are BRIGHT. I love the front cover. I think it's fun and eye-catching. On opening the book you get some great cover pages with pants patterns and then the story illustrations are of a whole different level. I personally find them a bit much. Maybe children will like them, but they are a bit too fluorescent and garish for me. I love the detail and the illustrations themselves are lovely, I especially love that all the animals are wearing pants, I'd just want it toned down a bit...maybe that's just me though.

The final page is a treat for the reader with glow in the dark pants! It even has some handy instructions to explain how to get them to work so that children aren't disappointed.

The story is a simple one and follows a very standard children's story formula with repetition of 'Have you seen my pants?' on each page...don't worry, there's a happy ending! I think it would be ideal for a confident reader aged 6-7 to read independently but the subject matter would appeal to a much broader age range. Shortlisted for the Laugh Out Loud Awards 2017, it's a good fun book and will bring lots of enjoyment to many children, I'm just not sure it will become a classic.

What did you think of the book? Have you used it to support learning? Leave your comments below.

RRP: £5.99

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