The Adventures of Sir Lancelot the Great - by Gerald Morris

This is part of a Series called Knight's Tales.

There are a lot of books with allegedly humourous takes on the traditional tales of knights and days of yore.  And having been obsessed with all things chivalry for nigh on three years, my boys have seen them all.  Ballerina knights, dragons who eat only tinned pineapple, pirate grandmas - you name it and we've read the book.

At first I thought they were a useful antidote to the conventional - especially for littlies who needed gentle nudges to think beyond strict gender-roles, brawn over brains, battle-based climaxes and other cliches of childhood.  But it started to seem a bit lazy when authors relied only on such zany twists to tell a tale.  We wanted more depth, more engagement with the characters. And anyway, all this variation didn't really even seem particularly funny to them; they weren't familiar enough with the basics of the story.

What we needed was a well-told tale of the gallant knight.  Heroic, and honourable, but also humble, humourous and human. While the first chapter did not bode well, in which Lancelot presented as a preening peacock, his character develops with each new chapter, and Lancelot first out-lances, then outwits and finally outdoes the kindness of others, and eventually seeks a quiet retirement.

It was perfectly pitched for reading aloud to the youngsters, and managed a nice balance of non-preachy morals as well as humour that had them laughing out loud.  In bed.  In a most unsleepy manner.

We are on the lookout for others by this author.  I understand he has a series called Squires Tales for slightly older readers.

The Diary of a Wimpy Kid - series by Jeff Kiney

Reviewed by Varun (age 9)

The Diary of a Wimpy Kid by series by Jeff Kinney is one of the funniest books I’ve read. It is full of many funny jokes and pictures. The main characters are Greg Heffley, Rowley, Mum, Frank Heffley (Dad) , Rodrick and Manny. Greg is the main character. Rowley is his best friend and sidekick. The books are written in a child’s writing and have lined pages. It is written in the form of a diary. It describes Greg’s life in high school and his wimpy way and troubles.

A light and funny read for ages 7-10 (even if you’re not a wimpy kid!)

The book titles are (in order)

• Diary of a Wimpy Kid-a novel in cartoons,
• Diary of a Wimpy Kid-Rodrick Rules,
• Diary of a Wimpy Kid-The last Straw and the
• Diary of a Wimpy Kid;Do-it-yourself book.
  

Top five for 9-year-olds

A list of favourites by Varun (aged 9) with descriptions added by his mother!

5. Aussie Angel series by Margaret Clark - great for anyone who loves animals. They are set in Victoria and centre around the family of a wildlife ranger, their pets (which include a slighty crazy cockatoo and camel) and the adventures they have.
4. The Phredde series by Jackie French
3. George and the Secret to the Universe and George's Cosmic Treasure Hunt - Stephen and Lucy Hawking
2. The Wimpy Kid series - Geoff Kinney
1. The Story of a seagull and the Cat who taught it to fly - Lius Sepulveda - absolutely gorgeous story set in a North Sea port featuring of course a seagull and a cat as well as a pair of mad Italian cats.

The Mouse and the Motorcycle - by Beverly Cleary

This book is a lovely tale, which combines gentle, humourous real world observation (hotels, vacuum cleaners) with just enough fantasy to keep younger children tantalised (a talking mouse! who rides a motorbike!)

But most appealing of all, especially for the adult reading aloud, are Cleary's fully three-dimensional characters - which for me echoed down the decades from my own earth-shattering discovery of Ramona Quimby decades ago.  

You can't help but relate to a mouse who feels envy, shame, and guilt - and has a real-world humanity absent in so many other books written for this age group (5-8). More than adding to our enjoyment of the story, I loved seeing the young listeners reflecting (I like to think) on the universality of their foibles, and the ever-present possibilites for redemption.  

Or maybe I was just projecting.  

What I am sure they enjoyed was the action. The machine-centric obsession, the necessity of speed and bravery, the heroic climax to the story and the hair-raising near misses - all the theatrics close to many young boys' hearts, but in just the right doses so it didn't give them nightmares.

We're looking forward to the sequels.